Reel Power Hollywood Cinema and American Supremacy

Reel Power examines modern Hollywood as an industry, an industry that frequently gives little room to serious political alternatives. In fact, Matthew Alford argues it does the opposite; it props up US foreign policy to become complicit in the broader machinations of US government. As well as films that are filled with explicit cheerleading for imperial USA, Alford also examines those films that dress up in radicalism. He shows how these so called 'radical' films present watered-down alternatives that don't offer a full critique, they only serve to bolster US hegemony. Of the few studies that consider contemporary Hollywood cinema in political terms, most focus on specific films or niche parts of the industry. This is the first book that examines Hollywood holistically and explains how Hollywood is hard-wired at a very fundamental level to support US foreign policy. No matter what causes celebrity actors might support and what intentions the more progressive directors might have, they have entered the Hollywood machine.

Matthew Alford completed his doctorate at Bath University on US Cinema and Politics in 2007.  He also holds a Masters degree from Birmingham University and currently lectures in the Drama, Theatre, Film, and Television department of Bristol University. 

PART ONE: CONTROLLING THE DREAM FACTORY
1 Hollywood Screened
2 Hollywood Deactivated
PART TWO: POWER PROJECTED
3 War Films
4 Comedies
5 Action Adventure
6 Science Fiction
7 Political Drama
8 The Low Budget Battlefield
PART THREE: REEL VIOLENCE
9 Conclusions
Endnotes
Filmography
Index