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Good Night and Good Luck

The Filmoteca recalls the years of the anti-communist witch hunt in Hollywood

The cycle deals with an infamous moment in the history of cinema, when the powers-that-be in Hollywood persecuted everyone who was suspected of communist sympathies.

Once the Second World War had ended and the Cold War had begun, with the world divided into two openly ideologically opposed blocks –with the Soviet Union and communism on the one hand and the United States and a supposedly liberal democracy on the other - there began one of the most sordid episodes in the history of the United States in the 20th century. Amid the reigning paranoia directed at communist sympathizers who had supposedly infiltrated the very social fabric of American society, a witch hunt took place in the country as a whole and was especially crude in Hollywood. As a result, many directors and actors were blacklisted and found it nearly impossible to work again. This period is being commemorated in the form of a cycle at the Filmoteca de Catalunya.

From 22 December to 4 January you’ll be able to see a selection of films, some very recent and others dating from other 50's, which in one way or another have tackled this thorny subject, either by portraying moments historical, such as the attack on the freedom of the press in 'Good Night and Good Luck' (George Clooney) and the persecution suffered by screenwriter Dalton Trumbo ('Trumbo'), and there are even films that sought to justify the witch hunt, such as 'On the Waterfront' by Elia Kazan, who was an active participant in the persecution.

You’ll find a complete list of the films and screening times on the Filmoteca website.

Publication date: Wednesday, 20 December 2017
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