Propaganda, Exploitation, and Cult Classics

Over the next week or so, I want to do a short series focusing on a genre of film that has always interested me: the anti-drug propaganda film. The films in this genre are one of two types: educational videos intended to be used in health classrooms that get out of hand with their scare tactics or exploitation films falling into the b-movie category that also use scare tactics to make a horror-type film. Usually, the serious intentions of both types of film belie hilarity to modern audiences, who know better than believe that one puff of pot addicts you to heroin or makes you believe all of your friends have turned into giant spiders that need to be shot with your dad's rifle. It is the humor modern audiences find in these films that have made them rise to cult status.

What is an exploitation film exactly? Well, it is a film designed to exploit a subject, usually something lurid such as sex, drugs, or sociocultural fears (i.e. race, gender roles, etc.). Most of these films are poorly made, sensationalized with advertising and in plot, low budget, have suggestive or explicit subject matter. Though they have been made since the early days of film, the Sixties was the height of exploitation film and pushing boundaries. There are various sub-genres within the exploitation genre itself. Some films are designed to teach or scare the audience into behavior whereas others are just graphic (such as those in the grindhouse or splatter genres).

Exploitation film is a widely explored subject and has gained a considerable cult following, especially as these films became very easy to access on the internet. For a list of some of the most popular exploitation films, you can find this list on Amazon.com. The website brightlightsfilm.com offers various articles on exploitation film, which can be found here, and another focusing especially on drug exploitation films here. More information and interviews with directors and others involved with the making of these films can be found here, by imagesjournal.com. Two great references and guides to what exploitation is and its history can be found here, by filmreference.com, and here, by allmovie.com. Finally, there is even a blog devoted to the exploration and analysis of exploitation film which can be found here at the Exploitation Film blog.

I'm going to profile several films I have seen over the next several days, talking about why they were made, what their message is, and how sometimes the message doesn't always get across to the audience. Since these films started being made, they still remain culturally relevant, propagating and encouraging drug myths, spreading false education and fears, and overall contributing to our current culture and the American War on Drugs. So sit back, chill out, and try to ignore the fact that most of the highschoolers in these movies look to be about thirty.