Fort Apache the Bronx was a controversial film as it created quite an uproar from New Yorkers when the movie came out in 1981. The film is set in South Bronx and is loosely based on book by the same title. What upset people can be seen in the film.

Maybe a more important question to ask is why two well known actors (one of whom won academy awards) with a long history of social consciousness appeared in such a film.

The film solidified audience's perceptions of what the Bronx had become and objectified urban decay.

Please answer the following questions in your journals;

1. From what you know about New York City in the 1970s, is the film accurate?



2. Does the film exploit popular stenotypes?



3. What did you think of the film?
   
   

Internet Move Database (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0082402)

New York Daily News article on the officers of Fort Apache (http://www.nypdnews.com/ftapache.html)

Back to top