“Film’s thought of as a director’s medium because the director creates the end product that appears on the screen. It’s that stupid auteur theory again, that the director is the author of the film. But what does the director shoot—the telephone book? Writers became much more important when sound came in, but they’ve had to put up a valiant fight to get the credit they deserve.” Billy Wilder once stated these powerful and controversial words in The Art of Screenwriting. Wilder clearly favored his writing aspect to all other areas of film, and although talented in many other respects, his films most often reflected this, with every other component of his films lending to the story itself. Although Billy Wilder is absence in the world of film today, his presence is still very much felt with many directors emulating his style. One director who has had particular success in this field has recently gained a larger fan base due to his implementation of techniques that Wilder himself loved to toy with is David O. Russell, who since 2010, although …show more content…
Russell’s success by saying “Russell’s streak reminds me of Billy Wilder in his late 50’s-early 60’s later prime. In the span of four years that prolific writer/director turned out Some Like It Hot (1959), The Apartment (1960), One Two Three (1961), and Irma La Douce (1963), offering choice roles repeatedly to the likes of Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine to name two. Actors loved Wilder and returned to work with him often. And they seem to love Russell.” This quote displays the parallel between Wilder and Russell’s success. This success is not coincidental and after analyzing the report these men create with their actors and the immense scale of the stories they write. Although Wilder has passed away, his style is far from gone and David O. Russell will continue to implement these conventions and build upon them in the years to
...t have an ultimate goal to express something they care about on film. They must not only express this in their script, but carry through on it by directing, producing and pulling together many other aspects of the film by themselves. Three filmmakers that fit this description to a “t” are Kevin Smith, Spike Lee and Alfred Hitchcock. These three men all went out with the same goal: To express their views of life in extraordinary films. They all went above and beyond their call of duty and are now ranked among the top filmmakers of history, the rank of film auteurs.
...ormation of novel to film, sees Hitchcock’s responsibility as auteur. Suggesting Hitchcock as ‘creator’, attributes to Vertigo’s “perfection” (Wood, p.129) as Wood argues. Stylistic features known classically to Alfred Hitchcock movies is also what defines Hitchcock as a classic auteur, his style generates a cinematic effect which mixes effectively with his use of suspense. In returning to Cook’s discussion, she references Andrew Sarris, who argues that the “history of American cinema could be written in terms of its great directors,” (Cook, p. 411) showing the legitimacy of authorship in popular American cinema. Ultimately Cook goes on to address the changes in authorship from the 1950’s until today, featuring developments in authorship within Cinema. Overall, both Cook and Wood presented a balanced discussion on the legitimacy of Alfred Hitchcock’s auteur status.
The sub genre “Hood Movies” was first introduced in American movies where most of the movies exposed problems with/by/from black protagonists. The movies from this genre are mostly debunkers portraying problems like drug abuse, racial discrimination with blacks, gang rapes, street gangs, hip hop music, Maras, shattered familial problems, illegal immigration, poverty and etc. Most of the films from this genre, typically have a very similar story line like “An urban Black youth facing problems either with poverty or immediate danger in the neighborhood.” This quality present in any movie depicts Hood Films.
All directors of major motion pictures have specific styles or signatures that they add in their work. Alfred Hitchcock, one of the greatest directors of all time, has a particularly unique style in the way he creates his films. Film analyzers classify his distinctive style as the “Alfred Hitchcock signature”. Hitchcock’s signatures vary from his cameo appearances to his portrayal of a specific character. Two perfect examples of how Hitchcock implements his infamous “signatures” are in the movies, A Shadow of a Doubt and Vertigo. In these movies, numerous examples show how Hitchcock exclusively develops his imagination in his films.
Alfred Hitchcock’s unique sense of filmmaking and directing has allowed him to become a very famous and well known film maker of his time. He uses similar recurring themes, elements, and techniques in many of his films to engage the viewers in more than just the film, but the meaning and focus behind the story.
Sex, love, depression, guilt, trust, all are topics presented in this remarkably well written and performed drama. The Flick, a 2014 Pulitzer Prize winning drama by Annie Baker, serves to provide a social commentary which will leave the audience deep in thought well after the curtain closes. Emporia State Universities Production of this masterpiece was a masterpiece in itself, from the stunningly genuine portrayal of the characters of Avery and Rose, to the realism found within the set, every aspect of the production was superb.
In this paper I am going to write about the movie “Grease.” Specifically, on the two main characters Sandy and Danny. I will be describing and analyzing their interpersonal communication, but mainly on the conflict of their communication.
The Bad and The Beautiful (1952) and State and Main (2000) are films within films that unmask Hollywood Cinema as a dream factory and expose the grotesque, veneer hidden by the luxury of stars. The Bad and the Beautiful, directed by Vincent Minnelli, is a black and white film narrated in flashback form. The films theatrical nature requires more close-ups than wide-screen shots to capture the character’s psychological turmoil. For example, Fred and Jonathan’s car ride is captured in a close-up to signify their friendship; however their relationship deteriorates after Jonathan’s deceit. While the camera zooms out, Fred stands alone motionless. Here, Fred is captured from a distance at eye-level and he becomes ostracized by the film industry and
Whenever books are adapted for film, changes inevitably have to be made. The medium of film offers several advantages and disadvantages over the book: it is not as adept at exploring the inner workings of people - it cannot explore their minds so easily; however, the added visual and audio capabilities of film open whole new areas of the imagination which, in the hands of a competent writer-director, can more than compensate.
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.
Gender and the portrayal of gender roles in a film is an intriguing topic. It is interesting to uncover the way women have been idealized in our films, which mirrors the sentiments of the society of that period in time. Consequently, the thesis of this essay is a feminist approach that seeks to compare and contrast the gender roles of two films. The selected films are A few Good Men and Some Like it Hot.
In today’s society, pre-existing assumptions and stereotypes of other ethnicities and individuals play a large part in the way we see others. This social construct of stereotypes has placed restrictions on many people’s lives which ultimately limits them from achieving certain goals. In this sense, stereotypes misrepresent and restrict people of colour to gain casting within the Hollywood film industry. The issue of how casting actors to certain roles and how these actors are forced to submit and represent these false stereotypes is one worthy of discussion. White Chicks (2004), directed by Keenan Wayans, illustrates this issue through the performance of Latrell, performed by Terry Crews, and his performance of the hyper-sexualised “buck” will be a prime example in this essay to discuss the racial politics and stereotypes in Hollywood casting.
Billy Wilder's “Some Like it Hot” film delivers his usual writing and directing skills, melodrama and comedy, but something about this film was different especially during that specific time period. Some people, who weren’t used to seeing men in crossdressing, were comfortable because Wilder’s comedic writing allow them to look beyond and into the character’s world and their issues. Melodrama came into play with Marilyn Monroe and Tony Curtis’s character “Sugar and Joe” because of its realism. Joe filled in love with Sugar through his escaping from trouble through crossdressing. Wilder’s writing and using comedic theme with melodrama to tell a message of “finding love in many different ways”.
John Ford. Dear Reader, what more can one say about the man, the myth, the legend of an artist and director? When naming the great classic movie moguls from the experimental days of cinematography, John Ford is one of the towering giants who changed movie making forever! Often, film students compare Alfred Hitchcock and John Ford neck to neck, and Alfred is usually given the title of “Best Director Of All Time’”. Oh, but what a mistake! Hitchcock is great in his own right, but John Ford brings so much style and pioneering creativity to the round table of movie experts. “why ?” one might ask, “why are you so adamant on the title of BDOAT belongs to Ford??’’ Ah my Dear Reader, patience and I will explain everything and soon, you too will
When delineating between first and second generation American Independent cinema directors there is a fine line separating the two generations. This line usually lies somewhere in the early 80’s when the term ‘American Independent Cinema’ first began to emerge. Many other things that were pertinent to the American Independent Cinema movement also arose such as the emergence of video as a media form. There is a strong distinction in the change of dynamics between film school in the first and second generation of American Independent filmmakers as well. Reichardt exemplifies a strong relation to the second generation, executing these ideas in her films such as Wendy and Lucy and Old Joy.