Theaters of War is a 2022 American documentary film that examines the influence of the Pentagon and CIA in shaping Hollywood and television scripts, based on thousands of pages of internal state files acquired by investigative journalist Tom Secker using the Freedom of Information Act. The film also features interviews with academics, government officials, veterans, and industry players including Oliver Stone.[1][2]
| Theaters of War | |
|---|---|
 First edition | |
| Directed by | Roger Stahl |
| Starring | |
Production company | Chiasmus pictures |
| Distributed by | Media Education Foundation |
Release date |
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Running time | 88 minutes |
Production
editThe film is directed and narrated by Communication Studies professor Roger Stahl. The co-producers are Matthew Alford, Tom Secker and Sebastian Kaempf. The film is largely based on Alford and Secker's 2017 book National Security Cinema and Secker's Spy Culture website.[3][4]
Reception
editAfter selling on online platforms, Theaters of War had its festival premiere at the Lone Star Film Festival in 2022.[5][6] In a preview, CounterPunch called it a "fantastic new film [which performs] an important public service."[7] On the film's release, Stahl wrote an editorial for the Los Angeles Times.[8] Comedian Alexei Sayle discussed the film's content before joking about how the CIA would rewrite ITV's soap opera Emmerdale in an episode of Alexei Sayle's Imaginary Sandwich Bar.[9]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Top Gun for hire: why Hollywood is the US military's best wingman". The Guardian. May 26, 2022.
- ^ Beijing’s Movie War Propaganda—and Washington’s. FAIR. December 31, 2021. Reprinted in Alternet, January 1, 2022.
- ^ "Abolish the Military-Entertainment Complex". jacobin.com.
- ^ "How the Pentagon dictates Hollywood storylines". Middle East Eye.
- ^ Barricks, Hannah (November 10, 2022). "Festival-Goers Guide to the Lone Star Film Festival". Fort Worth Magazine.
- ^ Winkie, Davis (August 4, 2022). "New documentary scrutinizes Pentagon-Hollywood relationship — but is it propaganda?". Military Times.
- ^ The Pentagon and CIA Have Shaped Thousands of Hollywood Movies into Super Effective Propaganda https://www.counterpunch.org/2022/01/10/the-pentagon-and-cia-have-shaped-thousands-of-hollywood-movies-into-super-effective-propaganda/ January 10, 2022
- ^ Stahl, Roger (May 30, 2022). "Op-Ed: Why does the Pentagon give a helping hand to films like 'Top Gun'?". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Secker, Tom (October 31, 2022). "Theaters of War on Alexei Sayle's Imaginary Sandwich Bar". Spy Culture.