Cinematic History

Robert Brent Toplin discusses the topic of portraying history through film. Toplin focuses on how history is utilized and interpreted in the movies, and the genre of cinematic history. He believes historical films are important because they help to reach wide audiences, but many factors must be considered when using this medium which is known to take creative liberties. Toplin raises the issue of when the movie is filmed and how that influences how the historical time period it portrays. He also factors in what historical movies tell us about the cultural and social climate of the historical setting.

Toplin is a strong advocate for historians becoming involved in cinematic history. He believes that extensive research should be conducted in the field to contribute as much as possible to historical accuracies and the audience understanding of historical films. Like Davis, Toplin feels that historical movies serve the greater good by involving an audience that might not be reached otherwise. Therefore, he challenges historians to refine the making of films and share their expertise with filmmakers to transform historical cinema into something that provides a truthful historical picture to the audience.