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Tarin Wittig
4 December 2020
Professor Coleman
CNMA 3275
The Transformation of American Cinema
American cinema transcended into a New Hollywood after the 1960s and eventually into
modern cinema. More vulgarity, nudity, violence, and controversy were being presented in film
along with the progression of effects and independents. It reflected the values, morals, and
technology that were ever changing in America. In addition to the new voices being heard and
represented in film. From films like Raging Bull to Get Out, cinema revolutionized from daring
new ideas to addressing societal problems through film after the 1960s.
Upon entering the era of the 1970’s a new younger generation of independent film
graduates adopted a different approach to film making than the previous greats like Alfred
Hitchcock and Orson Welles. They were innovative and bold filmmakers that created films like
Jaws. This film broke barriers of the horror genre. The more you do not see, the scarier it is. The
simplicity of the film including its famous two note soundtrack and unseen “monster” led to its
booming success. Then came George Lucas’ Star Wars in 1977 that broke special effect
expectations and become one of the most successful franchises of its time. The introduction of
science fiction and special effects of the 1970s began the climb of CGI and “impossible” stories
in cinema.
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Moving into the 1980s with independent films and blockbusters taking the screen, films
like Die Hard and Raging Bull created a persona of macho men while Down by Law brings on
the hope that independents can go mainstream. Die Hard fully embodies the macho man persona
by allowing John McClain to be “invincible” to every trouble that comes his way. He takes on
the stereotype of what “masculinity” is. Raging Bull goes in the same direction but in a negative
way because Jake LaMotta has a toxic personality and carries himself on a pedestal. Both of
these films have the macho men but under different lights and highlight toxic masculinity that
occurs in America. Down by Law is a stylized comedy and would not be a practical film to watch
in this period of the 1980s. The black-and-white style and wide-angle lenses place the audience
in the Old Hollywood era but has a modernized feel. The director, Jim Jarmusch, said he did not
want to tell the audience where to look. This idea is heavily stylized and not what a typical
