Bryn Upton, "Hollywood and the End of the Cold War: Signs of Cinematic Change" (Rowman and Littlefield, 2014)

Summary

While the Cold War ended in 1991 with a whimper, not a bang, it still affects popular culture in many ways. In his book. Hollywood and the End of the Cold War: Signs of Cinematic Change (Rowman and Littlefield, 2014), Bryn Upton discusses how filmmakers used many of the same Cold War themes in new ways. Dr. Upton is an associate professor of history at McDaniel College. In addition to providing the background of the Cold War and how it was represented in films of the period, Bryn Upton describes the period since the fall of the Soviet Union and how movies deal with many of the same issues. He talks about how films deal with good versus evil, how espionage is portrayed with different enemies, as well as the changing identities of different groups. He also makes sure to review the concept of nuclear holocaust, one of the major Cold War film themes, and how newer films still use it as a plot point. Upton gives a great overview of modern film and what the movies took from the ideas developed during that turbulent period.

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Joel Tscherne

Joel Tscherne is an Adjunct History Professor at Southern New Hampshire University and an Associate Faculty member at University of Arizona Global Campus. His Twitter handle is @JoelTscherne.
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