Hollywood Film Conventions

Sunset Boulevard directed by Billy Wilder in 1950 is based on how Norma Desmond, a huge Hollywood star, deals with her fall from fame. The film explores the fantasy world in which Norma is living in and the complex relationship between her and small time writer Joe Gillis, which leads to his death. Sunset Boulevard is seen as lifting the ‘face’ of the Hollywood Studio System to reveal the truth behind the organisation. During the time the film was released in the 1950s and 60s, audiences started to see the demise of Hollywood as cinema going began to decline and the fierce competition of television almost proved too much for the well established system. Throughout this essay I will discuss how Sunset Boulevard represents the Hollywood

In contemporary film making, “Hollywood-ization” generally refers to the re-creation of a classic work in a form more vulgar and sexually explicit than the original in an effort to boost movie attendance. After all, sex and violence sell. However, from the mid-1930’s to the 1950’s, “Hollywood-ization” referred to the opposite case where controversial books had to be purified to abide by the Production Code of 1934.[1] This occurred to many of James Cain’s novels as they moved from text to the genre of “film noir.” As has been said about Cain’s The Postman Always Rings Twice, “The property, bought several years ago, was kept in the studio’s archives until now

Film Noir, a term coined by the French to describe a style of film characterized by dark themes, storylines, and visuals, has been influencing cinematic industries since the 1940’s. With roots in German expressionistic films and Italian postwar documentaries, film noir has made its way into American film as well, particularly identified in mob and crime pictures. However, such settings are not exclusive to American film noir. One noteworthy example is Billy Wilder’s film Sunset Boulevard, which follows the foreboding tale of Joe Gillis, the desperate-for-success protagonist, who finds himself in the fatal grips of the disillusioned femme fatale Norma Desmond. Not only does the storyline’s heavy subject matter and typical character

This paper was prepared for Introduction to Film History, Module 1 Homework Assignment, taught by Professor Stephanie Sandifer.

     The film Sunset Boulevard directed by Billy Wilder and staring the main characters of Norma Desmond, Joe Gillis, and Max Von Mayerling is ideal example of how important film making techniques help depict a movie’s core theme intentions with vivid clarity. Classic Hollywood is the first thing that comes to mind when one speaks about this film’s style. This signature category combined with the visual style of realism and it’s continuity editing; detailed mise-en-scene and all of its characteristics; and lastly the use of reoccurring motifs with formalistic qualities make the audience grasp the central theme of just how vicious the actual motion industry can be to the

A set of practices concerning the narrative structure compose the classical Hollywood Paradigm. These conventions create a plot centering around a character who undergoes a journey in an attempt to achieve some type of goal (). By giving the

In the 2004 article “When Conventions Mattered”, Reuven Frank argues that News and Media Outlets are less likely to cover conventions than they were decades prior because conventions are no longer as compelling, since they have become week-long political commercials where the parties present themselves in the best possible light. During the 19th century and first half of 20th century, conventions generated news, a common interest shared amongst Americans. Frank examines the history behind both the Republican and Democratic conventions in 1952, when the conventions of both parties were regarded as extremely news-worthy. Television was viewed as the perfect propaganda vehicle for candidates, so conventions began to be televised. However, as time has progressed, the importance of conventions has lessened.

Development and adaptation of the western genre has occurred throughout the twentieth century in relation to the shift in context, this is still relevant. Stereotypes of a western genre and the context are determined by the time in which the film is being produced. The time in which they were produced determine how social construction, gender ideas, values and attitudes, the setting and SWAT codes are demonstrated. I have chosen to present this speech by looking at the film studied in class, and a film of my choice and how the difference in context has changed in the tie of these two films.

During the course of this essay it is my intention to discuss the differences between Classical Hollywood and post-Classical Hollywood. Although these terms refer to theoretical movements of which they are not definitive it is my goal to show that they are applicable in a broad way to a cinema tradition that dominated Hollywood production between 1916 and 1960 and which also pervaded Western Mainstream Cinema (Classical Hollywood or Classic Narrative Cinema) and to the movement and changes that came about following this time period (Post-Classical or New Hollywood). I intend to do this by first analysing and defining aspects of Classical Hollywood and having done that,

What makes for a classic Hollywood film? Increasingly, films have evolved to the point where the standard by which one calls a “classic Hollywood film” has evolved over time. What one calls a classic film by yesterday’s standards is not the same as that of today’s standards. The film Casablanca is no exception to this. Although David Bordwell’s article, “Classical Hollywood Cinema” defines what the classical Hollywood film does, the film Casablanca does not exactly conform to the very definition that Bordwell provides the audience with in his article. It is true that the film capers closely to Bordwell’s definition, but in more ways than not, the film diverges from Bordwell’s definition of the typical Hollywood film.

Film is a source of entertainment for thousands of people, however it can also be seen as modern poetry. Two examples of poetry in film is Snyder’s 300 (2006) and Weir’s Gallipoli (1981),

The main problem that Todd faces is the struggle to maintain a sense of self-confidence as a result of living under his older brother’s shadow of success. Instead of becoming a lawyer like what his father expects, he has a passion for writing which contradicts with his father’s anticipation. However, unlike Neil, he keeps these thoughts and ideas to himself and dares not to speak them out loud to his parents. He remains obedient whether or not his opinions match theirs. There were various obstacles that prevented him from delivering his thoughts and he was often labeled as shy or timid. He was unable to present the well-prepared poem he wrote in front of the entire class due to these traits and the lack of self-confidence but Mr. Keating recognizes his strengths as well as his potential to do something marvelous. By using unusual techniques, Mr. Keating was able to bring out his potential and he receives one of the first applauses which was the beginning of his emerging confidence. It was evident that he debates against himself and requires a lot more courage to get up in front of everyone simply because he did not see the value in both himself and the work. The overall conflict is man vs. self and man vs. man. Most of the time he was bothered by himself for being pessimism and the fact that others have huge expectations on him due to his brother’s outstanding achievements.

Mr. Keating’s philosophy of free thinking was a bit dangerous to the kids of the school. They were too immature to handle their independence without thinking of the consequences. Mr. Keating went to Welton Academy and knew that the philosophy of the school was discipline and respecting their ancient traditions. He came back to the school and taught them the exact opposite even though he knew that it was against the school's morals. Because of this, Mr. Keating was indirectly responsible for Neil’s death.

First and foremost, Hollywood operated like the big businesses created at the beginning of the 20th century. Just as Henry Ford revolutionized the car industry by mass producing the Model T, the studio system perfected the formula for massive hits. After a brief period of experimentation, Hollywood figured out the elements that constituted an audience favorite; they then proceeded to extract as much value as possible before audiences got exhausted of the repetitiveness. It must be noted that Hollywood did not offer a plethora of identical pictures, but a model which could be modified by directors, actors, and – especially during this period – producers. What the standardization of narrative did produce, however, was a set of pre-formed expectations that audiences carried to the movie theater. Any deviation from those norms triggered a certain disappointment among the movie-going public – or at least that was the

Genre criticism, on the other hand, was emerged from a backlash against auteurism with the growing dissatisfaction in the mid-1960s and early 1970s (Gledhill 2007, 252). Whereas the romantic tendency of auteur theory which used to categorise the directors by “a canon of the good or great directors and the rest” (Hayward 2013, 30), genre “seemed to offer critics a far more inclusive and democratic method, one which was attuned to the industrial and commercial imperatives of Hollywood” (Watson 2012, 189). The main purpose of genre was an association of “the concerns of film industry with the desires of its audiences” in so doing, it functions as a financial security blanket for the industry; a set of precepts and expectations for audience; and a critical frame work for reviewers (189). Moreover, repetition is a necessary instance of process in genre because genres “establish a regulation of the variety of mainstream narrative across a series of individual texts, organising and systematising the