Of course you have been watching movies for years. Maybe you have subscribed to various cable or satellite channels so that you can watch even more movies. So, how many of them had the qualities mentioned above? How many of them, produced with enormous budgets and large casts and over-promoted, can you watch without finally becoming bored ? How many of them can fill you with indescribable emotions and make you resolve to follow in the footsteps of those characters?

One such movie is the masterpiece The Message. How many times have you seen it? I am sure that some of you have watched it ten, fifteen, or even more times. This would not surprise me at all, for we do not get weary of reading the Qur’an, which God revealed to humanity as the source of guidance and peace. Likewise, the lives and struggles of those who tried to live according to the Quranic teachings do not tire us. On the contrary, The Message refreshes your spirit each time you watch it.

There are two versions of this movie. The Message, directed by Moustapha Akhad and produced in the U.S., attracted attention due to the participation of some famous actors and actresses, among them Anthony Quinn, who “lives” the role he plays, Hamza, the Prophet’s uncle. Irene Papas, who played Abu Sufyan’s wife Hind, made this woman a prominent character, although historically Hind did not have an important part in the story.

The other film, the Arab made al-Risala, which has almost the same scenario, was watched mostly in Arab countries. Its most distinguishing feature is that the Qur’anic verses are recited in their original form (instead of in translation). This movie did not attract as much attention, because there were no movie stars in the leading roles. Nevertheless, the characters are portrayed quite successfully.

In both movies, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is not shown. Rather, he is symbolized through the staff he carries, the camel he rides, or the people who talk with him. Both scenarios begin by depicting the “Era of Ignorance” period in Arabia. Makka’s social structure and its culture are shown in some detail: the prevailing tyranny and injustice, the hundreds of deities being worshipped and the sacrifices offered to them, the annual fairs, and other activities are presented. This was the milieu into which the Prophet was born. His world was one in which poetry and rhetoric was favored, women and slaves were not regarded as human, where might was right, and where thousands of people died in blood feuds. In short, there was no one to stand up as a living monument of faith or courage or to speak up for the truth.

We read about the Prophet’s life or learn about it from the people around us. But how many times have we contemplated his struggles and difficulties in order to understand him better? These works fulfill an important duty in terms of informing those who do not have the time for such contemplation about the lives of these ascetic people, by taking them to the Makka of that time.

The revelation’s beginning is portrayed by reciting the first verses in the darkness of the Hira cave. First, the Prophet invites those who are close to him to Islam. Everything is done in great secrecy. The setting is the house of Ibn Arqam (where the early Muslims gathered) and the new converts devote themselves to this cause there. When there are 40 of them, the period of public preaching begins. Then we see another touching scene: the Muslim community is walking toward the Ka’ba with the Messenger in the middle. They are met with stones, spittle, clubs, and insults. One of the most spectacular scenes is close at hand: Hamza, whom the Messenger later nicknamed “the lion of God,” rescues these people, who could have been killed on the spot due to the provocations of Abu Jahl. He rides through the crowd and, to everyone’s surprise, dismounts and hits Abu Jahl with his bow. As a result of beginning to preach in public, the poor and weak Muslims are subjected to violence at the hands of the Makkan polytheists. The audience sees Bilal and Ammar ibn Yasar being tormented and tortured.

One of the most emotive scenes is the discussion held before King Negus between the first Muslims and the Makkan polytheists who followed them there. The Prophet, describing Negus as a just ruler, told the persecuted Muslims to take refuge in his land. So, Amr ibn al- ‘As, at that time a polytheist, was sent to bring them back and was given many gifts to bestow upon Negus. The king listens to their conversation for a long time, and for a moment thinks about handing them over, but decides to protect them after Ja‘far ibn Abu Talib recites the Quranic verses about Mary. These scenes are significant in that they show how the Christians of that time and area viewed Islam.

After a while, the Prophet and many Muslims emigrate to Madina. Another well-known scene is when the Messenger and Abu Bakr enter Madina. When the people, who have been waiting for days on the rooftops and in the trees, begin singing the hymn Talaal Badru to welcome him enthusiastically, a scene is created to touch the heart of all that witness it. And Madina’s Muslims, who beg the Makkan immigrants to stay with them, as well as the heartfelt embraces that are the product of the affiliation felt between the two groups, fill our hearts with emotion and our eyes with longed-for sights.

The following scenes depict the wars between the Muslims and the polytheists. Both movies give a detailed depiction of the battles of Badr and Uhud. The war tactics practiced around the wells of Badr and Mount Uhud are presented as comprehensively as possible. The peace of Hudaybiyah is pictured, but not focused on much. After the polytheists break the treaty, the Muslims, now more powerful than before, led by the Messenger and his followers, march upon Makka. Campfires are lit around Makka to intimidate the polytheists, Abu Sufyan tries to make peace and then coverts to Islam, we see the Prophet’s entrance to the city and witness him heading toward the Ka’ba…

Here come the scenes that fill you with emotion and move you so much. The Makkan exiles are once again walking along the streets of their hometown. Some embrace their relatives, kiss the ground, or similar actions. But the Prophet, who missed God’s House more than anything else, enters the Ka’ba … and we go inside with him. He uses his staff to topple the idols that have darkened the soul of humanity one by one, for they are nothing but stones and wood. We become so absorbed that, for a moment, we forget that we are watching a movie and wish that the camera would move a little so that we could see his blessed hand holding the staff, as well as his holy face. Bilal stands upon the Kab‘a’s roof and calls the faithful to prayer, just as the Prophet has told him to do. This call rings out in Makka … bliss fills the hearts, tears fill the eyes.

Then comes the final scene: the Farewell Sermon. One hundred thousand people fill the Uranah valley of Mount Arafat, and all eyes and ears turn upon him. At the end of this sermon, after he hears his community bear witness that he has fulfilled his duty, he says: “O God, Bear witness!” three times.

We see three blessed riders in the desert, representing the thousands of companions who went out into the world to invite people to Islam. After a certain point they separate, saying farewell to each other. Perhaps never to return, they are setting off for lands that are completely unknown to them in order to obey the Messenger’s command to tell others about Islam. Then the calls to prayer begin, one after another, recited in different tones, from mosques of different architectural styles, located in different lands.

This is how the movie ends , but you just keep sitting in front of the screen for a while. Though your eyes are still on the screen, fixed absently, your mind is there, far away in the deserts of Madina, thinking about the exalted guide who reminded people of their humanity, about the world which had been oblivious of humanity. Your soul is striving to follow on his path, and you leave your seat in a completely different mood.

Although this industry had been an effective instrument for advertising and increasing political and social efficiency, the wide screen is being used for different purposes. In contrast with earlier films, which were dominated by guns, money, and status and also promoted authority, individualism, adventure-seeking, and atheism, the last 5 years have seen movies highlight something else: material gain should not be the ultimate purpose, the necessity of unity and cooperation, and life after death. This reflects the severely deteriorated structure of the American family and wondering how it can be restored.

Movies with social themes

Family themes. In The Kid (2000), Bruce Willis plays a workaholic who long ago forgot his past and family and refuses to see his father. Then one day his childhood appears before his eyes in the form of himself as a child. Thanks to this event, he makes peace with his past and gradually regains his lost values. This movie is one of many recent movies depicting weakened family ties: a lack of spousal love, children leaving home at earlier ages and forgetting their families, and elderly parents being left unprotected by their children.

In The Family Man (2000), Nicholas Cage is a passionate businessman desperate to achieve as high a status as possible. He does not know that real pleasure can be found in a lovely wife and children. One day, he wakes up and finds himself married with two children. As fictitious as it is, he cannot realize how his life changed all of a sudden, but later realizes real happiness with his new family. The first thing he does after this so-close-to-real dream is to search for the woman he is going to marry.

American Beauty, which won the Oscar in 1999, made its way through many other big-budget movies. Spousal mistrust and the widening generation gap were the main topic in this movie, and the fact it won The Best Picture award shows the importance given to the concept of family.

Life after death themes. Life after death also has been a popular theme. The Sixth Sense (1990), a nominee for The Best Picture award in 1999, features a child who sees dead people walking around like regular people. They have an explicit message: The universe is more than what we can perceive through our five senses. In Ghost (1990), Patrick Swayze is a dead person whose soul is still in touch with this world and his beloved wife, whom he tries to protect from danger. What Dreams May Come (1998) takes Robin Williams into Heaven and Hell so he can meet his wife and children again. Gladiator (2000), awarded five Oscars including The Best Picture award, is the story of the Maximus, commander-in-chief of the Roman army, who is willing to leave behind status and fame so that he can reunite with his family for happiness. He is an invincible ” but praying ” commander, who teaches his soldiers about what comes after death, and tragically reaches his family at the end.

Angels and the Devil. Angels and the Devil also are frequent topics. City of Angels (1998) is a good example. Meg Ryan is a person who can exercise free will, taste worldly pleasures, and is expected to know God, whereas Nicholas Cage is an angel who lives in a different dimension and has none of these abilities. Likewise, Brad Pitt portrays the angel of death in Meet Joe Black (1998) and shows us a fictional perspective through an angel’s eyes.

In the digitally remastered and remixed version of The Exorcist (2000), a family tries to reclaim their possessed teenage daughter through every possible medical treatment. In the end, however, two priests are called to exorcise the demon. In The Devil’s Advocate (1997), Al Pacino portrays the Devil, who seeks to control people with lust, status, and money. Keanu Reeves portrays a very successful lawyer who has never lost a trial. He finds himself in a struggle between the Devil’s intrigues and his human virtues.

In End of Days (1999), Arnold Schwarzenegger is an ex-cop who believes in the brute power of muscles and weapons. However, he comes to realize that conventional methods of combat do not work on Beelzebub (the Devil), and so has to devise other solutions. Throwing away his machine gun, he kneels at the altar and prays for help.

Destiny. Destiny is another hot topic. Destiny is a significant part of the belief that keeps societies up and strong. Such a belief lets us know that everything comes from God, which gives us the strength to bear life’s difficulties. Almost 100 years ago, speculation that a comet might hit Earth scared many people who did not believe in destiny. Final Destination is about a group of young people who attempt, but fail, to challenge the destiny that is chasing them. The Green Mile and Fight Club are also good examples for movies with metaphysical content that show that life is not all that we can see.

Religion. Christianity is being questioned in Hollywood movies. In Stigmata (1999), during the 1940s some scripts ” supposedly the original New Testament scriptures from Jesus’ time ” written in ancient Aramaic on leather pieces are found rolled in several jars. They are sent to Rome, after which nothing is heard about them. In the meantime, Frankie, a young girl in her twenties, is attacked brutally by an unseen assailant. She consults doctors and psychiatrists, but nobody can help her. The only man who can help is Andrew Kiernan (Gabriel Byrne), an investigator sent by the Vatican to stop demons from taking over her life.

Bless the Child (2000) tells about a child with supernatural powers. Her evil occultist mom and stepfather want to take her back from her aunt who raised her. The girl talks with her stepfather just like Jesus talked with the Devil, as recorded in the Bible. Her aunt tries to save her from a Biblical prophecy, and in the end angels help them out. In Dracula (2000), people realize that they can defeat Dracula’s supernatural powers only by seeking help from God.

Hollywood also has become interested in other religions. Several movies have been made about Buddhist Tibet and the Dalai Lama. Islam, despite its close and popular association with terrorism in the minds of many, has appeared in a few movies with some positive images. For example, Antonio Banderas played a Muslim envoy (Ahmad Ibn Fadlan) from Amawis in the 13th Warrior (1999), who was an educated and refined person. In Robin Hood (1991), during the Fourth Crusade Kevin Costner brought with him back to England a scholarly Muslim who was admired by the English because he could use binoculars and gunpowder.

Conclusion

These movies inspire us with a promising future, as materialism appears to be less popular and people are interested in searching for the soul, the Hereafter, brotherhood and sisterhood, peace, and love. We can only hope that this trend will continue.

References

• www.hollywood.com
• www.movies.go.com

Russia is very well aware of the existence of some groups that claim to attack for the sake of Islam. However, I see that most Islamic societies do not agree with such self-proclaimed Muslim’s claims that they are representing them. These groups manipulate Islam either slightly or extensively in order to insert themselves within its perfect world, sometimes with various ethnic motivations. Osama bin Laden, a Saudi, is undoubtedly seeking support from Muslims and portraying himself to the world as a Muslim leader. But has any group ever acknowledged him as such a leader? In addition, I have not yet seen any clear evidence that men linked with Islam are behind the tragic events in New York and Washington.

This might be either a very well-planned campaign or an immediate reaction of the American media, which is very used to accusing all Muslims in the world. I do not perceive Islam as a religion of violence. Although we in Russia suffer in Chechnya and Moscow from bomb attacks, I do not think Islam is the underlying reason behind most of these terrorist activities. We have concrete evidence that bombings and other acts of violence have been committed by Chechens; however, I do not believe that Islam can be blamed for them.

The September 11th tragedy was an act of violence, a type with which we have been familiarized by American movies. It also can be argued that these movies involve scenes that inspire such attacks to be organized. Moreover, time and again America has produced protesting generations, especially at times of crisis like the wars in Korea and Vietnam. We might hear anti-war voices arising from among those Americans who will call attention to America’s responsibility and that this attack was a provocation.

If we can unite our power to this cause, we can move successfully against terrorism. It is also important to locate the only superpower at a more appropriate status, both for the good of itself and for humanity in general.

America is certainly a great nation, and it will overcome this crisis. However, I am concerned with the possibility that its leaders might make things even worse in the rest of the world.

Personally, I think that Americans do not understand and know too much about history. This might be because they are a young nation or because they consist of many different peoples. They do not have outstanding historians. However, the problems of Europe and Asia are always deeply rooted in the past. Unfortunately, I have not yet met any American who is well informed about the reasons of these events and from where they are arising. Americans react immediately, sometimes deprived of the consciousness that history is not only the past but also the future. We must teach history and learn from it.

The movie makers probably did not intend to make killing look attractive. But was it the final effect anyways? Do movies depicting indecent acts fail to show the consequences sufficiently? What can society do about this trend? These and similar questions have been asked and debated for decades. Below, we analyze a time in Hollywood when the concentrated efforts of concerned individuals and organizations had a significant positive impact on forcing the movie industry to move toward self-regulation.

The Beginning of the Movie Industry

Movies rose as a new form of entertainment at the turn of twentieth century. By the 1920s, 40 million Americans were watching them each week. After winning the right to vote in 1920, flapper girls were exercising their new-found freedom, Harlem nightclubs flourished with whites with an interest in African American culture, and the number of gangs selling liquor during Prohibition increased. Movie producers displayed these value changes in their films to attract more young people. This started the big fight between America’s moral guardians and the movie makers.

Hollywood scandals in the early 1920s accelerated the demand for movie censorship. In 1921, the famous comedian Fatty Arbuckle was accused of raping and murdering a young actress; director William Desmond Taylor was found murdered, and a series of front page stories revealed his drug use and sex life; actor Wallace Reid died of a drug overdose; and America’s “sweetheart,” Mary Pickford, got a quick divorce to marry Douglas Fairbanks.

The motion picture business had become an industry. Film companies seeking to integrate production, distribution, and exhibition had one formula in mind: expansion meant capital, capital meant Wall Street, and Wall Street meant conservative business practices. They could not afford any scandals or federal investigations of Hollywood.

The Pressure for Codes Builds

Leff and Simmons write: “In 1921 alone, solons in thirty-seven states introduced nearly one hundred bills designed to censor motion pictures. Women could not smoke on screen in Kansas but could in Ohio; a pregnant woman could not appear on screen in Pennsylvania but could in New York. Six censorship states, which controlled over thirty percent of the theater seats in America, condemned illegitimacy and sexual deviance.”(1) State censors recut films after the producers, and the outcome was unfavorable. Local exhibitors were tired of the cost of censor cuts and attacks by the public and the media. In January 1922, the movie company presidents formed a trade association, the Motion Picture Producers and Distributers of America (MPPDA). Postmaster General Will Hays, an ex-Republican national chairman with White House connections, was chosen as their head. He was a great success as a spokesperson, but failed as a censor regulator of movie content.

Under Hays, Hollywood instituted a morals clause that, as part of the standard employment contract, regulated performers’ off-screen lives: “The artist agrees to conduct himself with due regard to public conventions and morals and agrees that he will not do or commit any act or thing that will tend to degrade him in society or bring him into public hatred, contempt, scorn or ridicule, or that will tend to shock, insult or offend the community or ridicule public morals or decency or prejudice the producer or the motion picture industry in general.”(2) Furious with such self-regulation and restraints, many ignored the contract, and so the scandals continued.

A mainly Protestant anti-movie lobby grew larger and more threatening in the mid-1920s. The Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), the Reverand William H. Short’s Motion Picture Research Council, and Canon William Shaefe Chase’s Federal Motion Picture Council, among others, all lobbied for federal action. Supporters of cencorship bills claimed that movies were immoral, vile, and corrupting young people. With the advent of —talking— films, the moral guardians of America faced a bigger threat: movies were more popular and dialogue challenged public norms. According to Black: —In 1928 the New York State censorship board cut over 4,000 scenes from more than 600 films submitted, and Chicago censors sliced more than 600 scenes.—(3) Martin Quigley, owner and publisher of the industry trade journal Exhibitors Herald-World, initiated in 1929 the first attempt by Catholics to influence the film industry. Believing that government censorship was futile, he began thinking of a code that would include rules, regulations, and philosophy. Father FitzGeorge Dinneen, Chicago censor board advisor, sent him to Father Daniel Lord, a St. Louis University professor who could write the document. The resulting production code had three working principles:

• No picture should lower the moral standards of those who see it.

• Law, natural or divine, must not belittled, ridiculed, nor must a sentiment be created against it.

• As far as possible, life should not be misrepresented, at least not in such a way as to place in the mind of youth false values of life.(4)

The production code termed movies entertainment, and those who made them were obligated to produce —correct entertainment— for mass audiences. Movies had a profound impact on the —bodies and souls of human beings,— and could —affect spiritual and moral progress.— Hays saw the code in early 1930. He later wrote: —My eyes nearly popped out when I read it. This was the very thing I had been looking for.—(5) The code announced specific limitations on language and behavior. Lots of offensive words and phrases were banned, and the ridicule of religion, nudity, evocative dances, depiction of illegal drug use, and scenes of childbirth were prohibited. The code was explicit when it came to on-screen crime and sex:

I. Crimes against the Law

These shall never be presented in such a way as to throw sympathy with the crime as against law and justice or to inspire others with a desire for imitation.

1. Murder

1. The technique of murder must be presented in a way that will not inspire imitation
2.  Brutal killings are not to be presented in detail c. Revenge in modern times shall not be justified

2. Methods of crime should not be explicitly presented

1. Theft, robbery, safe cracking, and dynamiting of trains, mines, buildings, etc., should not be detailed in method
2. Arson must be subject to the same safeguards
3. The use of firearms should be restricted to essentials d. Methods of smuggling should not be presented

3. Illegal drug traffic must never be presented a. The use of liquor in American life, when not required by the plot or for proper characterization, will not be shown.

II. Sex

The sanctity of the institution of marriage and the home shall be upheld. Pictures shall not interfere that low forms of sex relationship are the accepted or common thing. 1. Adultery, sometimes necessary plot material, must not be explicitly treated, or justified, or presented attractively. 2. Scenes of Passion a. They should not be introduced when not essential to the plot. b. Excessive and lustful kissing, lustful embraces, suggestive postures and gestures, are not to be shown. c. In general passion should so be treated that these scenes do not simulate the lower and baser element.(6) Interestingly, the above principles set forth by a Catholic scholar were in perfect accord with the moral codes of Islam, another Abrahamic religion that prohibits the vivid depiction of actions not approved by God.(7) By the beginning of the Depression, film studios turned increasingly to themes of sex and violence to attract audiences. Finally, Hays used the resulting public reaction to persuade the studios that enforcing the code would be the most secure and economical answer to their troubles. If the movie industry regulated itself, it could prevent likely government intervention. The film companies were in debt, having spent a lot of money to introduce sound, and many had lost money in the stock market crash of 1929. Desperate to cut costs, they decided to avoid paying to revise the film after the censorship boards made their edits, by following the code before making their movies. The code was adopted in 1930.

Joe Breen Gets Involved

During 1930-34, movie producers ignored and openly mocked the code. The pressure continued from the Catholic Church with the support from Jewish and Protestant leaders. In 1934 Joe Breen, a strict Catholic moralist working as a public relations man for the production code in Hay’s office, was hired to run Hollywood’s Production Code Administration (PCA). Breen brought new standards: —The PCA had the authority to review all movies and demand script changes. Any theater that ran a film without the PCA seal of approval would be fined $25,000.—(8) Finally the Code had some power. Studios accepted it and produced films that met Breen’s standards. Largely because of his efforts to get the code implemented, it has become known as Breen’s Code. It lasted for more than two decades, being officially abandoned only in 1968. Breen’s Code is a perfect example of people affecting the behavior of institutions whose motives may not match the best interests of the people they serve. By expressing their dissatisfaction and organizing to pressure the motion picture industry, Americans managed to change the nature of the movie industry’s products toward higher moral standards held in common by most monotheistic religions. As we go into the twenty-first century, there are many areas in which people of faith can work together to make a positive change in their societies and the world

Footnotes

1. Six states: Pennsylvania, Ohio, Florida, New York, Maryland, Kansas, and Virginia. Leonard J. Leff, and Jerold L. Simmons, The Dame in the Kimono (New York: Grove Weidenfeld, 1990), 4.
2. Ibid., 5.
3. Gregory D. Black, Hollywood Censored (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1994), 34.
4. Leff and Simmons, The Dame in the Kimono, 284-85.
5. Black, Hollywood Censored, 40.
6. Leff and Simmons, The Dame in the Kimono, 284-85.
7. Bukhari, —The Prophets,— No. 8.
8. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/cultureshock/beyond/hollywood.html.

Additional References

• O’Connor, John E. and Jackson, Martin A. (eds.). American History/American Film.
• New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Co., 1979. Walsh, Frank. Sin and Censorship. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1996.

Even though today’s viewers consider Frankenstein too pedestrian, viewers in 1931 found it so frightening and disgusting that Whale was criticized quite harshly. Earlier fantastic horror films that served as early examples of this genre, such as Frankenstein, Dracula, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, were adaptations of literature and did not have much cinematographic merit.

In the 1930s, with the appearance of sound pictures, the movie industry could no longer remain indifferent to horror movies-especially the big success of Dracula, directed by Todd Browning and starring Bela Lugosi.

Up until World War II, many horror movies were released one after the other. As the war intensified, the genre’s theme shifted to psychological distress, and gradually toward European themes.

Violence and Blood

In England, near the end of 1950s, traditional horror films continued to be produced: Dracula, Revenge of Frankenstein, The Mummy, and The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll. However, the genre’s content changed somewhat. As color movies emerged, such movies as Paranoiac, Nightmare, Evil of Frankenstein, and Hysteria contained more violence, blood, massacres, and impalings, rather than fantastic themes. As viewer interest increased, the genre was accepted by the world’s leading cinema industries, including those in Asia, and horror films were shown around the world. In Italy, movies like the very successful The Mask of Satan acquired cult status.

Hollywood Begins To Rule

The American movie industry of the 1970s, the heart and soul of the global movie industry, gave considerable room to this genre, especially in the case of small-budget productions. However, the fantastic heroes of classical horror movies were replaced almost completely by exaggerated and “real” horror. Movie screens turned into pools of blood and depicted shoving needles into people’s eyes, cannibalism, dismembering bodies with chainsaws, and devil possession. Many movies had to be toned down before their release, among them Tobe Hooper’s The Exorcist (1973); David Cronenberg’s They Came From Within, The Parasite Murders, and Shivers (1975); John Carpenter’s Halloween (1978); and Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead (1983).

Additionally, movies like Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979) and Wes Craven’s A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) blended science fiction and horror or comedy and horror. More importantly, they were big hits with moviegoers.

In contemporary horror movies, which produce sequels proportional to the interest stirred, we observe harsh criticism of society and the system, as well as a blending of comedy and horror or an accentuation of metaphysics. In recent years, movies produced by Wes Craven and John Carpenter, whose names are now forever linked with this genre, were warmly welcomed by moviegoers.

Giovanni Scognamillo: “Horror” lost its credibility

In recent years, the horror genre has suffered several traumas. The main problems are its diminishing credibility and marketability concerns. Giovanni Scagnamillo, the famous Italian director, says: “We can assure horror movies a type of popular cinema. Despite this, many famous directors show interest in this genre. Undoubtedly, there are really bad horror productions of this type. We can even say that most of them are substandard, second class.

“However, there also are many unpromising movies in other genres. In my opinion, we should talk about the cinematographic value of the movies. As a pro of the horror genre, I am in favor of fantastic horror. It can cover more topics and different dimensions. You can do anything as long as you use your imagination. Other horror types have to confirm to specific restrictions. In horror movies, credibility is rather hard to find, because Hollywood is producing movies for a relatively young audience, regardless of budget. Grown-ups do not go to movies very often. Hence to attract young people, producers accentuate effects and go for the shock effect.” (Asik, 2)

A movie released on July 30, 1999, has overcome these problems via the newest form of media: the Internet. It also signals a new era in horror movie genre.

The Blair Witch Project

Two young men and a women go into the forests of Maryland to shoot a documentary. They end up filming The Blair Witch Legend, which has somehow survived until today. They interview area residents, talk to historians, and produce a documentary film by synthesizing the gathered data. Mysteriously, nothing is heard of them for a year. Then the following year, deep in the forest in which they were lost, their footage is found. In the scenes shot with one color and one black-and-white camera, their research and horrifying nights spent in the forest are recorded. This is a very brief summary of the movie. If you think you have a fine topic, a fascinating novel, and enough material to produce an impressive horror movie, all you have to do is create a proper fiction. This is what Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez, two university pals, did. Their movie, The Blair Witch Project, has already made $150 million in box office sales just in the United States. Another astounding aspect is that it cost only about $30,000 to make. After El Mariachi, which carried Robert Rodriguez to Hollywood in 1993 and cost only $7,000, The Blair Witch Project is another exemplar of a low-budget film becoming a box office success.

A Fake Documentary

The planning stage of The Blair Witch Project is as interesting as its theme. In 1992, two University of Central Florida (Orlando) students decide to shoot a documentary movie in a television-series style. They call their production a documentary, although most of it is made up. First, they devise The Blair Witch Legend and backdate it to 1785. The plot features a woman who, accused of witchcraft and sorcery, is left in the middle of a forest to die. To support their story, they fabricate historians, police, and townspeople, as well as some footage of the witch’s house, which was allegedly found later in the forest. When they relate their idea to a professor in the Theatrical Arts department, they are told it is “the most ridiculous and nonsensical project I’ve ever heard of,” and are shown the door. Ignoring this comment, in 1994 they send three young people to a desolate forest in Maryland with Hi-8 cameras. As the scenario necessitates, while they are going around the woods and shooting, more activity is brought to the movie by means of special messages received every morning in boxes. During the nights, the directors scare the actors by making strange noises. In six tiring days, they shoot 20 hours of raw film. Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez start working to make the material usable. They release the first version of the movie, which is 2.5 hours long, at the end of 1997.

The New Market: Virtual Environment

The film is now complete, yet there still is a problem: skyrocketing distribution and advertising costs. Besides, a box-office failure is not totally unlikely. To solve this problem, they come up with a brilliant idea: spreading the legend over the Internet. In 1998 the producers, who build a related Web-site, do something different from similar sites: They spread the legend to the masses instead of advertising the movie. After a television spot broadcast by the Independent Movie Channel, a fan circle begins to emerge. The number of interested people continues to increase, until it numbers in the millions. The famous Web-site, to which mostly young people are attracted, spreads among the public, who await the movie’s release with great curiosity.

Negative Criticisms

At the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, the movie receives harsh, mocking, sarcastic, and derisive criticism, especially from movie critics. After the festival, producers decide to budget $15 million for marketing and distribution. At this introductory stage, they put brochures about the movie inside books, make special programs for television channels, and arrange campaigns at school campuses. These efforts bear fruit, and the film enjoys great success in theaters. The Blair Witch Project, which was mocked at Sundance Film Festival and regarded as a nonsensical movie, is now accepted as a herald of a new era in the horror genre. Perhaps the reason for its success can best be explained by what Scognamillo talks about: its realism and documentary style, which gave it a great deal of credibility.

References

• Asik, Fatih. “Horror Genre.” Zaman, North American edition (27 September 1999).
• http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&id=1800019506&cf=info
• http://www.blairwitch.com/2
• http://www.film.com/reviews/features/99blairwitch/