American audiences on movies and moviegoing - Tom Stempel

This text provides a perspective on half a century of American cinema from the audience's point of view. Going beyond comments of professional reviewers, Tom Stempel concentrates on the opinions of ordinary people. Avoiding statistical summary, he presents the results of a survey on movies and moviegoing in the respondents' own words. What brings them together is Stempel's own observations from a lifetime of watching films and audiences. He also analyses box office results to identify which movies people actually went to see, not just those the critics thought were good films. Stempel explores the impact of major films, the ways in which cable TV and VCRs have transformed moviegoing, and abilities of movie trailers to build audience anticipation. He traces shifting trends in genre and taste, examining and questioning the power films have in American society.