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314 T1 #5 Silent film, German films

Terms

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chaplin's comedy method
1. character-based comedy
2. the Tramp who is poor and ambitious
3. social awareness (reference to humble beginnings
4. static camera (proscenium)
what is character based comedy

who used it who didnt
comedy based around central character

chaplin (the tramp)
sennet (just random clowns)
chaplin's character? descrip
the tramp
- ambitious, thinks of himself as much more than a tramp
- drives and structures narrative with his ambitions
why does chaplin use social awareness themes

what films are exampels
humble beginnings

the immigrant (mirrors his own humble beginnings)
easy street
which of chaplin's films is basically his life story
the immigrant
the point of chaplin's film city lights clip shown?
shows use of depth (composition in depth) as a gag
in which of chaplin's films is depth the gag? how?
depth is gag, tramp can pretend to be appreciator of art

stepping back and forth to admire the nude
how did b keaton start?
family in vaudeville
keaton's comedy method
1. character based
2. character drives and structures narratve
3. fluid, mobile camera
keaton's character? descrip
"the great stone face"
wants the status quo to continue, little character pushed into chaotic world
diff between keaton + chaplin
chaplin: social awareness, proscenium
keaton: fluid, mobile camera; very cinematic
example of keaton's cinematics
the general: being on the train moving
what is the point of steamboat bill jr. clip
showing the character is helpless ina calamitous world (jsut trying to return to the status quo)
who did steamboat bill jr
b keaton
why are there no more keatons and chaplins.

who is the closest to them today
no vaudeville (training ground)

jackie chan
which 2 clips were compared between keaton + jackie chan
sherlock jr.
police story

same bill
what did jackie chan do when he got his own movies instead of stunting
did bruce lee, except funny. like how sennett turned the chase into a gag
how did jackie chan start
acting school in Chinese Opera Research Institute, became a stuntman/choreographer
what happened in hk cinema 1950s
they had domestic market, selling to themselves, graduall started exporting
what happened in hk cinema 1970s
international distribution, kungfu films are international cinema
how does hk cinema go back to silent slapstick?
1. series of stunts/gags
2. improvisational
3. undercranking trick
what is project a's significance
cites keaton and chaplin as influences
- bike stunts
who was dominant cinema before wwi
france, england, italy, us, germany
who was dominant cinema after wwi

who was the biggest competition to this
us (europe suffered)

germany
what was the german golden age question
can subjective reality be represented by film?
what was the ufa
german state-sponsored national studio
brought best filmmakers in europe together
what does ufa stand for
universum film ag
what were the types of ufa films?
- epics (historical ,mythological)
- expressionist
- street/reality based
what were epic films of ufa
huge blockbusterish films of german myths
purpose of the clip madame dubarry

d.?
purpose is to show the huge cast that they could do because people would do anything for a meal

Ernst Lubitsch
how did germany compete with us film after the war
- made films that hollywood couldn't or wouldn't make
(e.g. Madame Dubarry - use of the masses)
purpose of the clip siegfried

d.
the mythological films of ufa


fritz lang
from caligari to hitler?
kracauer's hypothesis: that a nation's film reveal its character.
mythological films reestablished national pride and identity (need to find who they were again because of German defeat in wwi & ii)
what did fritz lang direct
siegfried

m!
who was kracauer
wrote from caligari to hitler

- films tell you about nation's character

- mythological films remind you who you are (since the germans felt lost after the world wars) and reestablish national identity
what is impressionism
artist's impression of the world
what is expressionism
expression of turbulent inner feelings
what type of film is the cabinet of dr caligari

how do you know
german expressionism

- the countryside is warped, the insane asylum (office, lines on the fllor)
what is the thing about the cabinet of dr. caligari

who wrote it
erich pommer changed the end to not be critical of authority
- Janowitz & Mayer wrote it
what are some german expressionism films
- cabinet of dr. caligari (janowitz + mayer, pommer)
- nosferatu (murnau)
what is kammerspeilfilm
one of the types of german films in the german golen age; stories of ordinary people
an example of a kammerspielfilm
d., d.p.
the last laugh, d. murnau, d.p. karl freund
whats the thing about the last laugh
story of an ordinary guy who gets demoted at work (identity is taken away)

very cinematic (karl freund)
- the beginning: elevator, out the glass doors
- the shot that goes from the inside of the trumpet up the cable to an els
karl freund
d.p. the last laugh, took the camera anywhere!
"unchained camera"

shots: the beginning: on a bike out the revolving doors
: the trumpet going from ecu to els

subjective camera: POV (morning after in The Last Laugh), this is emotional
what is significant about the morning after in the last laugh
subjective camera (question of the german golden age) - shows from the doorman's point of view the drunkenness (blurring the trumpet, drunken, exaggerated, idealistic dream)
formal characteristics of the german golden age
expressionism!
- low key lighting (eg Nosferatu, M)
- Oppressive set design, that is commentary (distortion, massive architecture, cluttered set design)
purpose of the metropolis clip

d.
massive architecture makes the people insignificant
also the workers are eaten by the monster machine
fritz lang
purpose of the destiny still

d.
woman is dwarfed against the wall
fritz lang
examples of how architecture is used formally in german expressionism
destiny: woman dwarfed against huge wall
metropolis: tiny people v. big buildings
what does cluttered set decoration say
character is confused and lost (morally & psychologically disoriented)
3 featuers of oppressive german set design
distortion, massive architecture, cluttered set decorations
example of cluttered set decoration
the blue ange: clutter in the nightclub means emotional clutter in the character

M: cluttered toy store still
signif of The Blue Angel clip
shows oppressive set design, of german expressionism, that it indicase internal turmoil in teh character (moral disorientation)
what is the purpose of the cluttered toy store still in M
shows that the character is internally disturbed or disoriented
what does the stair motif mean

where is it used
lost characters that are suspended between 2 worlds

in M, where elsie is deemed missing
what are overarching themes of german golden age cinema
- ambivalence to authority (cabinet of dr. caligari)
- characters caught between good and evil (professor in blue angel)
- obsessed characters unable to control desires (M)
german golden age?
- low key lighting
- oppressive set design
- overarching themes (ambivalence to authority, caught between good and evil, the obsessed unable to repress desires)
- failure to control yourself (you need someone to tell you what to do)
what caused the end of the german golden age?
- financial problems
- rise of the nazis (control of media)
- talent drain (good for hollywood)
what was german golden age's impact on hollywood?
- talent left
- karl freund went there! (dracula, dr jekyll and mr hyde, the mammy)
- genre shaping films (the drama/mystery, science fiction, horror)
german golden age and mise-en-scene
lighting
set design
art decoration
subjective camera
--> created emotions
modern example of how mise-en-scene creates internal states
blade runner (futuristic planes)

stair motif

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