The Power of Western Cinema: Shaping Global Cultural Attitudes and Beliefs

Western cinema holds a lot of power to make an impact in the world. On a global level, it has the power to affect and shape cultural attitudes and beliefs. Western media in particular has had a big impact on developing countries since it has introduced new cultural norms and ideals that have questioned old beliefs and behaviors in many societies, leaving many people insecure. The ideas that people have of themselves and their own cultures have been influenced by Western media. For example, Western media often portrays non-Western cultures in a stereotypical or exoticized way, which can lead to feelings of inferiority or cultural insecurity among people from these cultures. Western cinema can transmit their cultural legacy and promote cultural imperialism in the youth of the developing countries such as Pakistan by misrepresenting the image of the developing countries and presenting the civilized communities of the west.  Thus, Western movies and TV shows often normalize the idea to the West that all developing countries like Pakistan are violent, uncivilized, and portray an uneducated population living in impoverished conditions. 

To begin with, developing countries are frequently perceived in Western films as violent which devalues the complexity and diversity of these countries and promotes an ignorant viewpoint to the world. The violent portrayal in the western media can be because of cultural differences. The cultural differences in developing countries has not been fully understood or appreciated in some western films, which can result in misconceptions and inaccurate portrayals. For instance, “A Mighty Heart” (2007) which shows the kidnapping and murder of journalist Daniel Pearl by a militant organization in Pakistan. The film has been criticized for reinforcing negative stereotypes about Pakistan and its people, presenting them as violent and extremist. This movie shows scenes of bombs, riots, and violent fights to portray Pakistan as a nation where terrorism and extremism are widespread. Without taking into account the complexity of the political and socio economic difficulties the country is dealing with, this presentation reinforces the impression of Pakistan as a violent and unstable nation. For instance, the group behind Pearl’s kidnapping and murder is shown to be a fundamentalist Islamist gang, and other Muslims are portrayed as being suspicious or unreliable. Inaccurate historical context is another issue that leads to this misrepresentation. 

Many Western films filmed in developing nations are based on actual conflicts and acts of violence, including revolts or civil wars. However, these incidents are typically portrayed through the lenses of western ideas, which can support the idea that violence is widespread in developing nations. For example,  the 2007 film “The Mighty Heart” by Michael  Winterbottom reduces the complicated details of the incident while exaggerating certain events and people in the true story of Pearl’s kidnapping and death. This movie should be criticized for  misinterpreting Pearl’s kidnapping and death, limiting it to a straightforward case of religious extremism, and for always placing the blame on religion rather than going into details for the other possible reasons behind her kidnapping. Thus, some Western movies have often portrayed developing countries as violent, which reflects the biases and perspective of the directors. It’s important to examine these portrayals and consider the real-world consequences they may have on people’s perceptions and attitudes.

In addition, there is a widespread misconception in the western media that countries like Pakistan are uncivilized and the westerners can fix the problems in developing countries such as Pakistan. When in reAnother misconception that has been associated with developing countries in the western movies is portraying the majority of the population as uneducated living in impoverished conditions.ality they leave behind a sense of inferiority amongst the people living there. In a study conducted by Wasif, Rafeel in an article “Does the Media’s Anti-Western Bias Affect its Portrayal of NGOs in the Muslim World? Assessing Newspapers in Pakistan.” He perpetuates the idea that developing nations are dependent on the westerns to help them get out of poverty and impoverished conditions. He stated “The Muslim world faces today issues resulting from abject poverty (Rahman [69]; Rubin [74]; Kuran [48]) which, in addition to a human catastrophe, also attracts some individuals to radical and extremist ideologies (Nasr [63]; Berman [11]; Bano [ 8]). NGOs can help alleviate these social problems, but they often suffer from a lack of legitimacy in the Muslims world “.  The text highlights some of the issues faced by the Muslim world, especially Pakistan, the problem of abject poverty. Which can lead to radical and extremist ideologies. The author suggests that NGOs (non-governmental organizations) can play a role in addressing these social problems but the anti-western biases presented in the media is causing a lack of legitimacy in the muslim world. 

I strongly disagree with this statement because usually the west is presented as an ideal place in the Pakistani media, that is feeding on the idea of western supremacy and the need to be like the west to look successful. In reality, even Pakistani media is transmitting the legacy of western ideologies into their movies and TV shows comparing western world to pakistan by presenting the west as affluent and Pakistan as a place that needs to be like the west. Even though we clearly have different ideologies and customs that can be repolished to get us out of poverty and unsatisfactory conditions. In the article “Satires, narratives and journalistic divides: Discourses on free speech in Western and Islamic news media.”. The authors found that the topic of free speech was influenced by different narratives in each type of media. Western media tended to focus on narratives of democracy and individual rights, while Islamic media emphasized narratives of community and religious values. The authors conclude that these different discourses reflect the cultural and political contexts in which they are produced and highlight the need for more nuanced understandings of free speech across different cultural and political contexts.

Western movies often cast Western actors to play roles for foreign backgrounds, extending the idea that these cultures are inferior or less important than Western cultures. Sadly, there are many examples of Western films using non-Western actors in Western roles. This practice is straight up whitewashing other cultures which can create negative stereotypes, limit career options for non-Western actors, and convey the sense that proper portrayal of some cultures is irrelevant. As an example, the director of the 2007 film “The Mighty Heart” chose Angelina Jolie, a white American actress, to play Mariane Pearl, the widow of the mixed-ancestry Afro-Chinese-Cuban journalist Daniel Pearl. The actor chosen for the role neglects Mariane Pearl’s racial and ethnic identity, while there was a chance to hire a more suitable actor instead.This casting choice highlights Hollywood’s tendency to favor white actors and storylines while ignoring the varied perspectives and experiences of people of color. Jolie acknowledged the criticism surrounding her selection for the role in the movie and said she felt a “huge responsibility” to portray Mariane Pearl respectfully and accurately. However, this responsibility shouldn’t even have been put on her when they could have chosen a cast from Mariane’s background and represented it more accurately. 

It’s understandable that these countries might not be as flourished as the west but constantly highling this only about developing countries like Pakistan is disappointing. There are many people living a much better lifestyle than the majority of the people in the west, so associating the whole country with poverty is extremely disrespectful. Such as in the movie “The Reluctant Fundamentalist” (2012). In this political thriller, a Pakistani guy decides to move to the United States and gets caught up in the aftermath of 9/11. The film has scenes set in Pakistan, which is painted as a nation with extreme poverty and financial difficulties. Changez, who is the main character, faces unemployment and financial hardship in Pakistan, which stimulates the idea that there are little economic chances in pakistan. The challenges that many Pakistanis who live in poverty or struggle to secure a stable job are highly emphasized in the movie. Thus, Western media often portrays developing nations like Pakistan as uncivilized by focusing on negative aspects such as poverty, terrorism, and lack of infrastructure, while ignoring the positive aspects of these countries.They also often blame the culture religion for the civilization of the developing countries. They emphasize the cultural and religious differences, to portray them as something negative that is coming in the way of modernization and progress. This creates a perception that these countries are backward and in need of Western intervention and guidance to become more civilized.

Furthermore, the western media  demonstrates the comparison of Pakistan as a poor country with a flourished country like the U.S. The United States is portrayed in the film as a wealthy, powerful nation with boundless opportunities, in comparison to Pakistan. This contrast reinforces the image of Pakistan as a poor and underdeveloped country that is in need of outside assistance. Considering the lack of media coverage of wealth inequality in America, it would be more accurate for us to bring attention to the growing wealth gap in western nations. where racism and poor facilities for the working-class are contributing to increasing wealth gaps between races. The United States had the least equal distribution of household income among the 21 industrialized countries studied by Smeeding in 2000. About half of all income made in the US was accounted for by the richest fifth of all US households. Top businessmen and the average working American now make dramatically different amounts of money. The average household income of Blacks and Latinos is around two thirds that of Whites.  The “wealth gap” between blacks and whites, according to Oliver and Shapiro (1997), is far larger than the income difference. Instead of emphasizing poverty in the  developing nations and creating nothing but stereotypes, the western media should highlight the wealth inequality in their films because media is a powerful tool for social change. For example, in the book Social Policy, the Media and Misrepresentation, Bob Franklin presents a series of case studies, the book provides examples of how the media can distort the public’s understanding of social policy issues, and how this can lead to negative outcomes for those affected by these policies. The authors argue that there is a need for greater awareness and critical engagement with the media’s role in shaping public opinion, and a need for more accurate and balanced representations of social policy issues and marginalized groups.

In conclusion , it is common for Western films to negatively stereotype developing nations by promoting the concept that these nations are only about violence, poverty, and suffering. Further projecting the idea that the western world is more prosperous by degrading the success of the developing countries. These stereotypes can contribute to prejudice and discrimination against these nations and their people by spreading false and damaging beliefs about their people and cultures.

Work Cited 

“The Mighty Heart.” Directed by Michael Winterbottom, performances by 

Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, and Irrfan Khan, Paramount Vantage, 2007.

Rafeel, Wasif. “Does the Media’s Anti-Western Bias Affect its Portrayal of NGOs in 

the Muslim World? Assessing Newspapers in Pakistan.” International Communication Gazette, vol. 75, no. 6, 2013, pp. 599-618.

Banaji, Shakuntala, and Iqra Iqbal. “Satires, Narratives and Journalistic

 Divides: Discourses on Free Speech in Western and Islamic News Media.” Journalism Studies, vol. 20, no. 8, 2019, pp. 1051-1068.

Burchardt, Tania, and Adrian Sinfield, editors. Social Policy, the Media 

and Misrepresentation. Routledge, 2018.

“The Reluctant Fundamentalist.” Directed by Mira Nair, performances by 

Riz Ahmed, Kate Hudson, Liev Schreiber, Kiefer Sutherland, and Om Puri, Doha Film Institute, 2012.