The Broken Projector

My general interest for themes related to popular culture inspired me to investigate this topic. Originally, I began with preliminary research looking into Disney movies and foreign films, however, cult films intrigued me the most and allowed for the most research flexibility. Overall, the topic of counterculture messages in cult films remains largely unstudied in scholarly articles, pop magazines, and blogs alike. As a result, my research has mainly been guided by historical events, film studies unrelated to my topic (aiding in the development of my methodology), and my own novel research ideas and goals. 

In order to compile a list of movies for analysis, I created a criteria for movies to be considered for my study:

• North American Director

• Comedy genre

Following this criteria, my movie list includes:

While watching these films, I will code for differing counterculture messages and categorize them into the following portrayals:

• Political counterculture

- anti-war movement: organizes & national protests, civil disobedience (especially though youth/college students)

- anti-militarism & anti-establishment/authoritarianism

- defying authority figures

- critiquing media

- Civil Rights Movement

- Feminist Groups

• Cultural counterculture

- hippie movement: recreational drug use, sexual freedom, Rock n’ Roll

- Gay liberation

- gender bending

- alternative living styles: rejecting social norms, anti-conformity

• Environmentalism

- counter urbanization

- anti-materialism

- anti-consumerism

More recent counterculture includes: 

• EDM culture

- youth (similar to Rock n’ Roll)

- recreational drug culture

- escapism

- Woodstock vs. Coachella

• Neo-Luddism

- rejection of modern technology

- fear of rapid advancements in technology (such as AI)

- call for the dismantling of “destructive” technologies

A scene that fits into one or more of these categories will be accounted for using a time stamp and brief description/explanation of why the scene fit the counterculture message. then put into a graph for a better visual understanding, similar to João Mauricio Castaldelli-Maia's film study.

I chose to analyze the time period 1965-1975 because this decade is characterized by a new wave of resistance to societal and political norms and the introduction of radical civil disobedience. In the later decade, 2015-2025, American society is experiencing similar political and social climates. By studying previous and recent countercultural portrayals alike, it can reveal how political and social climates can influence the public response. More specifically for my research, it will reveal how similar political and social climates affect the public response in two different time periods set around three decades apart.