Note: So, as you've probably noticed, my blog content has been lacking recently. Reviews aren't on time, I've been taking a lot of breaks, and nothing except for reviews has been published. Well, you can thank this paper for that. This paper is 11 pages long (not including the works cited), and it's what I've been spending a huge portion of my time writing. So, since it's related to movies, I thought it would be nice to post it on my blog. Let me know what you think of it! :)
Film's Impact on American Culture
If there is anything that moviegoers continuously reference, it is that, as Kofi Outlaw puts it, “Hollywood operates on a “lightning strikes twice” mentality. If someone comes up with a formula for success…then there are sure to be shades of imitation,” (Outlaw). In other words, whenever a film becomes successful and is incredibly profitable, that movie’s influence will be seen in countless movies that follow. Some may view this as terrible, as it shows how Hollywood has completely run out of ideas. However, without this mentality of constantly trying to improve what is already perfect, American film could not have evolved to what it is today. Aspects of film that most take for granted like editing, cinematography, a narrative, animation, gore, settings, and sympathetic characters had to begin somewhere, and the methods of displaying these have changed films to appear more realistic and thoughtful than previous iterations. American film is an ever-changing medium of entertainment, but would have barely evolved or be acknowledged as an art form without the influence and success of key films such as Citizen Kane, Psycho, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Godfather, and so on, as they shaped their own respective genres and legitimized film as something to be taken seriously in American culture.
When filmmaking was first invented, the movies that were produced were short dramas, epics, romances, or slapstick comedies (“Silent Films”). They also lacked dialogue and color. The only sound that films utilized was music, which helped create the tone and atmosphere of the movie (“Silent Films”). As movies became longer, however, the film narrative came into being. A narrative, by definition, connects events together to create a sensible story with a beginning, climax, and conclusion. If done correctly, narratives can be insightful, suspenseful, and engaging, allowing for interpretation of the messages brought forth. The Birth of A Nation, released in 1915, marked Hollywood’s transition from shorts to more advanced movies (Ebert). Despite its content matter, which covered the birth of and glorified the Ku Klux Klan, The Birth of A Nation continues to be the most influential movie of all time (Marche). Then, Al Jolson’s The Jazz Singer was the first film to feature audible dialogue, putting an end to the reign of silent movies (Ebert). The next milestone that film reached was the incorporation of color, which was accomplished in The Wizard of Oz (Boucher). On top of that, The Wizard of Oz was the most popular film of its time to incorporate science fiction and fantasy into its narrative, as well as being the first true family film ever to exist. When films became longer, however, it would become impossible to make movies using singular shots like the shorts of the early decade; that’s when editing began to arise.
Editing is one of the most important aspects of film, as good editing helps get the audience invested into the films. Initially, films were made without editing, but eventually cutting and filming scenes from different angles began to make its appearance (Grant, Vol. 2, 119). These new editing techniques began to develop when films evolved from being short to lengthier and more complicated. Cutting between and within scenes was the first editing strategy to surface. The cut points of a film usually follow the stream of dialogue (121), and allows for the film to create the illusion that time passes between each scene (119). However, it is D.W. Griffith who created the editing style most commonly used today. Griffith’s method of using wide-angle and close-up shots matched the action scenes and made the film more dramatic (119). This method also made transitioning from different settings much easier (119). Griffith used this style in Birth of a Nation, released in 1915, and Intolerance, released in 1916. This method became known as crosscutting (119). Later, between the 1930s and the 1950s, invisible editing was invented, which gave off the impression of seamless transitions (121). Then in the late 1950s and 1960s, a style known as jump cuts was introduced. This method deliberately cut out sections of the action to create gaps between shots. This was used most notably in Bonnie and Clyde, released in 1967 (121). At the end of the 1970s, all three of these editing styles were combined, creating the editing standard (121). Cinematography is also a very important aspect in making a film engaging, and its potential was unlocked in Citizen Kane.
Dubbed as one of the best movies of all time, Citizen Kane, released in 1941, was an incredibly influential movie when it was released and remains influential to this day. Citizen Kane was a trial in American cinema, allowing nonconformity for its director Orson Welles (Armstrong). Welles directed, produced, co-wrote, and starred in Citizen Kane, something that was unheard of in Hollywood at the time. Now, it is rather common for actors to be or assist the director, producer, and the writer of the films they work on. For example, A Million Ways to Die In The West is a 2014 movie that Seth MacFarlane directed, starred in, and co-wrote. Citizen Kane was also the first film that acknowledged the director as having complete control over his or her project, having a say in the editing, acting, setting, and cinematography (Armstrong). Welles’s choice to use deep focus cinematography is also a huge contributor to the film’s impact. As stated by Richard Armstrong, “A key characteristic of Citizen Kane’s look is its use of deep focus cinematography…[which makes the] film more like a real experience by making it open to interpretation,” (Armstrong). This style also developed a clash between realism and expressionism in following films. To make a comparison to another medium, Salvador Dali’s painting The Persistence of Memory can be interpreted in many different ways, while Jacques-Louis David’s The Death of Socrates just depicts the death of Socrates. Deep focus cinematography resembles The Persistence of Memory in this regard, which was almost unheard of in mainstream cinema until Citizen Kane. This caused people to realize that film may be more than a passing fad, but a legitimate art form. Along with live-action films, however, are the films that are entirely constructed out of art: animated features.
According to Roger Ebert, “…Disney was the first to take…[animation]…seriously as a worthy style for complex characters and themes,” (Ebert). The company’s first animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, released in 1937 is what Roger Ebert is referring to. Snow White was one of the first American animated films to incorporate an engaging and suspenseful story, likable characters, beautiful animation, and a fitting soundtrack into the medium. The film became so popular that it essentially created the highly profitable Disney Princess genre and implanted fantasy stereotypes into future films (Nusair, “…Disney Princesses”). These classic tropes consist of the evil stepmother, the damsel in distress, the dashing prince, and the comic relief, as can also be seen in Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. Disney did not limit themselves to just producing princess movies, however; the success of Snow White also paved the way for classics such as Pinocchio, Dumbo, and Bambi, solidifying Disney’s reputation as a respectable animation studio (Nusair, “…Disney Princesses”). With the accomplishments of Disney, other animation studios like Warner Brothers and Dreamworks began emerging, all trying to emulate Disney’s style in their movies. Much, much later on in 1999, a movie called Toy Story was released from the animation studio Pixar, and was made entirely using computer-generated images. Toy Story’s success basically destroyed traditional two-dimensional animation, as Pixar and its numerous contenders released other huge sensations like Shrek, Finding Nemo, How To Train Your Dragon, Ice Age, and many others (Nusair, “5…Influential Animated Movies”). These films reinforced the idea that most animated films were aimed at families, and could be watch by most everyone. On the other side of the spectrum, films that were aimed at adults began to become more scandalous and unconventional.
In 1960, Alfred Hitchcock opened the door to a new era of cinema with his masterpiece, Psycho (Thomson 91). The film, while not terribly gory or sexually exploitive by today’s standards, shocked audiences and critics worldwide. (99). However, Psycho’s deviation from the norms of film at the time also changed how people generally viewed movies (116). Audiences began to care less about the blood and gruesome deaths shown on screen, but more about how those characters died, who killed them, and why they were killed in the first place. Maybe, instead of taking everything transpiring on the screen to heart, one could laugh at or even enjoy the violence transpiring in the film in a more ironic light (117). Psycho was also alarming due to its propinquity to home for most viewers. By placing the mentally disturbed character in a more mundane situation instead of a gothic one, Hitchcock managed to portray how horror can take place anywhere, even in the most serene of environments, and how anyone could be the victim or the assailant (Grant, Vol. 2, 394-395). With these new developments, Psycho’s influence can be found in many following films, ranging from huge franchises to comedies to some of the greatest movies of all time (Thomson 116). For example, the James Bond movies feature a comedic edge while utilizing violence and sexuality, which softens the acts of sadism (117). This is shown in one of the more famous films of the franchise, Goldfinger, in which there’s a scene where Mr. Bond is nearly killed by a laser beam, but gets out of the lethal situation by bantering with the villain. Another example would be Jerry Lewis’s The Nutty Professor, which uses a Jekyll and Hyde tactic similar to how Psycho portrayed its main psycho, Norman (119). In the original Bonnie and Clyde, the script was a mixture of comedy and murder, startling many viewers when they realized just how much they enjoyed such a violent film (121). Stanley Kubrick emulated Psycho’s style in both A Clockwork Orange and The Shining, both acclaimed horror films that go to extremes in terms of suspense and gore (123). Psycho’s mindset is also what began the popularization of the very famous horror genre.
Horror is known for its usage of gore, political satire, terror, and suspense, frequently using supernatural elements to accomplish this. The first film to really break through and change classic horror, though, was George A. Romero’s low-budget zombie movie, Night of the Living Dead (Grant, Vol. 2, 395). Unlike Psycho, which made horror shockingly realistic, Night of the Living Dead was more rooted in the supernatural; like Psycho, however, it takes place in a mundane setting, bringing the ominous paranormal horrors to the audience’s doorstep. Romero’s new take on the horror genre allowed for the reinterpretation of classic monsters, the feature of comedic “political consciousness” (396), the inclusion of intense graphic violence, and less censorship (396). As censorship began to fade away from film, the slasher subgenre of horror was created, which took everything that made Psycho and Night of the Living Dead to extremes (Thomson 127). The first film that solidified this subgenre was Halloween, released in 1978, which was about a boy who escaped from an asylum and begins to terrorize young girls (128). This spawned a whole slew of slasher films, with more famous entries being The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and A Nightmare on Elm Street. Another subgenre of horror that came into being in the late 20thcentury was the found footage genre. These films were low budget, and gave off the impression that the film was real. The first entry in this genre was the unexpectedly successful The Blair Witch Project (Ebert), which led to other popular movies like Paranormal Activity, Cloverfield, and Chronicle. Chronicle was more a combination of two genres, featuring tropes of both the horror genre and the action genre.
Besides horror, the biggest and most popular genre of American film would be the action genre. In action and adventure films, the main character normally faces a conflict against an antagonist of greater strength, size, or intelligence (Grant, Vol. 1 27). According to the Schrimer Encyclopedia of Film Volume 1, “Action and adventure films clearly develop over time, engaging with and responding to contemporary themes and concerns in a manner that is sometimes straightforward, and at other times more complex,” (Grant, Vol. 1 34-35). These films often reflect concerns of society, and the hero always has to physically or mentally fight against these problems. The hero also should be relatable and capable enough to oppose these evils. The most identifiable main character within the action genre would be the “swashbuckler” protagonist, fighting against unjust authority using either martial arts or weaponry skills, and making facetious comments all throughout the movie (29). A few examples are Tony Stark from Iron Man, John McClane from Die Hard, and Peter Quill from Guardians of the Galaxy. Most villains normally take the opposite viewpoint of the hero, representing the depraved sect of humanity; or, at least what the audience views as depraved. The antagonist does not necessarily have to be human: it could be an immoral system of government, like in Star Wars; punitive natural environments, like in Volcano; or malfunctioning machines, like in The Terminator (27). These villains all want to kill, maim, or turn the protagonist to their side, resulting in physical and mental conflict. The concept of battling evil is the heart of every action film, which is why it remains popular to this day. Other trademarks of the genre are when the films are released to the public, and whether these movies should be taken seriously.
Seeing huge blockbuster action films in the summer season is a regular pastime for most Americans, but this standard did not exist until Steven Spielberg’s Jaws. The film was the first movie to earn more than one hundred dollars at the box office, becoming the first major blockbuster movie in American history (Vidal). Nowadays, it is rather rare for a summer blockbuster to make less than this; for example, The Avengers clocked in over six hundred million dollars at the box office (“…The Avengers”). The film also created the norm of releasing these blockbuster films in the summer season, as well as using colossal advertising campaigns to gain public interest (Vidal). Among these films that came out in the summer, made a lot of money, and scared many viewers is Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, popularizing comic book movies as dark, gritty, psychological, and something that can be taken seriously. The Dark Knight also set a new custom in the twenty-first century that all action films must resemble The Dark Knight’s characterization and set pieces (Outlaw). For example, in the most recent James Bond movie Skyfall, the main protagonist James Bond has a similar backstory to Bruce Wayne’s of Batman Begins, and the villain Silva has an oddly charming but incredibly vicious personality, like the Joker in The Dark Knight (Outlaw). This advent of new action films that demand to be taken seriously clashes with the typical fun, over-the-top style of action, which also happens to be a divide within the science-fiction genre as well.
Science fiction is a genre that documents human thought and reaction under favorable or detrimental circumstances. These films commonly take place in the future, when science has developed beyond current human imagination. Sometimes, they take place in the present, when, say, aliens attack Earth and humans must oppose them. These films allow for interpretation of what lies in store for mankind, and can portend the consequences of humanity’s progression. One such film is Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. 2001 focuses more on how scientific progress clashes with the desires and nature of humans rather than the surrounding cosmos (Jenson 23). 2001 brought up questions about humanity’s growing reliance on technology, and how dangerous this reliance on emotionless robots may be in the future. The film also used silence, lighting, and special effects to create an uneasy atmosphere up in space, which has been imitated or referenced to in every following science fiction film (Kazan). 2001: A Space Odyssey was revolutionary, proving that science fiction is a legitimate genre for displaying serious content, but then another sect of science fiction films arose with the success of Star Wars. This franchise made room for “safe” science fiction films, resulting in classics such as Raiders of the Lost Ark and Jurassic Park (Grant, Vol. 1 32), but this also lead to films that were not very serious and opt for, as Lewis Beale puts it, “…the ‘Star Wars’ template,” (Beale). Due to the success of Star Wars, science fiction films that focus more on escapism than realism became more ubiquitous. Simultaneously, stories that focus on humanity, the usage of technology, or the possible life that exists beyond Earth are being pushed aside (Beale). Even so, many filmmakers continually draw influence from 2001: A Space Odyssey, for its deeper look into science fiction, especially with the recent influx of serious movies in the past decade. However, the most influential and groundbreaking film of all time is normally considered to be The Godfather; not just for its impact on mafia films, but on how characters that are normally considered villains can be considered sympathetic.
Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, along with Citizen Kane, is considered to be one of the best if not the best film of all time, for its brand new take on the mafia genre that is surprisingly relatable and humane, unlike previous entries into the genre. This is accomplished through delineating the Corleones in a more benevolent light, opposed to the portrayal of human behemoths. In Little Caesar, for example, the main character Rico gains power over a sect that operates on the mentality that the strong will outlast and replenish the feeble, depicting a faction that does not care for the welfare of their weaker comrades (Poon). In The Godfather, the Corleones all act as a family, displaying what could have been a dangerous Mafia faction as a normal family that the audience could relate to and care about. The film’s demonstration of authentic Italian culture also supports the family, as through this the Corleones are shown to be very attached to their Italian roots and relatives (Poon). This tactic will be used in many other gangster films to come; for example, in both Goodfellas and The Departed, the criminals are shown to be loyal and part of their own families, with the characters referring to their elders as being like father figures. The original mafia father figure, though, was Don Vito Corleone. According to Phoebe Poon, “This paternalistic attitude and desire for legitimacy extracts Don Vito from the evil and corruption associated with the common gangster and elevates him into an iconic father figure…” (Poon). Technically, the first film to put anti-heroes into the spotlight was Gone With The Wind, since the film’s main character was morally questionable at times (Marche), but The Godfather was the first movie to perfect this type of character (Poon). This lead to countless reiterations of the anti-hero, with these characters committing morally debatable actions while still having a sympathetic backstory or motivation that the audience can root for. The Godfather also set a new standard for cinema: movies are creative outlets for artists that can create a bright or bleak documentation of humanity, while simultaneously transporting the audience into a different world from their own.
Film, in all actuality, has not been around for much more than a century; however, its impact on American culture is very apparent. Going to see movies in theaters or watching them at home has become an American pastime, as it is rather easy to start a conversation with someone about the most recent popular movie (Shah), and the creators of movies have been dubbed artists. Actors, directors, cinematographers, editors, and producers are able to channel their ideas and thoughts into this new art form. These moving pictures have actually proven to help people through stress; in a study, it was discovered that people who attend movie theaters regularly have mortality rates four times lower than those who do not, as the visual experience can inspire a wide range of emotions for the viewer in a safe environment (Shah). The entire purpose of films is to entertain a widespread audience, to allow the viewer to escape into a world that is entirely new to him or her, and the development of the story and characters continually keeps him or her engaged (Shah). Simultaneously, films also paint a picture of contemporary society by introducing themes, varying between the simple good versus evil to the complex fall into madness. American film has evolved from the simple moving picture to a medium of entertainment that is truly special, as the longevity of groundbreaking films continues to make films more entertaining, more thought-provoking, and more accessible to the general public.
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