SCREENING: THE GREAT DICTATOR

During the transition from silence to sound, Charlie Chaplin was the last bastion of silent cinema.  In the subsequent years following the advent of sound, Chaplin had only flirted with using sound.  THE GREAT DICTATOR is is first true talkie as well as his greatest financial success and last bona fide box office hit.  The film is both hilarious and very political.  Made during a time of neutrality between the United States and Nazi Germany, THE GREAT DICTATOR was a controversial stance.  While numerous films dealing with similar anti-fascist sentiments were withheld from release, THE GREAT DICTATOR, through Chaplin's network of independent production, became an international success.  The film's production was so controversial that even the President became involved to secure its completion and release.  Chaplin, who sunk millions of his own money into the production, would have to live or die by THE GREAT DICTATOR.

Chaplin wrote, directed, produced, and starred in the film in dual roles:  a Hitler-esque dictator and a Jewish barber.  Chaplin had a strange fascination with Hitler and the film is further enhanced by the peculiar parallels in their respective biographies.  It is rumored that Hitler was sent and watched the film (twice), but his response is unrecorded.  Unlike films and propaganda at the time, THE GREAT DICTATOR is not a call to arms but rather a reminder of the humane, decent, and good.  Chaplin showcases that comedy can be profoundly serious.  Later in life, Chaplin remarked that if he had known the extent of the atrocities surrounding Nazi Germany, he would not have been able to make THE GREAT DICTATOR.

Suggested Supplmental Screenings: TRIUMPH OF THE WILL (Riefenstahl, 1935), MODERN TIMES (Chaplin, 1936), FURY (Lang, 1936), THE GRAND ILLUSION (Renoir, 1937), THE LADY VANISHES (Hitchcock, 1938), THE ETERNAL JEW (Hippler, 1940), TO BE OR NOT TO BE (Lubitsch, 1942)

FAVORITE FILMS: THE 39 STEPS

SCREENING: SABOTAGE

In his famous interview with Truffaut, Hitchcock considered part of SABOTAGE to be one of his greatest mistakes, but it lives as a film that truly shows the explosive nature of film.  Released in the years leading to WWII, the film deals with a terrorist ring operating in London.  The police investigation closes in on a cinema run by a man, his wife, and her young brother.  Both political and contemplative of cinema itself, SABOTAGE shows Hitchcock at the top of his powers in Britain before his move to Hollywood in 1940.  The film stars Sylvia Sidney, a star of great beauty and depth, and Oskar Homolka as one of Hitchcock's more complex villians.  You can see SABOTAGE featured in Tarantino's INGLORIOUS BASTERDS (2009) and Sidney in BETTLE JUICE (1988) [she is one of Tim Burton's favorite actresses].

Suggested Supplemental Screenings:  Anything by Hitchcock and SCREAM 2 (Craven, 1997)

SCREENING: THE PHILADELPHIA STORY

A classic example of Classical Hollywood, THE PHILADELPHIA STORY stars three of cinema's greatest stars, Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, and Jimmy Stewart, under the direction of one of the greatest, if not underrated, studio directors, George Cukor.  After being labeled "box office poison," Hepburn went to Broadway to preform in Phillip Barry's play of the same name and later optioned the script for a Hollywood treatment.  With ingenious maneuvering Hepburn obtained the rights to the play and poised herself to have veto over cast, director, screenwriter, and producer.  Although Hepburn wanted Clark Gable and Spencer Tracey as her male leads, THE PHILADELPHIA STORY became a rousing success at the box office and the Academy Awards.  Representing the romantic comedy genre that feuled Hollywood in the 1930 and 1940s, THE PHILADELPHIA STORY is a quintessential example of Classical Hollywood genre and star power. 

Suggested Supplemental Screenings:  IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT (Capra, 1934), TWENTIETH CENTURY (Hawks, 1934), MY MAN GODFREY (La Cava, 1936), THE AWFUL TRUTH (McCarey, 1937), BRINGING UP BABY (Hawks, 1938), HIS GIRL FRIDAY (Hawks, 1940), ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (Gondry, 2004)

SCREENING: STELLA DALLAS

STELLA DALLAS, besides being amazing, shows Hollywood's transition from pre-code to prodcution code cinema as well as its continued reliance on genre and stars.  The film is the second film of the course starring Barbara Stanwyck, who ranks as one of Classical Hollywood's brightest and most talented stars.  Equal to Bette Davis, Katherine Hepburn, and Joan Crawford, Stanwyck constructed an impressive career that was supported by her versatility as much as her consistency.  She performed in comedies, melodramas, thrillers, and westerns with the greatest of ease.  Despite the variety of her performances, she played heorines and villians, she always played her parts with a strong will and intense integrity.  Stanwyck recieved four oscar nominations, and one honorary oscar, during her long career (the first for STELLA DALLAS).

The film itself represents the women's melodrama, or a maternal melodrama, which was a cornerstone of Classical Hollywood.  The film begins when Stella Martin, a working class woman, who marries up to Stephen Dallas and has a daughter, Laurel.  Stella soon learns that the upper class is not all she dreamed it would be as her husband constantly destroys her fun.  However, Laurel remains the epicenter of Stella's life.  After an embarrassing incident, Stella decides that she may be holding her daughter back from living the life Stella always wanted.  The ending ranks as one of cinema's best and leaves the audience wondering if Stella's final act is one of self-sacrifice or self-preservation.

Suggested Supplemental Screenings:  IMITATION OF LIFE (Stahl, 1934), ALICE ADAMS (Stevens, 1935), REBECCA (Hitchcock, 1940), PENNY SERENADE (Stevens, 1941), and NOW, VOYAGER (Rapper, 1942)

Also STELLA DALLAS was remade as STELLA (Erman, 1990) starring Bette Midler.

SCREENING: BABY FACE

BABY FACE, the 1933 pre-Code classic, is sexually-charged and fueled by the miraculous star power of Barbara Stanwyck.  The film follows Lily Powers ascent from a Pennslyvania speakeasy to the top of a New York company using the words of Friedrich Nietzsche for inspiration.  Pimped out by her father at a young age, Lily understands the power of her sexuality and uses it to manipulate men into giving her what she wants.  But as Lily climbs the coporate ladder, she experiences the consequences of hubris and is eventually faced with a difficult decision:  love or money.  Remember this sultry performance because we will be watching Stanwyck in a Code-era melodrama, STELLA DALLAS (1937), next week.

Suggested Supplemental Screenings:  RED DUST (Flemming, 1932), SCARFACE (Hawks, 1932) RED-HEADED WOMAN (Conway, 1932), TROUBLE IN PARADISE (Lubitsch, 1932), and anything with Barbara Stanwyck.

FAVORITE FILMS: THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN

If you liked Marie in LA MATERNELLE, then you might like Miette in THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN (1995) by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro.  Miette, certainly an ancestor of Marie, is an orphan toughened by the streets.  The film represents a trend in 1980s and 1990s French cinema called cinéma du look that would at first appear at odds with French Poetic Realism.  Cinéma du look is heavily influenced by pop culture, mostly advertising and music video, and is not highly regarded in critical circles.  Though usually associated with three filmmakers, Jean-Jacques Beineix (DIVA, BETTY BLUE), Luc Besson (NIKITA, THE FIFTH ELEMENT), and Leos Carax (MAUVAIS SANG, POLA X), Jeunet seems to fit the movement.  The central themes associated with French Poetic Realism seem central to Jeunet's cinema in works like AMÉLIE and A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT.

If you are interested in this possible connection between French Poetic Realism and cinéma du look, you might try a double feature of Jean Vigo's L'ATALANTE (1934) and Leos Carax's LOVERS ON THE BRIDGE (1991)

SCREENING: LA MATERNELLE

Supplemental Suggested Screenings:  L'ATALANTE (1934), TONI (Renoir, 1935), PÉPÉ LE MOKO (Duvivier, 1937), GRAND ILLUSION (Renoir, 1937), and THE RULES OF THE GAME (Renoir, 1939).

FAVORITE FILMS: BLACKMAIL

Alfred Hitchcock's BLACMAIL made in 1929 is a pivotal film for the tansistion from silent to sound cinema.  In fact, the film was originally shot in silent and sound added later.  The film also shows the difficulties many actors and actresses had transitioning to sound.  The lead actress, ___________, had a thick accent and was deemed unsuitable for a speaking role.  Instead of recasting, her dialogue was dubbed by another actress, this process, common at the time, is parodied in SINGING IN THE RAIN.

SCREENING: M

SCREENING: I WAS BORN, BUT ...

Directed by master filmmaker Yasujiro Ozu, I WAS BORN, BUT ... (1932) is a story about two brothers, who loose faith when they see their father bowing to his boss.  The boys suddenly realize that their father may not be the hero they imagined him to be, he may simply be human.  True to Ozu's oeuvre, the film is simple yet complex, the static camera allows for the characters to reveal themselves.  Note the distance of the camera in comparison to Deyer's camera in THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC.

Originally not known internationally, Ozu's work has grown in prominence outside of Japan after his death.  His influence can be seen in a variety of international filmmakers including Jim Jarmusch, Claire Denis, Deepa Mehta, and Wim Wenders to name a few.  Paul Schrader, the screenwriter of TAXI DRIVER, even wrote about the transcendent elements of Ozu's work in relation to filmmakers Robert Bresson and Carl Theodor Dreyer.

Ozu returned to I WAS BORN, BUT ... when he made a loose remake of the film in 1959 called GOOD MORNING.

Suggested Supplemental Screenings:  TOKYO CHORUS (Ozu, 1931), THE GODDESS (Wu Yonggang, 1934), and LATE SPRING (Ozu, 1949).

FAVORITE FILMS: VIVRE SA VIE

At a pivotal moment in Jean-Luc Godard's 1962 film VIVRE SA VIE, Nana (Anna Karina) enters a cinema to watch Dreyer's THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC.  As Nana, transfixed by Joan's tears, is moved to tears, Godard utilizes intertextuality to parallel Joan and Nana's stories.  Both women are victimized by society and punished by law, Joan for her faith, Nana for her prostitution. 

Cultural theorist Susan Sontag described VIVRE SA VIE as "a perfect film" and "one of the most extraordinary, beautiful, and original works of art that I know of."  The story, like THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC, blurs the lines between reality and ficition.  VIVRE SA VIE tells the fictional story of Nana, but it is guided by the real relationship between Karina and Godard, who were married at the time.



Also worth looking into is Danish director Lars Von Trier, who is known for sadistic relationships with his leading actresses.  His films BREAKING THE WAVES (1996), DANCER IN THE DARK (2000), and DOGVILLE (2003) can be viewed as Joan-like narratives of women who are persecuted and achieve a form of sainthood.

SCREENING: THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC

Produced in France in 1928 by Danish director Carl Theodor Dreyer, THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC ranks as one of the best films ever made.  Playing Joan, Renée Jeanne Falconetti's performance is frequently praised as one of the best performances ever committed to celluloid.  This was Falconetti's second film role and her last. 

The film is known for its use of the close-up to capture the pain plastered on Joan's face.  To capture a more naturalistic tone, Dreyer did not allow any actors to wear make-up and he even used a new type of film (panchromatic film) which better recorded skin tones.  The film was considered lost after the negative was destroyed in a fire, but a complete print of the original was discovered in 1981 in the closet of an Oslo mental institution.  The tense and often sadistic relationship between Dreyer and Falconetti can be seen repeated in the working relationship between Lars Von Trier and Bjork during the filming of DANCER IN THE DARK (it marked Bjork's first and final film role).

Suggested Supplemental Screenings: VAMPYR (Dreyer, 1932), GERTRUD (Dreyer, 1964), JOAN OF ARC (Fleming, 1948), ST. JOAN (Preminger, 1957), THE TRIAL OF JOAN OF ARC (Bresson, 1962), and THE MESSENGER (Besson, 1999)

Also take a look at this new and comprhensive site dedicated to the work of Dreyer.

FAVORITE FILMS: REQUIEM OF A DREAM

If you dare, Darren Aronofsky's 2000 film REQUIEM FOR A DREAM manages to combine the exagerated and angst feuld images of German Expressionism with tremendous montage sequences that recall the power of Soviet Montage.  The film follows four protagonists linked by love, friendship, family, and addiction.  REQUIEM FOR A DREAM, as the title suggests, explores the disparate nature of our dreams and our realities.  The characters of the film become victims of their own dreams and delusions, which leads them down a road of desperation.

This gripping and shocking film, based on the novel by Hurbert Shelby Jr., shows that these two international movements may share a lot of similarities and form two important cornerstones to cinematic expression:  mise-en-scene and montage.  In additon, the film has powerful performances and a moving musical score.

POP CULTURE PARALLELS: MADONNA AND FILM HISTORY

Besides the rap section of Madonna's Vogue music video, a litany of Hollywood stars, or her imitation of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes in MAterial Girl, she is a pop artist who has repeatedly co-opted or appropriated filmic history and iconography.  In addition to her evelopment of star personas such as Maryiln Monroe and Jean Harlow, her music videos, especially during the 1990s, show case an impressive film literacy from herself and the directors with whom she worked. 

Perhaps these music videos by Madonna can shed light on the movements of German Expressionism and Soviet Montage.

David Fincher's EXPRESS YOURSELF video draws heavily from Metropolis (the canoical german expressionist film.  Urban paranoira, repressed sexuality, industrial malaise all dominate the narrative.  Its visuals are heightened similar to The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and shows a modern use of the expressionistic mode.



In this second video to Madonna's RAY OF LIGHT, Swedish director Jonas Åkerlund, used sped up images from various cities including Los Angeles, New York, London, Vegas, and Stockholm.  The disparate images of single days in the city and their editing recall Vertov's Man with a Movie Camera.  Åkerlund is also referencing Godfrey Reggio's 1982 film Koyaanisqatsi: Life out of Balance, which features time-lapse photography.



Åkerlund and Madonna were later accused of plagarism by Stefano Salvati.  The Italian director claimed that he had sent Maverick, Madonna's record company, a copy of his video for Biagio Antonacci's  song "Non è Mai Stato Subito" prior to the filming of Ray of Light.

SCREENING: THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI and MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA

This week's screening is a European double feature consisting of THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI, an example of German Expressionism, and MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA, an example of Soviet Montage.  These films showcase two very different but equally important parts of filmmaking:  mise-en-scene and montage.  Both these films and their respective movements would have tremendous impact on the art of filmmaking and especially the development of Classical Hollywood cinema that we will look at in a few weeks. 

THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI is considered one of the best horror films ever produced.  The film follows a series of murders in a German mountain town after the arrival of Dr. Caligari and his assistant Cesare.  With amazing sets and performances, the film takes the viewer into the deranged psyche of the human mind.  The visuals of MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA are equally disorienting but in a different way.  Constructed from images of Soviet citizens, with no plot, the film is an experimental documentary that features numerous cinematic techniques including double exposure, split screens, and jump cuts.

Suggested Supplmental Screenings:  For German Expressionism -- NOSFERATU (Murnau, 1922), METROPOLIS (Lang, 1927), and SUNRISE: A SONG OF TWO HUMANS (Murnau, 1927).  For Soviet Montage -- THE BATTLESHIP POTEMKIN (Eisenstein, 1925) and STRIKE (Eisenstein, 1925).

FAVORITE FILMS: STEAMBOAT BILL JR.

If you like Keaton, check out this film.  The film begins with Steamboat Bill, who is excited that his son Steamboat Bill, Jr. is returning home from school.  Bill wants Bill Jr. to take over the family business, but Bill Jr. resists.  Instead of work, Bill Jr. is interested in Kitty, a girl he met in school.  The affair is complicated when Bill Jr. meets Kitty's father, Steamboat Bill's rival.  The film is best known for a daring prision escape set admist a cyclone.  This is a great example of the Keaton persona and the performer's daring physical performances. 



A lot of Chaplin, Keaton, and Lloyd's work can be found on DVD at the library or through the Internet Archive.

POP CULTURE PARALLELS: CHAPLIN AND KEATON IN FASHION

For Spring 2011, fashion designer John Galliano turned to silent film for inspiration.  The collection inspired by Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton experimented with new proporitions.  The runway featured a giant clock, which could be a reference to Chaplin's film MODERN TIMES in which he is trapped in a set of gears or possibly to Harold Lloyd's SAFETY LAST.  The show's references could also be a remark on the current economic enviornment.  Ironic that this tramp ensemble costs so much money.

Fashion and film have always been very connected but more than ever fashion houses are turning to film and filmmakers to reach a larger audience.  For example, three famous directors have produced perfume commercials for fashion houses:  David Lynch for Gucci, Sofia Coppola for Dior, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet for Chanel.

SCREENING: SILENT COMEDIES

While the feature films discussed in class are examples of melodrama, another popular genre was comedy.  This weeks screening encapsulates three of the leading silent comedians of the era:  Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd.  In the essence of time, the films by Chaplin and Keaton are short films and Lloyd's a feature film.  It is important to note that Chaplin and Keaton also produced feature films and all three were very hands-on with their productions whether they are credited as director or not.  These comedies, like the melodramas, provide entertainment as well as a window on life during that time.

You should notice a connection between these comedians and later comics such as Jerry Lewis and Jim Carrey.  Pay attention to the intricate visuals of these films since they are paramount to the successful completion of the gags.  Also of importance is the way in which each of these silent comedians honed their skills and cultivated distinctive personas that made them famous.  Chaplin, Keaton, and Lloyd were all very aware of the roles they were playing and very protective of their work, especially Lloyd (who witheld his work for decades).

Suggested Supplemental Screenings:  SHOULDER ARMS (Chaplin, 1918), THE KID (Chaplin, 1921), CITY LIGHTS (Chaplin, 1931), MODERN TIMES (Chaplin, 1936), SHERLOCK JR. (Keaton, 1924), GO WEST (Keaton, 1925), THE GENERAL (Keaton, 1926), STEAMBOAT BILL JR. (Keaton, 1928),
GRANDMA'S BOY (Lloyd, 1922), and GIRL SHY (Lloyd, 1924)

Chaplin and Keaton appear together in LIMELIGHT (1952).  We will watch Chaplin's THE GREAT DICTATOR (1940) at the end of the semester.

Surprisingly a new Charlie Chaplin film was recently discovered through ebay when a man purchased a film canister labeled "an old film," which turned out to be CHARLIE CHAPLIN IN ZEPPED, a 1916 World War I propoganda film that was considered lost.

FAVORITE FILMS: JEANNE DIELMAN ...

The transition to feature filmmaking was one concerned with time.  How to extend spectator interests?  Since the advent of the feature film the industry average is between 90-120 minutes.  However, some filmmakers have gone beyond that to make longer films.  At one point such epic films would be interrupted with an intermission, but that is no longer the case.



In the May/June 2010 issue of FILM COMMENT, there is a "A Trivial Top 20" list of "The Best Very, Very Long Films."  Among the list, which includes Francis Ford Coppola's THE GODFATHER: PART II (200 minutes), Stanley Kubrick's BARRY LYNDON (184 minutes), and Andy Warhol's CHELSEA GIRLS (210 minutes), Chatal Akerman's masterpiece of pacing JEANNE DIELMAN, 23 QUAI DU COMERCE, 1080 BRUXELLES (201 minutes) stands out for its darring experimentation with duration.  It is a fascinating film that builds tension during its 3-hour plus running time to a shocking, climatic finish.  It is certainly worth the time to watch.  Akerman visited the Cosford in the Fall of 2008.

FAVORITE FILMS: THE SHINNING

The "Here's Johnny" scene of Stanely Kubrick's THE SHINNING is one of cinema's most classic lines and moments.  You can compare it with D.W. Griffith's BROKEN BLOSSOMS to discover that the tremendous effects provided by the cinematic expereince are establish quite early in its history.  The comparrison between these two films shows what can be learned and used from early cinema to make contemporary. 

Kubrick, like Griffith, was a master of cinema.  Both loved melodrama and understood the power of cinema through camera placement, editing, and performances.  Both men operated on an epic scale.  Another example showing the universality of cinema in the past and present. 

SCREENING: THE BLOT

Directed by pioneer filmmaker Lois Weber, THE BLOT, made in 1921, is a feature film detailing issues of poverty, class, and ethics. Weber made great attempts to keep a level of realism to this family melodrama through her use of location shooting, natural lighting, and non-professional actors in supporting roles.

Weber was a director, producer, and actress. In 1914 she became the first woman to direct a feature film. She even formed her own production company in 1917. THE BLOT, which was not successfully received, marked a turning point in Weber's life, professionally and personally. The 1920s were a rough period of the director as she experienced both the loss of her company and the end of her marriage.
THE BLOT was restored by Kevin Brownlow and David Gill and showcased at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival. The restoration of Weber's work has secured her a place in the annuals of film history next to directors such as D.W. Griffith and Cecil B. DeMille.

Suggested Supplemental Screenings: BIRTH OF A NATION (Griffith, 1915), THE CHEAT (DeMille, 1915), BROKEN BLOSSOMS (Griffith, 1919), WAY DOWN EAST (Griffith, 1920)

LES VAMPIRES ONLINE LINK!

http://www.archive.org/details/lesVampires1915Episode4-theSpectre

Now you can watch it from your computer.

PORTER'S UNCLE JOSH SERIES

These three films by Porter form a sort of series of films revolving around the character of Uncle Josh, a country pumbkin, they also represent trick films.

UNCLE JOSH AND THE SPOOKY HOTEL (1900)

This has a very vaudville feel to it.  Something we will see when we look at the silent comedies of Chaplin, Keaton, and Lloyd.

UNCLE JOSH'S NIGHTMARE (1900)

Notice the similarites to Melies' film THE BLACK IMP, made a few years later.  It possibly shows the exchange of ideas or stealing of ideas.  It also shows the develpment of the trick film.  Melies' is more compliated and smoother.

UNCLE JOSH AT THE MOVING PICTURE SHOW (1902)

This film is fascinating in its fascination with the cinematic medium.  Like THOSE AWFUL HATS, the film shows the curiosity associated with the cinema by audiences and filmmakers.  Technically... masking.  Also sort of a homage to the Lumiere Brothers and their film THE ARRIVAL OF THE TRAIN AT THE STATION and the reported audience reaction of fear that the train would break through the screen.  If you like this sort of reflexivity you might want to look at Buster Keaton's SHERLOCK JR. and Woody Allen's THE PURPLE ROSE OF CARIO.

SCREENING: LES VAMPIRES

Make sure to screen Louis Feuillade's 1915 Serial film LES VAMPIRES before Thursday.  Copies of the film can be found in the Reading Room and on hold at the Library.  You only need to watch part 4 -- Le spectre (The Ghost) (32 min). If you feel like watching the entire 399 minutes, please do.
The story will be somewhat complete and somewhat incomplete.  Consider the similarities of this format to more recent films such as the HARRY POTTER SERIES or the TWILIGHT SAGA.  These films stand on their own but they are part of a continuing story.  Serial and series films, we'll discuss the difference on Thursday, can be seen as precursors to the popularity of sequels, the development of series television, and the ubiquity of modern film marketing tie-ins.

Suggested Supplemental Screenings:  THE PERILS OF PAULINE (1914), THE HAZARDS OF HELEN (1914-1917), JUDEX (1914/1916)

POP CULTURE PARALELLS: LUMIERES TO VIRAL VIDEO

The parallels between the Lumiere Brothers' CHILDISH QUARREL (1896) and the viral video CHARLIE BIT ME demonstrate that while cinema has changed a great deal in the last 100 years many essentials remain.  Notice that both films are of domestic moments seemingly caught spontaneously.  The popularity of both films confirm that entertainment really has not changed a great deal.

FAVORITE FILMS: BLUEBEARD

If you were intrigued by Melies, you can check out his adaptation of BLUEBEARD, Charles Pennualt's grisly children's story.  French filmmaker Catherine Breillat recently adapted this classic fairy tale in a new way.  The film, like the story, follows a young girl who is wedded to a mysterious man.  Admist rumors of disappeared wives, the young girl must decide whehter to obey her husband's orders or submit to her own curiosity.  Breillat ingeniously frames the primary story as two sisters read the tale.  The film fits perfectly with Breillat's interest in sexuality and violence, the bonds of sisterhood, and the victimization of women.  Known as a provacauteur, Breillat's film is shocking and beautiful. 

The film is part of the Tournees Film Festival this semester exploring the New Extreme in French Cinema.  BLUEBEARD will be screening 10.7.10 at 7pm in the Cosford. 

SCREENING: LUMIERE AND COMPANY

The first screening of the course is the 1995 omnibus film LUMIERE AND COMPANY.  The film celebrates the cenntienal anniversary of the Lumiere Brothers' first film by asking 40 internationally renowned driectors, such as David Lynch (BLUE VELVET, MULHOLLAND DR.), Spike Lee (CLOCKERS, INSIDE MAN), Zhang Yimou (HERO, RAISE THE RED LANTERN), and Michael Haneke (FUNNY GAMES, CACHE), to make a short film using the Lumieres' first camera.  Each film could not exceed 52 seconds, use synchronized sound, utilize more than three takes.  The process and result yeilds some interesting comments on the nature of cinema and the parallels between the Lumiere Brothers and contemporary filmmakers.

Suggested Supplemental Screenings:  TO EACH HIS OWN CINEMA (2007)

POP CULTURE PARALLELS: THEATRICAL PSA

As a modern medium there are numerous connections and parallels between early or 'primitive' cinema and what we see and experience today as spectators.  These theatrical psas by D.W. Griffith and Martin Scorsese show that despite over a hundred years and a myriad of changes to cinema, there are essential elements to the art and entertainment of motion pictures.

D.W. Griffith's THOSE AWFUL HATS (1909)


A modern example with Martin Scorsese for AT&T.

WELCOME

This course is an examination of the origin and history of the motion picture. Narrative and non-fiction genres, in the American and World Cinemas, from their inception through 1940 are discussed.

CMP 204 explores how the medium of film has developed from its origins in the 1890s to the point of significant global technological change caused by World War II. Focusing on US and World cinemas, this course investigates how the technological, aesthetic, institutional, and socio-cultural histories of film have emerged and changed over time.

Students will learn about various historical and cultural contexts influence the formation of film language (such as the close-up or parallel editing) and the emergence of technologies (such as sound and color). They will become knowledgeable about a number of film movements and periods including early silent forms, German Expressionism, Soviet Montage, Early Asian cinemas, European Avant Garde, and French Poetic Realism. They will gain familiarity with such Classical Hollywood genres as the Women’s Melodrama, Romantic Comedy, and Thriller. Students will examine the structure of the studio system and stardom as well as the tension between censorship, commerciality, and artistic expression in Classical Hollywood.

By the end of this course, students will have gained a deeper understanding of the history of film as an industry and as a field of study. They will more fully comprehend the diversity and global scope of film history. They will also gain skills that help them think critically, independently, and creatively.

Students will address historical questions such as: What is the relationship between US commercial film and national cinemas around the globe? How do some motion picture movements become dominant while others lose hold? Why do certain films and filmmakers appear to “stand the test of time” while others do not? How is film history recorded and how might we account for some of its erasures? How are deteriorating films preserved? What is the relationship between our film past and our film future?