Caleb Smith

Film 1070 (Tuesday Night Class)

Research Paper (Final)

War and Film

Ever since I was a little boy, I have been fascinated by two things: movies and war. While

I myself have never been at war or have been a member of the military, I have always found it

interesting to see the connection between the two subjects. For this research paper, I have

researched and wish to discuss how film has been used as propaganda in order to recruit for war,

how film has glorified war, how film lead to public misconceptions of war, and how film began

to change those misconceptions.

The first motion pictures came out in the late 19th century, roughly about 50 or 60 years

before World War II started. Then during World War II, before many films started, they would

show newsreels on the progress of the war. For many people, these newsreels were nothing but

that: news. However, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, film was used to cause feelings

of anger and feelings of wanting to seek revenge. One particular film, Avenge December 7,

was shown many times in the United States before a film was shown, after the attack on Pearl

Harbor. In Chris Rudiger and Sahil Khannas research paper on World War II and Propaganda,

they said, The film makers reach out to the American public and hit them in a sensitive spot. It

was like they were digging the knife deeper into the American citizens back just to get them to

buy bail bonds. Their reasoning behind this add was for the public to buy these stamps not only

for themselves, but the brave soldiers who were at Pearl Harbor on December

seventh. Companies used the power of propaganda to advertise their products and to promote a

sense of nationalism and they were victorious on all fronts because again, Americans wanted to
help out in every way and advertisers gave them these chances through the sale of petty

products. (Rudiger, Chris and Sahil, Khanna World War II and Propaganda Stanford

University, Date Unkown. https://web.stanford.edu/class/e297a/World%20War%20II%20and

%20Propaganda.htm) This propaganda caused many men to feel the need to join the military in

order to defend the United States. Many of these films also encouraged people to buy war bonds

in order to help provide for the war effort.

Many of these propaganda films were also used to show the brutality used by the enemy,

especially the Japanese and Germans. Whats interesting is how propaganda was used in

cartoons. Propaganda was used in many Disney and Looney Toon cartoons, showcasing Donald

Duck fighting against Hitler or the Japanese. In many of these cartoons, they made the enemy

appear to be stupid, mindless animals without feeling or compassion. In one particular cartoon,

Donald Duck in Nutzi Land, (which won an Academy Award), Donald Duck wakes up living

in Nazi Germany, where the Germans are portrayed as mindless Nazis who worship Hitler and

would do anything for him. Throughout the song, the Nazis are singing a song about how

wonderful it is and what a privilege it is to serve the Fuhrer, while they constantly yell, Hail

Hitler!

In another cartoon, Tokio Jokio, shows the Japanese wearing diapers, with huge teeth

and ears, and depicting them as being stupid, short and uncivilized. These cartoons and other

propaganda films left lasting negative impressions on the American people for decades to come.

Along with the theme of propaganda, many films that came out during the time of World

War II glorified war, making it look like going to war was part of being American, and that you

werent a man unless you went and fought in the war. An important actor who helped glorify war
was the legend John Wayne. John Wayne starred in many movies that glorified war, such as:

Operation Pacific, Sands of Iwo Jima, They Were Expendable, and Back to Bataan.

I believe that most American boys that grew up in the 50s and 60s idolized John Wayne.

He was the poster boy for America and masculinity. Ask any person today who are some of the

manliest actors in history, and they will most likely respond with John Wayne at the top. Im sure

many young men joined the military due to their idolization and yearning to be like John Wayne

in his movies.

Many of these movies portrayed war as something glorious and brave. They show men

being heroes, saving their fellow soldiers, women and children from the enemy. They portray

soldiers as tough and indestructible. They also make war look very clean and easy.

Going to fight in a war to defend your country is one of the bravest things that a man can

do. There are countless stories of men who are heroes for having saved their brothers in arms,

and innocent civilians from being killed by ruthless enemies. There is no doubt about it.

However, these early films, like I said before, made it look like war was a clean and easy thing to

do. They made American soldiers look indestructible to their enemies, and that they were more

advanced in every way. But this definitely was not the case.

One of the misconceptions that these films make is that almost everyone comes home and

adjusts back to life and lives happily ever after. While many of these films show soldiers being

killed in action, they dont show the effect it has on their friends when they come home and have

to live the rest of their lives knowing that they watched one of their friends being killed.

Witnessing such horrific events can cause life-long damage to a soldier. According to the US

National Library of Medicine, Witnessing acts of warfare, including killing, torture, and

widespread devastation, can be severely upsetting. It can also have significant mental health
consequences for military personnel. Witnessing death, destruction, and torture; experiencing

unexpected and at times continuous threats to ones life; or participating in hostilities and killing

can potentially lead to mental health problems. (Pols, Hans, PhD and Oak, Stephanie BMed

WAR & Military Mental Health US National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of

Health, December 2007. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2089086/ )

Unfortunately during this time, PTSD was an unknown mental health issue. Most considered

those men who came home with problems to be shell shocked or have battle fatigue. They

were considered to be cowards and weak. But even to this day, there are World War II veterans

who still suffer from flashbacks and other symptoms of PTSD.

One example is Norman Bussel. Bussel is a 91-year-old World War II veteran who now

volunteers at the VA, helping soldiers who are having trouble adjusting to home life. In the

article he wrote for the Washington Post, he said the following: The vets I meet are surprised to

learn Im a weightlifter who does interval training on the treadmill and that I can make it through

a conversation without nodding off. I tell them how PTSD has affected me: I avoid elevators,

crowds and July 4th fireworks; Im claustrophobic from the 12 days I spent in a lightless cell at

the Luftwaffe interrogation center in Germany, and I wont fly unless I have an aisle seat. He

continues by saying, Survivors guilt is still my strongest stressor. I make them privy to my

emotional baggage to show them that they are not unique or weird. I tell them about my bombing

missions with the Eighth Air Force during WWII and the day that my B-17 exploded over Berlin.

How I am plagued with guilt over the loss of four of my crewmates that day. What it was like

being a POW for a year and how exhilarating it was to see Patton lead his troops through the

barbed wire gates of our Stalag to liberate us. (Bussel, Norman Meet the 91-year-old Whose

Wartime PTSD Makes Him the Perfect Guide for Todays Veterans, The Washington Post, 27
February 2015. https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/02/27/how-does-a-91-

year-old-wwii-vet-help-todays-veterans-by-telling-them-he-has-ptsd-too/?

utm_term=.2b77fdfb2257 ) Even 70 years after the end of World War II, this poor man is still

plagued by the events he witnessed and suffered through in World War II. These are things that

the early war movies did not address. They glorified war, and made it look as if they lived

happily ever after.

Unfortunately, many times this is not the case, especially among those who serve several

deployments during war. In a sample study of 45, 117 members of the military, the book,

Quality of Care for PTSD and Depression in the Military Health System, states that the most

likely people to suffer from PTSD after war are white, non-Hispanic males between the ages of

25 and 34 (Hepner, Kimberly A., et al. Quality of Care for PTSD and Depression in the Military

Health System: Phase I Report. RAND Corporation, 2012. JSTOR,

www.jstor.org/stable/10.7249/j.ctt1b3h9mp.). In the same report, the state that those who serve in

the army have a higher percent chance of suffering from PTSD (70.8%) compared to other branches

of the military. Also, those who serve between 7 to 10 years in the military have a greater chance of

developing PTSD (24.1%) than those who serve shorter or longer periods.

In 2016, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs came out with a shocking

statistic. They state that, Previously, it was reported that 22 Veterans die by suicide per day.

A new VA study released August 3 representing the most comprehensive analysis of Veteran

suicide rates in the United States, examining more than 55 million Veterans records from 1979

to 2014 from every state in the nation, shows an average of 20 Veterans a day died from

suicide. The effort advances VAs knowledge from the previous report in 2012, which was

primarily limited to information on Veterans who used Veterans Health Administration health

services or from mortality records obtained directly from 20 states and approximately 3 million
records. (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Reporting During Suicide Prevention Month, 29

August, 2016. https://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=2811 ). In the same article,

they state that Veterans accounted for 18 percent of all deaths from suicide among U.S. adults.

This is a decrease from 22 percent in 2010. While its great that the percentage has gone down,

20 veterans a day is way too many. 1 a day in itself is way too many.

Recently, a movie called Thank You for Your Service came out addressing this issue. It

follows the true story of three different veterans who come home after serving in Iraq, and their

difficulties in adjusting to civilian life once being home. It is one of the most difficult movies to

watch that has come out in recent years. It was extremely raw and honest. It shows how even the

smallest of things, from video games to driving, can have a deep effect on those who come home

after having witnessed trauma in the battlefield. One man even kills himself because he was not

able to receive the treatment that he needed. It is a very eye-opening movie.

Thankfully, many movies that come out now show the reality of what war is truly like,

giving us a better idea on how war really is, and the effect it has on people. Movies such as

Hacksaw Ridge, Saving Private Ryan, Dunkirk, and Unbroken, give us a small glimpse

into the reality of war without glorifying it.

In conclusion, the war film genre has changed much in the past 80+ years that its been

around. From first being used as propaganda to promote war and stereotype the enemy, to

glorifying war, to giving misconceptions of war, and finally clearing up those misconceptions,

the war film genre has progressed greatly. While no film will truly be able to do war the justice

that it deserves, I think that it gives us a greater idea and understanding of what war is really like.

War is a horrible thing. Its awful to imagine the things that soldiers have to do and the

things that they witness. But I believe that now, the purpose of the war film genre is to tell the
stories of those who have fought in the defense of our freedom, and for us to have a greater

appreciation for those who have served, especially those whose story have not been told. It is my

hope and prayer that we can find ways to better serve those who have served us, and to give them

the help that they need. They wrote a blank check for us when they went and defended this

beautiful country that we live in. Now it is our turn to pay them back for the service that they

have given.
Works Cited:

-Rudiger, Chris and Sahil, Khanna World War II and Propaganda Stanford University, Date
Unkown.https://web.stanford.edu/class/e297a/World%20War%20II%20and%20Propaganda.htm

-der Fuehrers Face 1943 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L90smU0SOcQ

-Tokio Jokio 1943 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlUld1yXKRo

Pols, Hans, PhD and Oak, Stephanie BMed WAR & Military Mental Health US National
Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, December 2007.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2089086/

Bussel, Norman Meet the 91-year-old Whose Wartime PTSD Makes Him the Perfect Guide for
Todays Veterans, The Washington Post, 27 February 2015.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/02/27/how-does-a-91-year-old-wwii-
vet-help-todays-veterans-by-telling-them-he-has-ptsd-too/?utm_term=.bf8f07526c89

Hepner, Kimberly A., et al. Quality of Care for PTSD and Depression in the Military Health
System: Phase I Report. RAND Corporation, 2012. JSTOR,
www.jstor.org/stable/10.7249/j.ctt1b3h9mp.

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Reporting During Suicide Prevention Month, 29 August,
2016. https://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=2811