Interpretations The lover and critic of film, Susan Sontag, once said that, “Interpretation is the revenge of the intellectual upon art.” In her Essay, A Century of Cinema, she criticized the condition of today’s films. Her interpretation, was that recent cinema is tedious, unintelligent, and incredibly insignificant in comparison to older films. She touched on the history of cinema over the past one hundred years, giving credit to distinguished films and film-makers, and condemning the changes that have occurred in the past twenty to thirty years. Though Susan Sontag does touch on many substantial flaws in modern film and film culture, the quality of modern film is not less than that of older film. Furthermore, Sontag’s specifications for …show more content…
At the forefront of Sontag’s argument, lies a description of the first ever showing of moving pictures in 1895. The audience ducked and gasped in anticipation of the oncoming train footage, and cinephilia was born. Later, audiences went to the movies to be “kidnapped” and inspired. Today, the relationship between audiences and film remains quite similar. Movies of incredible value are recognized for being, “completely absorbing,” “moving,” and memorable (Tyler). Critics acknowledge that while film can be serious, and that those whom are known for their love of films, “ the art-movie mavens,” are characterized with, “furrowed brows and intense discussion,”(Pulver) a powerful film can also leave, “an entire theater full of stodgy old film critics fighting back tears,” (Tyler). Many viewers find their passion in going out to intense and consuming movies because, “Watching it means fighting your way through every second of the film just as the characters battle and scrap their way through the story,” (Tyler). There are now massive groups and events such as, The Academy, Venice Film Festival, and London Film Festivals, which are devoted to the celebration and reward of films. In the academy, though they may face some issues with corruption, their nomination formula overcomes extortion issues by giving, “the advantage to films with a small but passionate following versus films with broad lukewarm support,” (Finke). Ultimately, the love of cinema is not in any way lessoning, and, in the words of critic Andrew Pulver, “We certainly are living in interesting times,” filled with change and
In the piece “Cinema/Ideology/Criticism,” Jean Luc-Comolli and Jean Narboni define the critic's job as the discernment of “which films, books and magazines allow the ideology a free, unhampered passage, transmit it with crystal clarity, serve as its chosen language” and which films “attempt to make it turn back and reflect itself, intercept it, make it visible by revealing its mechanisms, by blocking them” (753). Through their examination, seven film categories are outlined. Clue falls into the “E” category, which is defined as “films which seem at first sight to belong firmly within the ideology and to be completely under its sway, but which turn out to be so only in an ambiguous manner” (75...
In his essay, “It’s Just a Movie: A Teaching Essay for Introductory Media Classes”, Greg M. Smith argues that analyzing a film does not ruin, but enhances a movie-viewing experience; he supports his argument with supporting evidence. He addresses the careful planning required for movies. Messages are not meant to be telegrams. Audiences read into movies to understand basic plotlines. Viewers should examine works rather than society’s explanations. Each piece contributes to Smith’s argument, movies are worth scrutinizing.
middle of paper ... ... It is no wonder why movies were and still are a popular form of entertainment, as well as why during the 1920’s and even during the depression, people continued to flock to the movies. Works Cited Carringer, Robert, L. Jazz Singer. Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press, 1979.
Lehman, Peter and Luhr, William. Thinking About Movies: Watching, Questioning, Enjoying. 2nd ed. Oxford: Blackwell, 2003.
Rascaroli, Laura. "The Essay Film: Problems, Definitions, Textual Commitments." Framework: The Journal of Cinema and Media 49.2 (2008): 24-47. JSTOR. Web. 08 May 2014.
One could easily dismiss movies as superficial, unnecessarily violent spectacles, although such a viewpoint is distressingly pessimistic and myopic. In a given year, several films are released which have long-lasting effects on large numbers of individuals. These pictures speak
In the beginning of The Roaring Twenties, about fifty million people went to the movies per week, amplifying to ninety million in 1929. These huge numbers are a result of the public’s obsession with the movies’ glamour, sophistication, and sex appeal. Watching movies motivated the viewers to ea...
“of exhibitionist confrontation rather than absorption,” (Gunning, Tom 2000 p 232) as Gunning suggests the spectator is asking for an escape that is censored and delivered with a controlled element of movement and audiovisual. Gunning believes that the audience had a different relationship with film before 1906. (Gunning, Tom 2000 p 229)
Susan Sontag then goes on to write about the destruction that is placed with in science fiction films. She says, “Science fiction films are not about science they are about disaster, which is one of the oldest subjects of art. Science fiction is concerned with the aesthetics of destruction, with the peculiar beauties to be found in wreaking havoc, making a mess.” Destruction is seen in both of the science fiction films, Invaders from Mars and E.T. The destruction in Invaders From Mars comes from the military when they begin bombing the whole that the aliens are in.
middle of paper ... ... In final analysis, the motion picture is the one that goes deeper inside the spectator’s mind. Other mediums such as still picture and theatrical play also provide the visual and aural elements for the spectator, yet they seem to be inferior to the motion picture in that they lack the reality, affinity, and creativity in terms of use of time and space. The levels of emotions such as attention, memory, imagination, emotion, and unity, which were introduced by Munsterberg, indicates how the spectator perceives the elements of the film and ends up with it.
Boggs, J. M., Petrie, D. W. (2004). The Art of Watching Films (6 ͭ ͪ ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Stanley, Robert H. The Movie Idiom: Film as a Popular Art Form. Illinois: Waveland Press, Inc. 2011. Print
Film and literature are two media forms that are so closely related, that we often forget there is a distinction between them. We often just view the movie as an extension of the book because most movies are based on novels or short stories. Because we are accustomed to this sequence of production, first the novel, then the motion picture, we often find ourselves making value judgments about a movie, based upon our feelings on the novel. It is this overlapping of the creative processes that prevents us from seeing movies as distinct and separate art forms from the novels they are based on.
A big part of common day society are motion pictures. We as people watch them daily and weekly within our lives whether it is on our smartphones, tablets, computers, televisions, or in the actual movie theatre. Overall it is for pure entertainment. Everyone enjoys movies. If we go back to the late 1800s, it was here that motion pictures itself was truly being born.
‘Then came the films’; writes the German cultural theorist Walter Benjamin, evoking the arrival of a powerful new art form at the end of 19th century. By this statement, he tried to explain that films were not just another visual medium, but it has a clear differentiation from all previous mediums of visual culture.