Intro Text – Alicia H.

In most movies today, the audience is left to come to its own conclusions about the movie’s message. People are allowed to think for themselves, analyze, and interpret the movie however they want; very thought-provoking and controversial movies are often celebrated. I believe the introduction text added at the behest of the Hays’ Office was an attempt to try to control what the audience took from the movie, because censors at the time were afraid of what people might think of it themselves. Such violent gangster movies were just getting their start, and I think that the people in charge were afraid of what impact this new type of movie might have on society. There was probably an increased desire to portray organized crime in a negative light (as something that should be an outrage) because so many people were suffering in poverty during the 1930s; a rich and glamorous gangster life might seem appealing to the masses.

Really, the intro reads like propaganda to me. It tries to stir up negative emotions against organized crime, and tells people how they should think. I can understand why they might have included this text at the time. However, I still am not quite sure it was neccessary because it seems obvious to me throughout the movie (even without that text) that the gangster life isn’t all fun; it has a dark side and many negative consequences, too. I guess they really wanted to drill the message into people’s heads, though, and not leave the audience’s ability to grasp that to chance.

Intro text – Lucia

The text shown at the beginning of the film did not succeed in acting as a censor, it rather does the complete opposite. It is a statement to the citizens describing the truth of the movie and how gangsters and their violent actions are real. The director is telling the audience that they must become aware of the problems in their nation and act towards change. They must confront the government and demand solutions.

Intro Text

The text from the beginning of the film “Scarface” seems to be directed at the censors.  It states that “every incident in this picture is the reproduction of an actual occurrence…” By this I think Howard Hughes was trying to say that these things actually are going on in America, and that it would be naive to simply edit them out of the public’s vision. This, in conjunction with the last slide, “The government is your government. What are YOU going to do about it?”  makes me believe that he directed this text at the censors.  He is expressing his thought that they should, as organizations of supposedly conscientious citizens, be more concerned with lobbying the government to stop the illegal behavior, than with the comparatively trivial portrayal of that illegal behavior on screen.

Intro text: Bart A

The text shown in the beginning film serves some very important purposes. This text is like a disclaimer; telling the audience that whichever way they are swayed by the film, the film does not promote the gangster lifestyle. The opening text is also asking the people press their government to put an end to gangster rule over cities.

Intro Text: Anthony C

The intro texts that were shown before the film contained very strong statements concerning the government and gang rule in America.  Because gangs test the role of the government in everyday life, they provide unsafe situations to those outside the gangs living in the society.  The second text is from the view of the gangsters where they express feelings of power over the government.  The last text then questions the people what they want their government to be like and how it will function, when faced with the gangster or “menace to safety and liberty”.

Intro Text- Aarti V.

The introductory texts are powerful. Expressed only through words- they mark a strong message. It comes off as a plead for help, and a dramatic call for attention. Americans felt unsafe, unprotected and not fairly represented. By stating this at the beginning of the movie, it opens eyes and makes viewers cautious to look for the way gangsters are affecting ordinary citizens. Ending in a question- is almost pointing a finger to the government and saying “only you can help.”

Intro Text – Feda E

The text at the beginning confused me because I thought that this movie was censored to hide the negative image of the government.  Instead by displaying the text to the audience it uncensored the movie in a way by demanding the corrupted government that is not taking action in protecting the society from the thriving gangsters. It awakens the citizens by showing them that the government doesn’t have their back and that they should do something about it if they are concerned about their safety.

Intro text

The start of the movie Scarface, show a great part of America’s methodology of governing its people in the old days. “The word of mouth”, or the media, has always been a great way to direct a certain mass aiming for certain goals. When the movie industry was first born, it was a great opportunity to grasp that shortcut lecturing people’s minds through resonating to their own tune, entertainment. In the 1930’s the system was a lot more overt about their propaganda. Scarface is probably just a good way to spend time to the person watching it actually finds out that there is a lesson to be taught by watching the movie. In addition to the fact that this democracy publicly decides what is and what is not appropriate to watch and does action to illuminate what isn’t, like cutting scenes from the movie. It’s very surprising to someone of my generation to encounter such an announcement at the beginning of the movie, yet it is a beneficial epiphany to realize how the people in power do their work, and personally it helped me notice such highlights in things like the news, movies, etc. Laying these facts out, doesn’t mean I think it’s wrong. In the contrary, I think human beings can’t take care of themselves, I also think they need a higher order to prevent them from drifting away.

Into Text- Baha A

The board was  making sure that the filmmaker did not insult any familys in the movie.  It showed how the way of life was in the 1930′s. The index applies to the citizens by showing them that the government doesn’t support them and that they should do something about it if they are concerned about their safety.

Intro Text – Ben V

The text adds a sense of what the film is trying to portray to the general audience. The director and film censorship board want the viewers to see the gangs as ruthless, hateful and immoral, and they want them to try do get their government to do something about it. Without the text I feel that a lot of the movie’s message would be lost on the average person who came to the movie to see it for “fun”. With this little bit of text maybe, just maybe they got the people interested enough to see through the picture to the message and through the message enough to try to do something about their government’s lack of action.