Containing over 200 films, this resource is ideal for students, teachers, and other viewers who are interested in using films to enhance their knowledge of American historical events and periods. Along with traditional historical categories, such as the two World Wars, the Civil War, and the Great Depression, the book emphasizes immigrant, multicultural, and women-centered films to portray the fullness of the American experience. It also analyzes representations of people and events across different films for a variety of viewpoints, and considers how films reconfigure a past era through the issues of the day in which they were produced.

For ease of use, the book is organized into time periods. Each entry contains:

the setting

director

cast

credits

the year of production

distributor

Ratings are supplied to identify audience-appropriateness. The detailed narrative supplies a brief plot summary along with a thesis supported by strong examples from the film, such as excerpts of dialogue and factual details from history. The entries encourage readers to view the film through the lens of history and to consider it within the larger nexus of films listed in that particular chapter. Frequently, the historical focus considers both the time period depicted in the film and the time period in which it was made. The running times provide readers with a quick access to key scenes for further study. Each entry also concludes with sources for further reading, and indexes identify those films with multicultural and women's themes.