On June 24, HBO Max Library, a platform owned by the Warner Media conglomerate, again launched Gone With the Wind.
The tape was removed from the catalog on June 9 amid protests in the United States. To such a decision, the leadership of HBO Max was prompted by a column of scriptwriter and director John Ridley, in which he advised the service to warn the audience about the controversial content of the picture and provide it with explanations of the historical context.
As a result, two videos were added to Gone With the Wind discussing the ideas broadcast in the film. One of them is a monologue of the leading channel TCM, film expert Jacqueline Stewart. A four-minute comment is offered to viewers just before viewing.
The film expert explains why the tape should be watched in the original (without exception, controversial scenes), while taking into account the mood that prevailed in society at the time of the shooting of the picture.
“This film is not only important evidence of a racist Hollywood past, but also an enduring work of popular culture that directly addresses the problems of racial inequality that persist in modern society and the media,” says Stuart.
She notes that the film had questions at the time of preparation for the shooting. Also, in her opinion, producer David O. Selznik was aware that addressing the theme of slavery in general and portraying specific characters of African descent worried African Americans.
“Viewing“ Gone with the Wind ”can be unpleasant and even painful,” the film expert emphasizes. The images of slaves, Stewart is sure, in the tape are reduced to two main features: devotion to the owners and stupidity. But the slave society of the South is supposedly shown very differently.
Gone With the Wind depicts the pre-war South as a blessed and wonderful place ... Showing the Old South through the prism of nostalgia, the film thereby denies the horrors of slavery, as well as its legacy in the form of racial inequality, ”the expert says.
The streaming service also offers users to pay attention to the hour-long panel discussion "The ambiguous legacy of" Gone with the Wind ". The discussion took place at the TCM Film Festival in April 2019.
- Frame from the film "Gone with the Wind"
- © IMDB
Culture of prohibitions
The revision of the ideological and artistic value of Gone With the Wind has sparked condemnation on the net. In particular, many Twitter users called this treatment of classic works censorship.
“In my opinion, everything is simple: all works of popular culture should be accessible to people. But if you need a more detailed point of view: I consider it unethical to deprive people of access to works of popular culture for the reason that they do not meet modern standards. This is against art, against context, against history, ”said Mark Harris, a writer on his Twitter account.
For me it's simple: All pop culture should be available. But if you want a more complex version of that: Removing pop culture from availability because it doesn't meet current standards is, I think, an actual ethical wrong. It is anti-art, anti-context, anti-history. >
- Mark Harris (@MarkHarrisNYC) June 25, 2020All this trash with racism - went beyond. Johnson removes whitening products from sales, and removes Gone With the Wind books.
Natural nonsense
Some were also outraged by adding commentary directly to the film. “You can discuss and disassemble Gone with the Wind, but I am firmly convinced that the viewer should not form an attitude to the picture even before viewing it. This is a form of censorship. It is necessary to demonstrate a work of art and discuss its qualities separately, ”one of the microblogging users writes.
“What is the matter with this culture of prohibitions? How can you ban classics like Gone With the Wind! This film did not glorify slavery at all! Hattie McDaniel was the first African American Oscar winner, ”recalls another author.
The phenomenon of the "culture of prohibitions" is widely discussed in social networks. Users note that many things that were previously considered ridiculous were banned in the current situation. Some are wondering when bans will affect such popular tapes as the black comedy “Soldiers of Failure” or the criminal fantasy “Mask” - in the latter, Jim Carrey was dubbed the “greenface” (similar to the blackface, the make-up for a black man - RT ).
- Vivien Leigh and Hattie McDaniel in the film "Gone with the Wind"
- © IMDB
The issue of "political correctness" of streaming services is being raised more and more often. For example, in 2020, some classic cartoons (“Lady and the Tramp”, “Dumbo”, “The Jungle Book” and others) provided a warning about “obsolete cultural images” on the Disney + platform. Then the leadership of the service took an example from Warner Bros., which added a similar labeling to its animation earlier.
Apple TV + found a different approach to overcoming "political incorrectness." Kristen Bell, who voiced the mulatto Molly, dropped out of the cast of the animated series Central Park. The studio decided that to create the “right” image, it is necessary that the character speaks in the voice of an actress of African American or mixed origin. Bell, in turn, supported the decision of the studio in social networks.