When asked in 1993 to comment on accusations that the movie In the Name of the Father distorts (曲解) contemporary British and Irish history, female lead Emma Thompson responded that she couldn't care less. Even since the premiere (首映) in 1915 of The Birth of a Nation, filmmakers have rewritten history to create top-dollar entertainment. The films are very persuasive: well-made movies hold your interest continuously, drawing your attention to "what happens next," and pulling you forward with no time to reflect on individual scenes until the final credits roll. The result: you don't remember much about a movie after watching it for the first time. For this reason, movies have extraordinary power - unmatched by any other medium - to leave you with a strong sense of what is right and what is wrong, who is bad and who is good, even though critical details presented in the movies may be false.
Well, so what? They're just movies. In fact they're not just movies. Millions of Americans are devoted history lovers, and they pack theatres every time new movies about historical figures or events come to town. Saving private Ryan and Titanic drew viewers and cash for months. Many high school teachers screen movies in the classroom. Clearly countless Americans get most of their history from television and the big screen.
Some of the industry's finest historical and period films premiered during the past decades. But the 1960s also saw a number of politically charged history-based movies full of factual distortions and, occasionally, outright lies. Today the trend continues on a larger scale: many movies released in the 1990s and the first decade of the 21*t century reflect lack of respect for solid, reliable history.
History Goes to the Movies is a source of information and, it is hoped, entertainment for everyone interested in the actual history behind a wide selection of movies grouped into twelve sections--11 covering historical periods and events and twelfth containing biographies and period films. Each movie review includes an essay on the history covered in one or more movies, and a brief plot summary. Star ratings (five stars: don't miss it) reflect each movie's historical accuracy and - to a much lesser extent — its power to amuse.
Obviously, expecting textbook accuracy from movies would be ridiculous-and producers have delivered a remarkable number of historically faithful movies. But some of them get too much of their history wrong. History Goes to the Movies is a guide, however imperfect, for readers and viewers aiming to get it right.
