Print Resources
- Graden, Dale T., and James W. Martin . "Oliver Stone's Salvador (1986): Revolution for the Unacquainted." Film & History 28.3-4 (1998): 18-27.
- Oliver Stone’s film, Salvador, saw limited viewership in U.S. box-offices during its short run in theaters because it both lacked the entertainment value that American audiences desire and revealed a side of our government’s operation that many did not want to see. After warming to increased success as a home video rental, Salvador came through with its message to the American public that the U.S. government has spent a great many resources and dollars in aid to the immoral side of a nearby conflict. The film addresses U.S. military intervention, FMLN revolutionary doctrines, non-guerilla opposition, disappeared persons, and comparisons with previous incidents in U.S. history. It also has a depiction of the assassination of Romero.
- Horton, Andrew. "Political Assassination Thrillers." The Political Companion to American Film. Ed. Gary Crowdus. Chicago: Lakeview Press, 1994. 310-18.
- A new genre of film dealing with political assassinations has arisen in the years since WWII. These films can be characterized by their inclusion of three elements: “the calculated murder of an important political figure; the generation of suspense through a combination of psychological melodrama and semi-documentary techniques; an approximation of real historical events; and the suggestion of a conspiracy at work that may or may not be uncovered by film’s end.†Many films use these elements in different ways to address historical incidents. These movies blend fact and fiction and serve the purpose of sparking interest in an event.
- Loukides, P., and L. Fuller, eds. Beyond the Stars. Vol 4. Bowling Green: Bowling Green State UP, 1993: 63-71.
- This chapter moves through Hollywood films involved with Latin countries and observes their varying portrayals thereof. While in the early years, movies with Latin settings focused on combative incidents, during FDR’s Good Neighbor Policy films were generally positive and informative concerning the countries neighboring the U.S. During its peak in the late 1930s and early 1940s, Hollywood films set in Latin countries tended to portray a free and beautiful culture. Latin settings found their way into musicals, westerns, and, beginning with Missing (1982), historical films. The historical “pseudo-documentaries†of the 1980’s depart from the more traditional ways of depicting the Latin landscape and show a more generic urban setting.
See Also
Moilanen, Zac. "Black Hawk Down: American Conflict in Somalia." History through Film. Ed. Eric Burnett. Raleigh: Lulu, 2007.
Rollins, Peter C. The Columbia Companion to American History on Film: How the Movies Have Portrayed the American Past. New York: Columbia UP, 2003.
Rollins, Peter C. The Columbia Companion to American History on Film: How the Movies Have Portrayed the American Past. New York: Columbia UP, 2003.
Online Resources
- Latin American Video Archives http://www.lavavideo.org/lava/
- “The Place to Locate and Purchase Latin American & U.S. Latino Made Film and Video.†As the title suggests, this site has a database of many videos that deal with Latin America. There are links to other similar sites on the web, and you can also purchase the videos from this site. There is also a forum to record feedback on the films that this site recommends and a discussion board where you can read other peoples’ reviews.
