Skip to main content
Kent Academic Repository

Film Criticism and Film Culture in Communist and Post-Communist Romania: The Case of Cinema Magazine

Mazilu, Oana-Maria (2022) Film Criticism and Film Culture in Communist and Post-Communist Romania: The Case of Cinema Magazine. Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) thesis, University of Kent,. (doi:10.22024/UniKent/01.02.95361) (Access to this publication is currently restricted. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:95361)

PDF
Language: English

Restricted to Repository staff only

[thumbnail of 202Film_Criticism_and_Film_Culture_in_Communist_and_Post-Communist_Romania.pdf]
Official URL:
https://doi.org/10.22024/UniKent/01.02.95361

Abstract

Cinema still stands as Romania’s longest-lasting film periodical. Between 1963 and 1989, it was the only Romanian film magazine published during the communist regime. After the fall of Communism in 1989, the magazine changed its title to Noul Cinema and

continued to be published until 1998. Because of its singularity during Communism, Cinema has had a central role in the development of Romanian film criticism and culture. The periodical holds an important position in Romanian film history, yet there is no detailed academic research on the magazine. The present thesis addresses this gap in research by approaching Cinema as autonomous material of study, and analyses how Hollywood film was presented to readers and audiences in the context of Romania’s totalitarian communist regime, and then in the post-communist context.

The PhD. project focuses on coverage of the Hollywood film scene as that which was most affected by the political backdrop. During Communism, Cinema was State-owned, censored and obliged to fulfil the ideological requirements of the Romanian Communist Party and its leader, Nicolae Ceaușescu. These demands specifically shaped the coverage of Hollywood films and stars, depending on Romania’s political relationship with the West. The national cinema dominated the pages of the magazine, while Hollywood film was dismissed as entertainment, and used to illustrate the superficiality of America’s capitalist society. However, at times Cinema magazine was also a window to the outside world, sneaking in coverage of Hollywood films and stars when the oppression of the communist regime was at its peak.

During the violent context of Romania’s 1989 revolution, Cinema became Noul Cinema. Censorship and political pressures were lifted, and coverage of Hollywood cinema came to dominate its pages. Cinema magazine survived Romania’s communist dictatorship, and as Noul Cinema witnessed the 1989 revolution, the most important event in contemporary Romanian history. The analysis of the magazine provided by this thesis adds primary evidence to existing scholarship on Romanian national cinema, further revealing the reception of the globally popular Hollywood film in a once isolated country that continues to struggle with the trauma of its communist past.

Item Type: Thesis (Doctor of Philosophy (PhD))
DOI/Identification number: 10.22024/UniKent/01.02.95361
Additional information: The author of this thesis has requested that it be held under closed access. We are sorry but we will not be able to give you access or pass on any requests for access. 17/11/23.
Uncontrolled keywords: Film Criticism; Romania; Film Culture; Hollywood; Communism; Post-Communism
Subjects: P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN1993 Motion Pictures
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Arts and Humanities > School of Arts
SWORD Depositor: System Moodle
Depositing User: System Moodle
Date Deposited: 09 Jun 2022 08:10 UTC
Last Modified: 17 Nov 2023 12:00 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/95361 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

University of Kent Author Information

Mazilu, Oana-Maria.

Creator's ORCID:
CReDIT Contributor Roles:
  • Depositors only (login required):

Total unique views for this document in KAR since July 2020. For more details click on the image.