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Auteur theory analysis
Criticism of auteur theory
Criticism of auteur theory
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In the world of cinema, a director can either be a tool to create a film without ever being seen or heard by the audience or they can put their “stamp” on the movie so that the audience immediately knows who directed the film. The latter of these types of directors is called an auteur. The director whose style and creativity is evident and repetitive in their films is what Francois Truffaut, the film critic who established the theory, would call an auteur (Boda &Pendleton-Thompson). Two such auteurs whose films were shown in class this semester include the legendary French director Jean-Luc Godard who directed Vivre Sa Vie (1962) and the American director of Upstream Color (2013), Shane Carruth. Though these directors are acclaimed as auteurs …show more content…
As Andrew Sarris points out in “Notes on the Auteur Theory in 1962”, there are roughly three premises of the auteur theory on which to judge a director. These include the technical expertise of the director, the distinguishable style of the film that reflects the director, and lastly the relationship between the director and his art and the glory that that relationship produces (Mast & Sarris). Jean Luc-Godard is regarded as a director who consistently made films that are visual and intellectual landmarks in the world of cinema. Rob Nixon, a contributor of the Turner Classic Movies channel, explains the greatness of Luc-Godard, “Jean-Luc Godard was the most talked about and exciting filmmaker on the scene, reinventing cinema and inspiring passionate dialogue about his work and about the art of motion pictures “(Nixon). Furthermore, Nixon extrapolates from Vivre Sa Vie Luc-Godard’s personal style, which made him so well known. He says the director consistently uses cultural references in the film (i.e. the showing of clips of The Passion of Joan of Arc), Brechtian distancing devices that distances the audience from the emotional capacity of the film in order to make them think, and signature camera takes and angles. All of these stylistic elements help Luc-Godard to be considered the great auteur he …show more content…
In Vivre Sa Vie, Jean Luc-Godard employs the talents of the great musical scorer, Michel Legrand, who creates the melancholic theme music played at the beginning of each “chapter”. This music, both sad and somewhat lighthearted at the same time does well to instill in the viewers the raw emotion felt by Nana as she slides down in the desolate life of prostitution. There is also a lot of diegetic sound in this film, which draws further comparison between it and the Italian Neorealist movement, while also giving it that real-life documentary feel. Furthermore, the music follows the emotion in a way, telling the audience how to feel. Following a particularly sad moment, the music cuts in. This type of sound design differs with Carruth’s use of sounds design. His score is much more whimsical, dreamlike, and nature-driven – giving it a feeling of a drug induced haze in a way that describes the feeling Kris has for much of the film when everything is slipping away. There are also quite a few scenes and stretches of the film where there is no sound at all, which forces the viewers to focus on the visuals and on what can be deduced from the silence and isolation Kris is feeling. Upstream Color is very unique and interesting in the sequences when it blends the recording of diegetic sound within the film and actually creates a non-diegetic
Braudy, Leo and Marshall Cohen, eds. Film Theory and Criticism: Introductory Readings, Fifth Edition. New York: Oxford UP, 1999.
The auteur theory is a view on filmmaking that consists of three equally important premises: technical competence, interior meaning, and personal signature of the director. Auteur is a French word for author. The auteur theory was developed by Andrew Sarris, a well-known American film critic. Technical competence of the Auteur deals with how the director films the movie in their own style. Personal signature includes recurring themes that are present within the director’s line of work with characteristics of style, which serve as a signature. The third and ultimate premise of the Auteur theory is the interior meaning which is basically the main theme behind the film.
Bordwell David and Thompson, Kristen. Film Art: An Introduction. 8th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2008.
Auteur theory holds that, ‘a director’s films reflect that director’s personal creative vision, as if he/she were the primary author. From the earliest silent films to contemporary times motion pictures have crossed over and both entertained and educated the viewing audience.
Think about your favorite movie. When watching that movie, was there anything about the style of the movie that makes it your favorite? Have you ever thought about why that movie is just so darn good? The answer is because of the the Auteur. An Auteur is the artists behind the movie. They have and individual style and control over all elements of production, which make their movies exclusively unique. If you could put a finger on who the director of a movie is without even seeing the whole film, then the person that made the movie is most likely an auteur director. They have a unique stamp on each of their movies. This essay will be covering Martin Scorsese, you will soon find out that he is one of the best auteur directors in the film industry. This paper will include, but is not limited to two of his movies, Good Fellas, and The Wolf of Wall Street. We will also cover the details on what makes Martin Scorsese's movies unique, such as the common themes, recurring motifs, and filming practices found in their work. Then on
Bordwell, David. “The Art Cinema as a Mode of Film Practice.” Film Theory and Criticism. Eds. Leo Braudy and Marshall Cohen. Oxford University Press, 2009: 649-657.
Since the creation of films, their main goal was to appeal to mass audiences. However, once, the viewer looks past the appearance of films, the viewer realizes that the all-important purpose of films is to serve as a bridge connecting countries, cultures, and languages. This is because if you compare any two films that are from a foreign country or spoken in another language, there is the possibility of a connection between the two because of the fact that they have a universally understanding or interpretation. This is true for the French New Wave films; Contempt and Breathless directed by Jean-Luc Godard, and contemporary Indian films; Earth and Water directed by Deepa Mehta. All four films portray an individual’s role in society using sound and editing.
The Analysis of Quentin Tarantino as a Director The director I have chosen to look at is Quentin Tarantino. His films have achieved a cult ang global status and I dont think anyone is going to argue that he is not an auteur. I am more interested in examining his style and seeing how this makes him an auteur and if it has changed when he was receiving a higher budget. Tarantino was born in Noxville Tennessee on 27th march 1963. Tony
The auteur theory is an idea or principle, which states that the film is a reflection of a director’s creative personal vision, as if to say the he or she is the primary author (which in French, means “auteur”). This theory first came to be in 1954, by a French film director named Francois Truffaut. The auteur theory’s birth was through the French New Wave, which was a group of new French filmmakers during the 1950’s and 1960’s. In the beginning, the theory received positive and negative responses. And to this day, it will create a heated debate. Many have questioned the theory, because there are usually multiple people involved in the development of a film. Ultimately, a film will have a writer, alongside the director, which makes it difficult to put all of the weight on the director, alone. At the same time, there are directors that exist, which can bypass all of the levels in producing a film and still add their staple to it. Regardless of the storyline, there is something distinct within their production that will stand out and be recognizable. With that being said, it is understandable how the auteur theory could exist. When it is all said and done, the end result is the director’s style of filming. And the more passion that a director pours into a film, the more they develop a voice. This is why I chose to display how the auteur theory truly is possible and the director that I chose for my thesis is Spike Lee.
Auteur is a concept that originates in French in 1950. As its name translate to English “Author”, it is about the author. It segregates directors with unique styles and gives them more prestige. An auteur differs from other directors because they stick to their style. They are easy to distinguish. To be an auteur a director has to have three characteristics that would identify them: Technic, style, and interior meaning. This last one is more abstract, though. There are many directors that are considered auteur. Let us compare two great directors that fit into this definition. What are style, and technically used by Alfred Hitchcock and Akira Kurosawa?
It is no doubt that Martin Scorsese has heavily influenced the emulating of American film making from European influences. He is a prime example of a ‘New Hollywood Cinema’ director, not only from his ethnicity and background, but from his sheer interest in this form
What is an auteur? Answer this question with detailed reference to one film director: Alfred Hitchcock
Postmodern film directors such as Ridley Scott, Woody Allen, Quentin Tarantino, The Coen Brothers, David Lynch, Christopher Nolan and others, make films that are often highly original, by reproducing the very popular mood of anxiety, fear, uncertainty and cynicism that reflects in the general society.
Best known for his unique and non-linear style and to many people as the best director of the past decade, Christopher Jonathan James Nolan or just simply Christopher Nolan, is one of the most talented and influential film directors and screenwriters of our time. He, like most directors have never studied film and is a self-taught filmmaker. In this essay I am going to write about his early life and how he got into filmmaking. His early career and his rise to fame with Batman movies, his personal life and the influences he have had on the film industry which makes him one of the best directors of all time and my personal favorite.
“Entertainment has to come hand in hand with a little bit of medicine, some people go to the movies to be reminded that everything’s okay. I don’t make those kinds of movies. That, to me, is a lie. Everything’s not okay.” - David Fincher. David Fincher is the director that I am choosing to homage for a number of reasons. I personally find his movies to be some of the deepest, most well made, and beautiful films in recent memory. However it is Fincher’s take on story telling and filmmaking in general that causes me to admire his films so much. This quote exemplifies that, and is something that I whole-heartedly agree with. I am and have always been extremely opinionated and open about my views on the world and I believe that artists have a responsibility to do what they can with their art to help improve the culture that they are helping to create. In this paper I will try to outline exactly how Fincher creates the masterpieces that he does and what I can take from that and apply to my films.