JoeKulik — 9 years ago(August 11, 2016 05:38 AM)

((((This is the user review that I wrote for Capra's "Meet John Doe"))16d0)
Although I find "Meet John Doe" as fascinating as I did the other 2
Capra films I've viewed, "Mr Smith Goes To Washington" and "It's A
Wonderful Life", I was appalled by all the user reviews that I've found
here praising it as somewhat "anti-Establishment", and "sending the
Right message", and as being relevant to what's happening in America
today.
My attitude about Frank Capra changed recently when I discovered that
he was the director of the little mentioned "Why We Fight" film series
of WWII. As a Psychology student, I accidentally stumbled on the
existence of these propaganda films when my personal research brought
me to Carl Hovland, a long time professor of Psychology at Yale
University. It was Hovland to whom the US Govt turned when it was
decided that a "Why We Fight" propaganda film series was needed because
he was one of the first serious researchers of "attitude change" &
"persuasive communications". This film series was essentially
engineered in a Social Psychology laboratory for maximum effectiveness
in indoctrinating primarily fresh military recruits, but eventually the
whole public as well about why our involvement in WWII was necessary,
and "the right thing to do". It was Frank Capra to whom the Fed Govt
turned when it wanted to bring Hovland's scientific research on
manipulating "social attitudes" to bear upon manipulating the "social
attitudes" of the entire USA about WWII.
It is against this backdrop that I must now evaluate ALL of Capra's
films of that era. In the context of his involvement in the "Why We
Fight" propaganda films, I see "Meet John Doe", "Mr Smith Goes To
Washington", & "It's A Wonderful Life" as hardly being much different
than those WWII propaganda films. They were "feel good" films to trick
the American public into thinking that they have control over their
lives, their government, and their destinies while in reality they have
none. Judging by many of the user reviews here of this film. I must
conclude that Capra films like "Meet John Doe" have high propaganda
value even today.
Fandor.com has most of the Capra "Why We Fight" films available for
online viewing. Just one $10 monthly subscription fee allows you to
view all of them. joseph.kulik.919@gmail.com