To begin with, it is necessary o mention, that Hollywood had attained a reputation as the propagandist of the American ideals and American way of life. Until the recent time, the main hero was a male young, able-bodied, white, and heterosexist. Now the rules of political correctness forbid open and concealed propaganda based on sexual orientation, sex, and race. But still, if the main character may be Afro-American (Beverly-Hills cop, Matrix (Morpheus), the nutty professor, etc), the homosexual will never be able to become the all-mighty, sharp-minded, cruel but just for the enemies and kind for everyone else. Even if such a movie appeared, it would definitely fail, as watcher never wants to see “a nancy boy” on the screen, as the man who wants to escape from male obligations, taking into account that he was born as a male is no longer such, and is regarded to be a handicapped human.
The fact is that some of the early Hollywood movies magnate themselves distinguished that films can be propaganda. For instance, Theodor Adorno actually argued, that it is necessary to think of the movie as the supreme of all the media for propaganda that may even serve to eradicate war among the states. Also, as stated above, some foreign leaders distinguished the indispensable origin of movies. Lenin, again intended that the movies for the most part should supply the new innovative regime with its most effective weapon of agitation, propaganda, and education.
In comparison with the art-house movies, which are claimed to violate the set societal norms, and give the alternative worldview, Hollywood films depict the concoction of the ideal life (ideal ending, if to be more precise), and give the watcher a chance to dive into a flood of illusions, dreams, and reverie. Art-house, vice versa, show life closer to reality, and partly because of that are not so popular. Moreover, the issues of alcohol, drug-taking, homosexual contacts, explicit bedroom sceneries are not so interesting to the average watcher as car races, gun fires, thrilling plots, beaches full of girls with perfect figures, and so on.
As for the matters of propaganda, it is necessary to mention, that some notions on propaganda – Theodor Adorno was once quoted as saying that the “arranged social and religious connections of our time are at work to encourage individual man not to come into his confidences by his own thoughts but to accept as his own, such convictions as they keep ready-made for him.”
As Max Horkheimer argued, “mass influence is not controlling when it offers admittance to the applicable facts, but on the other hand, it is controlling when the appeal to emotion is applied to the prohibiting of pertinent data.”
Various false principles about U.S. film production are regularly socialized as assumptions by some sociology researchers. On certain matters associated with film commerce, Hollywood is the key propagandist of the main American values and promotion of the American dream.
Other principles or beliefs are regularly and constantly set forth and pre-assumed truths in frequent Hollywood movies.
References
Fleras, A. Mass Media Communication in Canada Harcourt Brace Canada, 2003.
Adorno, T., Horkheimer, M., The culture industry: enlightenment as mass deception.