Message picture
A message picture is a motion picture that, in addition to or instead of being for entertainment, intends to communicate a certain message or ideal about society.
Characteristics
Message pictures usually present the message they want to deliver in the form of a morality play, and are usually serious works. However, not all message pictures are entirely serious, and there are also films spoofing the genre.History
Dore Schary was famous for his message pictures at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during the late 1940s and early to mid-1950s. Among these were Tea and Sympathy, Bad Day at Black Rock, and Blackboard Jungle. Other famous message pictures by other parties include Guess Who's Coming to Dinner and In the Heat of the Night.In Indian cinema, B.R. Chopra was known for message pictures. Examples include Kanoon, Naya Daur, Waqt, Nikaah, etc.
Examples
Pre-1970
- The Grapes of Wrath It's a Wonderful Life On the Waterfront
- Salt of the Earth Bad Day at Black Rock Blackboard Jungle Tea and Sympathy Paths of Glory I Want to Live! On the Beach Psycho Judgment at Nuremberg
- The Connection The Manchurian Candidate
- To Kill a Mockingbird The Intruder A Child Is Waiting
- Fail Safe
- Seconds Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
- ''In the Heat of the Night''
Post-1970
Billy Jack The Deer Hunter Gandhi White Dog The Color Purple Stand and Deliver Born on the Fourth of July Do the Right Thing Philadelphia Schindler's List Amistad American History X American Beauty The Cider House Rules Music of the Heart Erin Brockovich Pay It Forward Remember the Titans The Devil's Backbone I Am Sam House of Sand and Fog The Sea Inside Crash Woman Thou Art Loosed American Gun Akeelah and the Bee Babel Blood Diamond Coach Carter Wall-E Avatar Courageous God Bless America Where to Invade Next Get Out The Hate U Give Us Don't Look Up Everything Everywhere All at Once Barbarian Smile X Pearl M3GAN Barbie Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken Oppenheimer The Zone of InterestSources: