The course is based on the following premise: the methods political power uses to transmit the values it believes the population should adopt are highly diverse. One very effective method, often overlooked, is mass-market cinema. While we eat popcorn in front of the screen, images, situations, and phrases reach our retinas and, therefore, our brains, unconsciously becoming ingrained in the collective consciousness. Throughout the course, some films that, from the instructor's perspective, have been groundbreaking, have explored essential values, and have provoked thought are presented and analyzed. Of course, not all films are included, but all those included are significant. And not all themes are covered, but some of those that have haunted and concerned us since at least the time of Greek philosophy, Roman law, and the Judeo-Christian tradition—the three fundamental pillars of Western civilization—are addressed.