Message picture explained

A message picture (or message movie)^[1] is a motion picture that, in addition to or instead of being for entertainment, intends to communicate a certain message or ideal about society.

Characteristics

Message pictures usually present the message they want to deliver in the form of a morality play, and are usually serious (often somber) works. However, not all message pictures are entirely serious, and there are also films spoofing the genre (Sullivan's Travels, for example).^[2]

History

Dore Schary was famous for his message pictures at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during the late 1940s and early to mid-1950s. Among these were Tea and Sympathy, Bad Day at Black Rock, and Blackboard Jungle.^[3] Other famous message pictures by other parties include Guess Who's Coming to Dinner and In the Heat of the Night^[4] (the former directed by Stanley Kramer, who was also well known for numerous message films).^[5]

In Indian cinema, B.R. Chopra was known for message pictures. Examples include Kanoon (against capital punishment), Naya Daur (importance of labour), Waqt (importance of time and destiny), Nikaah (against triple talaq (divorce) among Muslims), etc.^[6]

Examples

Pre-1970

• The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
• It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
• On the Waterfront (1954)
• Salt of the Earth (1954)
• Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
• Blackboard Jungle (1955)
• Tea and Sympathy (1956)
• Paths of Glory (1957)
• I Want to Live! (1958)
• On the Beach (1959)
• Psycho (1960)
• Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
• The Connection (1961)
• The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
• To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
• The Intruder (1962)
• A Child Is Waiting (1963)
• Fail Safe (1964)
• Seconds (1966)
• Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
• In the Heat of the Night (1967)

Post-1970

• Billy Jack (1971)
• The Deer Hunter (1978)
• Gandhi (1982)
• White Dog (1982)
• The Color Purple (1985)
• Stand and Deliver (1988)
• Born on the Fourth of July (1989)
• Do the Right Thing (1989)
• Philadelphia (1993)
• Schindler's List (1993)
• Amistad (1997)
• American History X (1998)
• American Beauty (1999)
• The Cider House Rules (1999)
• Music of the Heart (1999)
• Erin Brockovich (2000)
• Pay It Forward (2000)
• Remember the Titans (2000)
• The Devil's Backbone (2001)
• I Am Sam (2001)
• House of Sand and Fog (2003)
• The Sea Inside (2004)
• Crash (2004)
• Woman Thou Art Loosed (2004)
• American Gun (2005)
• Akeelah and the Bee (2006)
• Babel (2006)
• Blood Diamond (2006)
• Coach Carter (2006)
• Wall-E (2008)
• Avatar (2009)
• Courageous (2011)
• God Bless America (2011)
• Where to Invade Next (2015)
• Get Out (2017)
• Us (2019)
• Don't Look Up (2021)
• Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
• Barbarian (2022)
• Smile (2022)
• X (2022)
• Pearl (2022)
• M3GAN (2023)
• Barbie (2023)
• (2023)
• Oppenheimer (2023)
• The Zone of Interest (2023)

Sources:^{[7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27]}

Notable directors

• Spike Lee^[28]
• Stanley Kramer^[29]
• Tom Laughlin^[30]
• Elia Kazan^[31]
• Oliver Stone^[32]
• Abel Gance^[33]
• Norman Jewison^[34]
• Frank Capra^[35]
• Richard Attenborough^[36]
• Edward Dmytryk^[37]
• Jordan Peele^[24]

See also

• Oscar bait
• Social issues
• Social problem film
• Very special episode
• Virtue signaling
• After-school special
• Christian film
• Melodrama
• Social thriller
• Public service announcement

Notes and References

1. https://books.google.com/books?id=EUVKDwAAQBAJ&dq=message+picture+movies&pg=PA3 Teaching History with Message Movie - Google Books
2. Web site: Sullivan's Travels. The Criterion Collection. en. 2019-12-05.
3. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1980/07/08/film-producer-dore-schary-74-dies/2568607b-4b07-421f-bb62-95e029cb60b0/ Film Producer Dore Schary, 74, Dies - The Washington Post
4. Web site: In the Heat of the Night. The Criterion Collection. en. 2019-12-05.
5. News: Obituary: Stanley Kramer. Bergan. Ronald. 2001-02-21. The Guardian. 2019-12-05. en-GB. 0261-3077.
6. https://upperstall.com/profile/br-chopra/ BR Chopra – Upperstall.com
7. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=2 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
8. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=3 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
9. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=6 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
10. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=11 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
11. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
12. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=12 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
13. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=5 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
14. https://www.thoughtco.com/top-classic-films-with-social-message-3325203 Top 10 Classic Films With a Social Message - ThoughtCo.
15. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=4 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
16. https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2012/05/the-10-most-heavy-handed-message-movies/ The 10 Most Heavy-Handed Message Movies|Complex
17. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/54248/6-things-you-might-not-have-known-about-billy-jack 6 Things You Might Not Have Known About Billy Jack|Mental Floss
18. Web site: Powerful Message Behind Hit Movie "Barbie" .
19. Web site: 2017-12-27 . Get Out's Cinematographer Reveals the Methods Behind Jordan Peele's Brilliant Madness . 2024-02-28 . Motion Picture Association . en-US.
20. Web site: Randall . Melissa . Jiménez . Paula Rey . Jiménez . Melissa Randall and Paula Rey . 2023-06-21 . The Everything, Everywhere, All at Once Meaning and Themes . 2024-02-28 . NYFA . en-US.
21. Web site: Weeks . Andrew . 2023-07-27 . Oppenheimer: A masterful film with a haunting message . 2024-02-28 . The Herald Journal . en.
22. Web site: Krishnan . Gaurav . 2023-03-03 . Why Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer is More Relevant Than Ever . 2024-02-28 . MovieWeb . en.
23. Web site: Dominguez . Andrew . Minchin . Amanda . 2023-02-13 . 10 Horror Movies That Deliver Important Messages About Society . 2024-02-28 . MovieWeb . en.
24. Web site: Brown . Aleisha . 2023-04-23 . 10 Best Socially Conscious Horror Movies of the 21st Century . 2024-02-28 . Collider . en.
25. https://screenrant.com/barbie-2023-movie-data-proves-message-important/ 2023's Top Movie Data Proves That Barbie Happened At Just The Right Time - ScreenRant
26. Web site: Roman . Julian . 2023-06-29 . Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken Review: A Clever Girl Power Message with Vivid Animation . 2024-03-24 . Movieweb . en.
27. https://slate.com/culture/2023/12/the-zone-of-interest-movie-holocaust-jonathan-glazer.html The Zone of Interest: A Holocaust movie with a message for our moment - Slate Magazine
28. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=4 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
29. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=6 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
30. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=5 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
31. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=2 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
32. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=12 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
33. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=7 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
34. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=2 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
35. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
36. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart
37. http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?genre=Message+Movie&page=3 The Best Message Movies of All Time - Flickchart