reaction paper 3

Overview: The Movies: Realism Versus Fantasy
To Escape or to Engage – that is the question!

A study which seeks to unravel the historical development of the movies cannot but situate the story of film at the juncture at which commerce, technology, politics and the arts meet. David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson propose five axes of investigation which map out and shed light on the interconnectedness of the: Technological history, Economic history, biographic history, social history, and the history of the aesthetic development of the movies. The texts that were assigned for the week, albeit their exclusive focus on the history of American cinema, demonstrate this division. When discussing the story of Key contributors such as Darryl F. Zanuck, the history of the movies is guided by a biographical inquiry. When looking at the influence of new technologies such as technicolor, VHS and DVD, the history of the movies is guided by a technological inquiry. When looking at the influence of World War II, or the Civil Rights Movement, or the assassination of JFK, the history of the movies is guided by an inquiry that examines the influence of social/political events that took place during the period under study. When looking into the business structure of the industry, mergers and acquisitions, and the emergence of giant media conglomerates, the history of the movies is guided by an economic inquiry. And finally, when issues of style, choices of theme, realism, fantasy, genres, or art cinema are taken into consideration, the history of the movies is guided by a study of their aesthetic development.

When we consider the historical development of the movies on a global scale we soon come to the observation that there are two dominant tendencies that shape the narrative: the tendency toward realism, and the tendency toward escapism. Hollywood, or the motion picture entertainment industry has always been dominated by the escapist impulse, while European cinema, and the cinemas of other regions around the globe, tended to employ the cinematic form in attempts to engage deeply with reality. The documentary by Cousins explores these artistic poles in a fascinating journey which seeks to unravel “the story of film.”

Learning Objectives: The Movies: Realism Versus Fantasy
At the end of this module, students should be able to:
• Demonstrate knowledge pertaining to the historical development of the American motion picture industry.
• Differentiate between escapist and realist cinema
• Explain the five axes of historic investigation in film studies
• Contextualize the relationship between film styles and genres, and the dominant social and political trends that contributed to their emergence.

Tasks and Materials: The Movies, Realism versus Fantasy
Complete the readings and viewing linked in the following slides.
Read Chapters 7+8 of the book “Post-Classical Hollywood : Film Industry, Style and Ideology since 1945” by Langford (2010)
Langford, B. (2010). Post-classical hollywood : Film industry, style and ideology since 1945. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral.proquest.com
Uploaded

Read the introduction as well as chapters 1+2 of the book “Twentieth Century-Fox : The Zanuck-Skouras Years, 1935-1965” by Peter Lev (2003).
Lev, P. (2013). Twentieth century-fox : The zanuck-skouras years, 1935-1965. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral.proquest.com
uploaded

Read chapter 3 of the book “Short History of the Modern Media” by Jim Cullen (2013)
Cullen, J. (2013). A short history of the modern media. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral.proquest.com
Uploaded

the final episode of Mark Cousins’ award winning documentary series “The Story of Film: Cinema Today and in the Future.Links to an external site.

See if you can find a synopsis of this movie
Cinema Today and the Future
Part of the Series: The Story of Film
Music Box Films
In the final part of The Story of Film: An Odyssey, movies come full circle. They get more serious after 9/11, and Romanian movies come to the fore, followed by David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive becoming one of the most complex dream films ever made and Inception turning film into a game. In Moscow, master director Alexander Sokurov talks exclusively about his innovative films and then there’s a surprise: The Story of Film goes beyond the present, to look at film in the future.
Running Time
65 mins
Year
2011
Filmmakers
Mark Cousins
Languages
English
Subjects
Social Sciences > History – Modern
The Arts > Film Studies
Movies > TV Series

ASSIGNMENT AND INSTRUCTIONS REACTION PAPER 3

After you have accomplished the reading for the week and viewed the assigned videos, make sure to think about the material, and how you see it as relevant to the realities of our time.
In your reaction to the reading (Post-Classical Hollywood : Film Industry, Style and Ideology since 1945, Chapter 7-8, and Twentieth Century-Fox : The Zanuck-Skouras Years, 1935-1965. Intro+ Chapters 1-2), and to the last episode of Mark Cousin’s award winning documentary series “The Story of Film” consider any or all of the following:
• Realism (film as social commentary) versus fantasy (film as escapism)
• Freedom of expression versus censorship (whether self imposed or not)
• Commerce versus artistic expression
• American cinema versus Foreign Cinema
• Conclude your discussion with your perspective on the role of film in American history and today.
• Be sure to incorporate at least one citations from the books (excluding the book by Cullen), and/or direct reference to the documentary by Cousins.
• You may choose to cite Cousins narration and or discuss any of the films that he briefly explores.
• Be aware that the paper should not exceed 600 words (not including title page and references). This means that you should seek to develop a discussion with a clear focus on the issues that you would like to address, and do so, with a clear voice that articulates your position.
• The review should be concise and should integrate direct quotations from the text (no longer than one or two sentence quotes with formatted citations).
• Be sure to provide your perspective in relation to the area of the debate that you chose to address.
• Give your work an original title that can represent the focus of your work.