Video Project Essay 2

The Impact of Women on the Beginning of Film

Throughout the history of cinema, women have played a key role in the success of the film industry. Although their roles in films have changed over the years, women have remained an important driving force behind film innovation and production. Recently it was discovered that women had played a pioneering role in the beginning of the film industry. Alice Guy-Blache is credited with directing the first fiction film. In addition, she produced “hundreds of short films in France and later in the United States, and more than twenty feature films through her film company, Solax” (White, 125). Lois Weber, another prolific film-maker, created many movies that helped “illuminate links between early twentieth-century middle-class feminism and the emerging cultural role of cinema” (White, 125). Although forgotten until recent discovery, these two film-makers played important roles in the initial emergence of the film industry. Both women serve as examples of the fact that although the roles of women in the film industry vary over time, their impact is powerful, and has served a large role in molding film production into what it is today.

Hill, John and Pamela Church Gibson. The Oxford Guide to Film Studies. New York: Oxford University Press,1998. Print.

-David Zwick

Essay 2

Video Essay 2

Defining the New Wave (Essay 2) David Zwick

400 Blows!

The French New Wave which started in the 1950s and 1960s had a series of new and interesting movies which complemented the European art cinema genre. The movie 400 Blows, by Francois Trouffaut, is now recognized as one of the most important films of the French New Wave. The film, based partly on Trouffaut’s life, depicts an original story of a young boy and his mischievous acts. The movie not only appeals to young adults who are themselves living this mischievous life but also to an older audience who likes to reminisce about their childhood memories and who are captured by this relationship to their own young lives. The movie therefore was a natural success not only in France but throughout the whole world.
The film also uses a series of unique techniques to portray its message, showing Francois Trouffaut’s auteur capabilities. The ending scene in particular shows the genius of Trouffaut. As the main character, Antoine, runs towards the sea to escape his troublesome life, the camera closes in on his face as he stares out into the ocean. This shot allows the audience to feel compassion for the main character and the angle shot on Antoine’s face fully relates to the new found hope that Antoine has found. He has now transformed into an adult who will begin his life anew without memory of his hard childhood. Because the movie does not have a definite ending, it again leaves room for the audience to derive their own meaning for the movie adding furthermore to its universal appeal.

European Cinema

Ginette Vincendeau's article "Issues In European Cinema" explains the differences between European film and the typical movie produced by Hollywood. The expectations that audiences have come to develop from fast paced, action based American films can present an obstacle in their appreciation for a foreign cinema. When our English class watched 400 Blows, for example, a common reaction was frustration with the lack of excitement and fluidity in storyline. But Vincendeau presents study of European cinema as a study of art cinema. European films are commonly aesthetically innovative, socially committed, and humanist. Especially into the 1970's and 1980's, it has become the design of European filmmaking to counteract Hollywood's domination over markets. The viewing experience associated with European cinema requires a new mindset in order to appreciate the text. Recognizing the purpose and methods of the film being viewed is beneficial to the audience's overall understanding and enjoyment.

-- Audrey Chasteen

Vincedeau, Ginette. "Issues In European Cinema." The Oxford Guide To Film Studies. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Genre Hybrids

The term genre has been around for a long time, and is often associated with the analysis of classical literature. More recently, the term genre has been become associated with describing the general characteristics that are present within films. However, it is almost impossible to define a movie under the strict terms of any one genre, especially since the majority of films take different aspects from a variety of categories as a basis of their storyline.

Generally when one thinks of a genre, a specific category or topic will come to mind. Some of the most commonly referred to genres are the horror, western, film noir, comedy, melodrama, and action categories. Yet almost every movie is in some way a hybrid as it takes aspects from many different categories. Even the most genre strict movies have certain elements that were taken from another category. Take for example the movie The Searchers (1956). This movie strictly follows the basic outline of a western movie, and includes iconic features such as the stoic cowboy, the marauding Indians, the majestic landscape, and the expansive distances. However, The Searchers also includes elements from other genres. The romantic relationship between Martin and Laurie serves as a critical sub-plot throughout the story. Therefore, although the main theme of the movie is a western, The Searchers also takes elements of romance from other genres as well.

This example shows how even the most genre specific film contains aspects of other film categories as well. The hybrids created by this merging of characteristics allow directors to create films that are both more diverse and different from other movies within the same genre. It is this difference that allows directors to take the basic framework of a certain genre and mold in into a unique story that builds upon the foundations of the existing genre characteristics. Arguably, it is this ability to make something unique out of a basic genre template that has allowed Hollywood films to be so successful.

-David Zwick

Racists and Bigots

The movie Crash addresses the dangers of making decisions based upon assumptions and prejudices. The stories show the ever present prejudices that every person shares in the movie, whether they began the story with these beliefs or if they developed them, like Cameron Thayer, who developed a distrust and disdain for the white officers. Some of the events shown are caused by prejudices, such as the attempted shooting of Lucien by Farhad, while other events explain how some of the prejudices became known, like Anthony and Peter stealing cars while talking about how that stereotype exists and that they are offended by it, yet they perpetuate it. Racism has always had place in film; it is present in many movies, but it has not been truly, explicitly addressed since The Birth of a Nation. The movie is saturated with prejudices and a general mistrust of other people, problems that plague modern America which the movie addresses by showing that the characters that change go on to live happier lives, even if they are hurt in the process. This movie breaks previous conventions by sharing what can be considered the main roles of the movie between white and non-white actors, giving them all the same importance and developing each character separately, but still in depth. Wiegman's essay, Race, Ethnicity, and Film, talks about how these main roles were always reserved for white actors, even when the role being portrayed is one of a different race. This movie reflects America's changing views of racism and political correctness. Crash attempts to convince the audience about the ills of racism, summed up in the lines from Jean, "I am angry all the time... and I don't know why," which she then talks about how she wants to change, representing a positive shift to the audience.

Wiegman, Robyn. Race, Ethnicity, and Film. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. Print.

-David Zabriskie

Race and Ethnicity In Film

The portrayal of various races and ethnicities in cinema has certainly come a long way since Griffith's Birth Of A Nation (1915). This reflects the progress of society. In the past, it has been a pattern of films to serve as reinforcements of racist perceptions by representing minority characters through an extreme degree of stereotypical behavior. Though there are still issues concerning race and ethnicity in making films, there is obvious progress. A minority actor in the early 1900’s was not allowed an important role. Currently the most successful and well-respected actors in Hollywood come from various ethnic backgrounds. Don Chedle for example who played a primary role in the movie Crash has received 17 academy awards as well as 44 additional nominations. Crash takes an even further advanced approach by critically examining stereotypes and assumptions as compared to reality. This correlates to forward thought in American society as diversity is becoming more and more recognized, and being highlighted at the foreground of thought.

Racism is everywhere

Film plays an influential role on the perception of different races and ethnicities. Crash examines stereotypes prevalent in the past and still in our society today. Through the intertwining vignettes, Crash presents different races and ethnicities and the common stereotypes associated with them. Anthony and Peter serve as archetypes of the black inner-city car thieves; Daniel struggles against the label of a Mexican gangbanger; Farhad is labeled with the identity of a terrorist because of his Persian roots. These stereotypes and the people casting the stereotypes in the film show how racism and prejudice affect our perceptions of and interactions with people in everyday life. Despite the diversity in America, racial discrimination and prejudice is still inescapable and, to some extent, defines the characters in the film. Anthony, who complains about the racist and stereotypical views of blacks, conforms to these stereotypes in many ways. In the end, racism will remain a prevailing issue in our society. Crash does not provide a solution to racism; however, the film draws empathy for every character, suggesting that understanding of different races and ethnicities to some extent will ease the racial tensions of our society today. Crash ends on the note that we are all human and, despite our different backgrounds, we are all connected and can find a way to understand each other on some level.

- C.N.