Mathewson, Tracy;
(2019)
The privatization of justice within the American Conspiracy Film: From the public-facing, politically forceful discourse of the 1970s to the present.
Film International
, 17
(1)
pp. 6-32.
10.1386/fiin.17.1.6_1.
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Abstract
The transformation of the conspiracy film genre -- from the traditional thrillers of the 1970s to the privatised narratives of the late-1980s/90s comes not as a surprise, but at a cost when it comes to the political force of modern conspiracy thrillers. In the course of 50 years, the nature of, and mechanisms for, justice in these films have been recast in paranoid reflections of their corresponding cultural landscapes. Phase 1 is overtly political, with great value attributed to notions of truth, justice and morality. Phase 2 becomes deeply personal, with sanctity of the family, protecting one’s livelihood or reaching self-discovery taking priority over the public good. In the years following 9/11, when political abuses of power re-entered the public consciousness, conspiracy films attempt to return to their politically forceful roots but have yet to reconcile the 20 years of solipsistic, self-preserving and greed-fueled narratives with the growing cynicism of the public towards conspiracy films’ iconic pillars of justice: the media and the law.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | The privatization of justice within the American Conspiracy Film: From the public-facing, politically forceful discourse of the 1970s to the present |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1386/fiin.17.1.6_1 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1386/fiin.17.1.6_1 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author-accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | Conspiracy film; Justice; America; All the President’s Men; Enemy of the State; Green Zone |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Culture, Communication and Media |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10211500 |
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