My Quick Review of “A History of Hollywood: Moguls and Moviestars”
I just watched the first installment of “A History of Hollywood: Moguls and Movie stars” which details the earliest days of film and entertainment in America. I think the movie–at least for me–was interesting and insightful. Its certainly not for everyone, but why do I think its worthy of watching (and perhaps for whom is it worthy of viewing). I don’t think it has to be viewed in full–it would be easy to watch 7 to 15 minutes and gleen some insight or create a possibility for classroom discussion:
History classes-to me this is one of the best applications of the film. It tells a great story–it tells it from the narrative of creation and progress (and the American dream), which I think resonates with students. I can see applications in both high school and college.
Film classes-this one is obvious (although I can’t compare it versus any alternatives). I think those classed which focus on documentary may find this piece particularly interesting. It breaks norms about film being 2 hours long or being “perfect” that may worry early film creatives and producers.
Entrepreneurship classes-the film to me seem to go out of its way at times to speak to some of the issues which face entrepreneurs and innovators. Indirectly it debunks the notion of the lone entrepreneur. It also speaks briefly to the issue of learning about an industry and the customer–along with opportunity identification (while it doesn’t provide a criteria for the later–it certainly provides jumping off points for classroom discussion which includes discussion of entrepreneurship from a larger scope than just entertainment.). The shear determination and inventiveness of these early entrepreneurs in their industry–”when there was no rulebook” is fascinating–at least to me as an academic and lifelong learner. The integration of technology + creative + entrepreneurship + spirit & determination is an interesting film narrative to watch.
Two minor caveats about “A History of Hollywood”:
One caveat is that the content is roughly between PG and PG-13, although I think a smart teacher could edit past the racier parts.
Also, the parts about the Edison’s monopoly & the legal battles discussed near the end of the piece offer a springboard for discussions of ethics in live and business.
” A History of Hollywood” is a seven part series, the above quick review is based on viewing the first installment. I definitely look forward to the next episodes in the series. You can learn more about “Moguls and Moviestars” at TCM. (TCM may even offer some online clips)
