The genres of the top ten movies and the top ten songs of 1970 appear to follow a pattern in that they go along with the times and the atmosphere in this country and this world during 1970. By seeing how much each movie grossed in 1970, we were able to come up with a list of the top ten movies. The top ten songs were given to us in class. The genres seem to be evenly split between sex, drugs and rock and roll as one genre, and love and war as the other. The songs and movies from 1970 can be viewed as being a reflection of the current events of that year.
The number one movie in 1970 was Love Story; a film about a lover who ends up dying from a terminal disease. The movie shares the theme with the Jackson Five’s I want You Back, Sly and the Family Stone’s Thank you for Being My Friend, and the Beatles’ Long Winding Road. These songs speak about love, friendship, heartbreak and the sadness brought on by it. These ideas can be viewed in the film and the songs go almost hand in hand in describing what the movie portrayed.
During the 1970’s and in particular 1970, the Vietnam Conflict was raging on in Southeast Asia. The United Stateswas bitterly divided between protestors of the war and supporters of the many troops whom were forced into service. The movie M.A.S.H. was about a medical unit during the Korean War that depicted to the viewers what it was like to be sent to war in faraway land where no one wanted to be. The Korean War, much like the Vietnam Conflict were actions in which men were forced into fighting for the U.S. M.A.S.H. gave an inside look at what the troops were going through overseas by describing the hardships and friendships created by the war. Similar themes evolved from the song Everything is Beautiful by Ray Stevens. In this song, Stevens sings about the world being a beautiful, peaceful place, but the irony was that both Korea and Vietnamwere beautiful, vibrant countries, that were interrupted and ravaged by war. The Beatles’ song Let It Be can also be heard as a plea in connection with the trouble in Vietnam. In it the song says: There will be an answer, let it be. This sounds as if the Beatles are asking the nations of world to leave one another alone and let things sort themselves out. This also played well to the hippy movement in America at the time because hippies were basically stating the same thing about only wanting peace and harmony.
The most obvious connection between songs and movies of 1970 was the movie Woodstockcompounded with the song American Woman by The Guess Who. Both the movie, which was a documentary, and song tell people about love, beauty, sexual freedom, and the changing image of America. Woodstockdepicted three days of complete freedom from the norm, and the song American Woman describes the aggressive love of that era. There were no worries about sex, drugs, and other dangerous practices and both the movie and song did away with the usual idea of what was acceptable.
One of the only films which didn’t relate to any songs was Airport. The movie was about the situation created by a bomber on a plane and the race to resolve the problem while saving everyone onboard. None of the songs really go with the movie, however it still made the top ten list. Although it may not have reflected any of the events of what was going on in this world, it was nonetheless popular.
Before, during, and after 1970, America was going through major changes and the music and film industry were quick to pick up on it. The movies, as well as the songs of this time period accurately portrayed life during this era by being able to involve emotion and truth.
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