Abruptly Altered Horizons: Covid-19, Momentous Events and a Not so Rare Phenomenon in Historical Reception Studies

In this brief essay I draw attention to the effects momentous historical events – such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the Brexit referendum or the 9/11 attacks – can have on a film viewer’s interpretive horizon. How we interpret films shot long before the event can be altered rather abruptly with the onset of the event.