231088 History and Film (S) (WiSe 2013/2014)

This course investigates how filmmakers have interpreted history through their movies at a juncture when not only film critics but also historians increasingly debate the usefulness of film as a valid means to transmit history in the new millennium. In the awareness that Hollywood’s interpretation of history can influence large audiences’ thinking about the past many intellectuals object to the medium’s unsophisticated commentaries which, many propose, cannot compete with refined and well-researched history books, essays or documentaries that engage real history in an informed manner while avoiding spectacle. Intervening in this dialogue some of the leading questions this seminar will approach are: What are the limitations and strengths of history on film? What are the mainstream or dissident historical interpretations to which the films studied in class have reacted? How do they deal with historical evidence? What is shown or stressed about the past? What social mechanisms are concealed? What kind of historical world does the film construct? In how far is history on film inferior to history books or documentaries? And finally we will attempt to establish to what extent it is possible for films to provide valuable observations about the past.

Bibliography

- All required readings will be available on the Stud. IP