American Patriot

Barring a few exceptions, Hollywood movies continue to be gung-ho about the United States' penchant for waging wars across the globe

- Vineetha Mokkil

THE battle is raging, the 'evil' forces are about to pull off a win. The soundtrack crescendos. Bloodied and battered, the losing side looks death in the eye. It's now or never, mates. And then comes the miracle: Americans dressed in military uniform, guns blazing, gimlet-eyed, all pumped up to save the day. Think Act of Valor (dir. Mouse McCoy 2012), think The Outpost (dir. Rod Lurie, 2019). Hollywood has a tried and tested template for onscreen portrayal of the American military. It's a pretty simple one: no moral conundrums to confuse moviegoers. No references to America's war machine or its eternal empire-building enterprise. Hollywood dutifully sticks to the template: American forces good, the other side bad.

American forces save lives. American forces fight just battles. To keep America safe. To keep the world from falling into the hands of the barbarians at the gates.

Hollywood's glorification of American forces has a long history. When World War II broke out and the United States entered the fight, Hollywood was asked to march in step. Soldiers were given clear instructions (win the war) and so was the American movie industry (help your country win the war). The US Office of War Information had a dedicated unit-the Bureau of Motion Pictures-to keep watch on Hollywood. Between 1942-45, the Bureau was hard at work; reviewing 1,652 scripts, deleting or revising any material that showed America in a less than favourable light. Scripts that were not enthusiastic about valourising the US troops or portraying the evil nature of the enemy didn't make the cut. Elmer Davis, the head of the Office of War Information, famously said, "The easiest way to inject a propaganda idea into most people's minds is to let it go through the medium of an entertainment picture when they do not realize they are being propagandized." Davis was specifically referring to World War II at the time, but his words still ring loud and clear in Hollywood's ears.