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1.Victim (1962)

Director: Basil Dearden

Writers: Janet Green (by), John McCormick (by)

Stars: Dirk Bogarde, Sylvia Syms, Dennis Price

The movie “Victim” was released in 1961, in a time when homosexual activity was illegal in Britain.

The story in the film is about a lawyer named Melville Farr who blackmails gay men by threatening to expose them. But Farr is secretly in love with another man. When that man commits suicide due to a threat of exposure, Farr bravely steps up to avenge him, exposing his own sexuality in the process.

This film is considered to be a keystone in changing public opinion which eventually led to homosexuality being decriminalized in 1967. It was the first English-language film to use the word “homosexual.”

One of the interesting facts is that leading role in the movie which btw was turned down by many actors was played by Dirk Bogarde a bold move taking the fact that himself was gay.

2.The Seven-Year Itch (1955)

Director: Billy Wilder

Writers: Billy Wilder (screenplay), George Axelrod (screenplay)

Stars: Marilyn Monroe, Tom Ewell, Evelyn Keyes

Decades ago back in the Golden Age of Hollywood actors were at the mercy of the big movie studios and the system they created.They were signing contracts with actors which give studios right to control their personal lives, their professional image, and the roles they’d be constantly typecast in.Actors weren’t allowed to expand their horizons with independent films or TV guest appearances or even stage productions.

Marilyn Monroe, who was typecast as a dumb blonde, resented this.

Using the massive success of The Seven Year Itch (1955)she makes some demands when the time came to renew her contract.

Along with a $100,000 salary boost per film, Monroe wanted the freedom to choose which filmmakers to work with. She wanted to make films with different studios and with independent producers.

20th Century Fox realized she was their biggest box-office draw and in fear of losing her, they agreed.

After that, more and more actors started negotiating their contracts to gain more creative control which eventually led to the dissolution of the studio system.

3.The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936)

Director: Michael Curtiz

Writers: Alfred Lord Tennyson (poem), Michael Jacoby (original story) (as Michel Jacoby)

Stars: Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Patric Knowles

Film director Michael Curtiz best known for Casablanca (1942) put a black spot on his name and became notorious when was filming The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936).For the film climax scenes 125 horses were trip-wired and later 25 of those horses were either killed or euthanized due to severe injuries.

After ASPCA being contacted and had come to the set and resulting public awareness of this cruel treatment led to an outcry, which got the attention of Congress.

A similar thing happened some years ago with the movie Jesse James (1939)where two horses were blindfolded, thrown off a cliff, and killed.

All this led to new rules being enforced by The Humane Society of America.

It became a requirement for film sets involving animals to be supervised by a Humane Society representative. If the film meets the Humane Society’s standards, the end credits will include “No Animals Were Harmed or Injured in the Production of this Film.”

4.Blow Up (1966)

Director: Michelangelo Antonioni

Writers: Michelangelo Antonioni (story), Julio Cortázar (short story “Las babas del diablo”) (as Julio Cortazar)

Stars: David Hemmings, Vanessa Redgrave, Sarah Miles

For many years Hollywood films were censored by Motion Picture Production Code.This was done to prevent the movie-going public from being exposed to “morally questionable” content.This was applied to nudity, sex, profanity, suggestive dance numbers, and footage filmed inside bedrooms.But not only that, it goes to the point where audiences could not sympathize with villains, nor with illegal actions done for good reason and good had to triumph over evil always.

Then came along a British-Italian film called Blow-Up (1966). The protagonist, Thomas, is a freewheeling fashion photographer who leads a life of sex, drugs, and rock’n’roll in 1960s London.

MGM studio brings the movie in the US and to bypass regulation where foreign films needed Production Code approval seal create a new subsidiary company called Premier Productions, which had no affiliation with the Production Code.

Blow-Up was released with all its full-frontal nudity and sexually explicit scenes intact.

As a result, Blow-Up was both a commercial and critical success, which led to the end of the Production Code that same year. Less than two years later, the MPAA system was created.

5.The Battle of Algiers (1966)

Director: Gillo Pontecorvo

Writers: Franco Solinas, Franco Solinas (story) (as F. Solinas) |

Stars: Brahim Hadjadj, Jean Martin, Yacef Saadi

Depicts the Algerian War (1954-1962), specifically the uprising of guerilla warfare against the French government, The Battle of Algiers (1966) is one of the most influential films of all time.

The film soon gained a controversial reputation.It was blamed for inspiring political violence and as one journalist declared “it’s a training film for urban guerrillas.”As a result, France has banned the film, and so has South Africa, Brazil, and Iran, out of fear that it would incite rebellion.

Many military juntas, paramilitary organizations (Black Panther Party, Palestine Liberation Organization, Irish Republican Army), army (US Army, British military) used this film to train its soldiers and motivate them.

In short, The Battle of Algiers It’s a testament to the wide-ranging influence that a work of art can have.

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