Customer Reviews

American Terminator: Myths, Movies, and Global Power

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

British writers Sardar and Davies have written a fascinating study of US culture, especially of the belief that because they are a good people, they are a force for good in the world. Why then do US interventions abroad produce bad results?

The authors explore ten themes: the promotion of fear - `be afraid, be very afraid'; escape (emigration, running away); exceptionalism - believing themselves different from and better than other nations, there is no need to know anything about them; the USA as the idea of nation is everybody's future; everything should be democratically accessible - guns, other people's oil, etc.; the right to be imperial; cinema as empire's engine (not profit then?!); worldwide celebrity as empire's currency; war as needed for origin, identity, consolidation, expansion and hegemony; and the USA's way as universal.

The authors explore how Hollywood has given America its idealised image of itself. John Ford's classic Western Drums along the Mohawk (1939) explored the themes of civilising the wilderness by pushing back the frontier, building a new life and a new land by wiping out Native Americans.

Frank Capra's Mr Smith goes to Washington (also 1939) presented the USA as the idea of nation, sanctifying the US Constitution, an 18th century document which endorses `the right of property in a slave', does not guarantee the right to vote and does not allow a direct vote for the head of government.

Howard Hawks' To have and have not (1944), like Casablanca (1942), gave us Humphrey Bogart as the reluctant hero, symbolising the USA as reluctant superpower. Robert Altman's The player (1992) examined Hollywood, empire and celebrity. Sands of Iwo Jima (1949), starring John Wayne, presented war's psychosis. Universal soldier (1992) portrayed the USA as the global narrative.

The authors impute a single culture to the USA, ignoring its working class culture of trade unions, workers' nationalism and opposition to empire. Like the hero of Groundhog Day (1993), the USA is trapped in repeats, of exploitation and war. American workers must reject idealism, take responsibility for running America and throw out their rulers.

Having thoroughly enjoyed the authors' previous book, Why Do People Hate America?, I started reading this with two expectations in mind: either a) I would enjoy this book as much as the last one, or b) this book would be a rehashing of the last book and thus annoying. What I found in this book is some of the same tightly-argued points about American global empire in addition to a discussion of how the American entertainment industry is used to create and perpetuate American domination of other cultures.
The authors begin by stating that Americans live by ten laws of mythology: fear is essential; escape is the reason for being; ignorance is bliss; America is the idea of nation; democratization of everything is the essence of America; American democracy has the right to be imperial and express itself through empire; cinema is the engine of empire; celebrity is the currency of empire; war is a necessity; and all of American tradition and history are universal narratives applicable across time and space. After stating these laws they go on to analyze one American film per law, explaining how it demonstrates that law. As a person who enjoys watching movies I liked how they deconstructed each one and applied it to the law being discussed, and I even read about some older movies that I hadn't seen or heard of. Appreciating that aside, I do have to say that I disagree with some of their points about the "laws" and that the authors tended to stray from the subject often in order to bring in information that had little applicability to the current topic but that reinforced the themes of the book which were that most Americans seem very insular and narcissistic to non-Americans, have very little idea what their government is doing internationally, and don't understand what the repercussions of their government's actions will be.
I definitely suggest that others read this but my caution is "don't judge a book by its cover" - there's very little discussion of Arnold Schwarzenegger to be found and the title seems to indicate more of a discussion of him and what it says about America that a foreign-born actor is the governor of California.

A very fascinating perspective on the American mind. WARNING: If you attribute all things good in the universe to America the beautiful, then you may be offended. If you believe that America can do no wrong, then, yes, you will likely be offended. Gomer Pyle reruns are a safer option for you.

If you think the world can use a little improving and you're not too afraid to take a closer look, then, by all means, read the book.

I find AMERICAN TERMINATOR to be an extremely offensive book. Let's, for a moment, examine the country from which the authors hail. Great Britain's foreign policy has been key in developing two world wars both of which required the U.S. to bail her out of. In the case of WWII if it weren't for the U.S. they would have eventually fallen to the Germans or Russians. If it weren't for the U.S. having projected it's military umbrella over Great Britain and most of western Europe for the last 50 years they would all be speaking Russian by now. In spite of the hundreds of trillions the U.S. has spent militarily to protect them they have all managed to allow their internal politics to move them partially or fully to socialism. None of these countries that the authors say we should listen to enjoy the standard of living or individual freedoms taken for granted in the U.S - far from it! Further, in the face of the fact that Britain supports a huge, useless, parasitic Royal Family, for Brit's to criticize the manner in which Americans regard our celebrities and allow them to influence our politics is ludicrous. This book is just another attempt to criticize and undermine the things that set us apart from the far less free and affluent nations. To suggest that we have some kind of obligation to heed the input from these sources is, once again, ludicrous. As long as we ignore what this book suggests we will continue to be the most free and successful nation on earth.