Films of the 1930's

Women in many 1930’s films were portrayed as ‘damsels in distress’; this was similar to society’s view of women in the 30’s. People were still stuck with the idea that women were to stay home and look after the family affairs. Society believed that any married woman in the workforce was taking jobs away from the men and hence, these women suffered discrimination and public resentment. Some of the most iconic damsel in distress include; Fay and Jane from King Kong and Tarzan the Ape Man.

Gangster films rose to prominence in the early 30’s with films such as Little Caesar and Scarface. Events such as the Prohibition Era and the Valentine’s Day Massacre of 1929, the existence of real-life gangsters and the increase of organised crime aided the rise and popularity of gangster films. Without the development of sound technology and mobile cameras, gangster films would not have been a reality. It’s not a gangster film without gun fire, screams and screeching brakes. Because of strict census laws all gangster films of the 1930’s had to end with the message that crime doesn’t pay.

Musical films were extremely popular during this decade. In 1930 alone there were up to 15 musical films produced. The general public became overwhelmed by this amount and as musicals made good use of the development of Technicolor, the public came to associate colour with musicals. This inundation caused a lull in popularity and triggered a slight decline in the use of Technicolor during the early 30’s. A great example of how musicals depicted life is The Wizard of Oz. Every scene which is based in Kansas is filmed in black and white; whereas the whole of Oz is filmed in colour. This represents that dreaming and hope was exciting compared to reality.

Essentially, films in the 1930’s were designed to pick people up with tales and stories which always ended happily. The public wanted novelty and cheerfulness and that is exactly what each film intended to bring; whether it be by making the audience laugh or by depicting an aspect of life which interested the viewers. Films helped to bring the people through the tough decade of the 1930’s.