DECOLONIZATION AND THE IMAGE OF AFRICA IN BRITISH CINEMA, 1945–1960; [ДЕКОЛОНИЗАЦИЯ И ОБРАЗ АФРИКИ В БРИТАНСКОМ КИНЕМАТОГРАФЕ 1945–1960 гг]

Movies are created in specific historical conditions, influenced by the surrounding reality and dominant values, processed and projected them onto the screen. Thus, pre-war British cinema, having absorbed the ideology of the late 19th century, told about the “white man’s burden” in the far corners of the empire, for example, in Africa. It reflected British ideas about the “dark continent” as a dangerous place inhabited by cruel savages, and other stereotypes. However, the Second World War and the rise of the national liberation movement in the colonies dealt a tangible blow to the old imperial ideology, forcing British politicians to develop and promote new concepts of intraimperial relations. The article has the following tasks: to find out how the process of decolonization that began in 1945–1960 influenced the ideological content of British movies about the Empire, how approaches to the visual representation of the colonized “other” changed in this regard, and how the audience perceived these changes. Using the plots of several post-war films as an example the author shows how the new rhetoric about the Commonwealth of Nations and partnership and current events related to the liberation of the continent from British rule influenced on the depiction of Africa in feature films. It is concluded that, despite the presence of rudiments of previous ideological attitudes, attempts to soften the tone of the narrative and present Africa and Africans in a more noble light have become noticeable in British cinema. © 2023 Institute of History and Archeology of the Ural Branch of RAS. All rights reserved.