QAnon as Neo-Noir
The popular conspiracy theory has intriguing parallels with classic noir by Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett.
Hollywood Goes to Its First Lesbian Bar and Can’t Stop Staring
The Killing of Sister George was the first Hollywood movie to depict a lesbian bar. Director Robert Aldrich was obsessed with its authenticity.
How Has Hollywood Shaped the Presidency?
"Acting presidential" can mean fulfilling expectations that have been shaped by TV and the movies.
The Amazing Story of Phil Moore, Hollywood Star Maker
As the first salaried Black musician at a major studio, he was a leader in shaping the sound of movies—though he was often uncredited.
Why Didn’t Movies about Passing Cast Black Actors?
"Social problem" films were all the rage after World War II. So how could movies about racism be so conservative?
The Mockumentary: A Very Real History
What's the appeal of humor masquerading as seriousness? An entire movie genre stands ready to shed light on that question.
Lon Chaney’s Movie Monsters
You might know him from Phantom of the Opera or The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Sharks Before and After Jaws
The blockbuster Jaws (1975) provoked fear by portraying sharks as "mindless eating machines." But what did people think of sharks before then?
The Satanic Foreign Film That Was Banned in the U.S.
Benjamin Christensen's Häxan was part documentary and part fantasy—and considered too disturbing for public viewing.
The Exploding Women of Early 20th Century “Trick Films”
In “trick films,” women were shown literally exploding over kitchen accidents—the early 1900s way of mining humor out of human tragedies.