A face in the crowd

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Movie
German title A face in the crowd
Original title A face in the crowd
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1957
length 125 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Elia Kazan
script Budd Schulberg
production Elia Kazan
music Tom Glazer
camera Gayne Rescher
Harry Stradling Sr.
cut Gene Milford
occupation

A Face in the Crowd is a 1957 American film directed by Elia Kazan . It is based on the story Your Arkansas Traveler by Budd Schulberg , who also wrote the screenplay .

action

The film is set in the USA in the late 1950s . The television obsolete slow the radio as the most popular medium of Americans. Marcia Jeffries, a radio reporter from a small town in Arkansas , discovers Larry Lonesome Rhodes in a prison . Larry Rhodes quickly gains popularity through his rough charm through his radio show. A talent scout invites him to Memphis to appear on television. There Mel Miller writes texts and scripts for Rhodes, which are now enjoying national popularity. At the same time, Rhodes intensively advertises its sponsor in its programs, whose products suddenly sell better at breakneck speed. Joey DePalma recognizes the chances of success when you advertise a character like Rhodes on television and hires him for a dietary supplement . The simple Rhodes is now thirsting for even greater power, and he is of the opinion that politics also use advertising that is so simple. Content no longer matters to him. He is convinced that just his figure is enough to convince voters. And so he becomes an advertising figure for right-wing, conservative politicians.

background

A Face in the Crowd is an early satire on the threat of mass manipulation by television. The writer Budd Schulberg had already made the film The Fist in the Neck with Kazan about corruption in trade unions and received an Oscar for it. This second film by the Kazan / Schulberg duo is no less political and critical of American society. The character of Larry Rhodes is closely related to the popular presenter Arthur Godfrey . Richard Sylbert created the set for the film .

Reviews

  • film-dienst : The omnipotence of management and the manipulation of personality in show business and in the mass media are sharply, often satirically glossed over. Formally and dramatically brilliant, in places a bit too gimmicky and melodramatic.
  • Protestant film observer (review No. 762/1957): Exposure and criticism of American "publicity" methods. Worth seeing from 18.

Awards

In 2008 the film was entered into the National Film Registry .

literature

Web links