Hollywood's Major Crisis and the American Film "Renaissance"

Abstract

In its long history, Hollywood faced several crises most of which were sustained with slight damage. However, the most severe crisis started in the post-war years and culminated in the period of the late 60s and early 70s when the Big Hollywood Studios came to the brink of bankruptcy. The aim of this paper is to re-examine the post-war period in order to assess the major changes (social, political, economic, technological) that gravely affected the Hollywood system of production and transformed the American cinema. As a result of this, Hollywood underwent a brief period of radicalization and innovation, which came to be known as Hollywood Renaissance. Hollywood Renaissance films like Bonnie and Clyde (1967), The Graduate (1967), and Easy Rider (1969) marked a return to a truly American Cinema. Furthermore, the films' artistic sensibilities brought them closer to their European counterparts. In effect, the period of the late 60s and early 70s signaled a rebirth of the American Film and paved the way for what is now called New Hollywood.