The Influence Of Ingmar Bergman

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,

Surrealism is a movement that built off of the burgeoning look into art, psychology, and the workings of the mind. Popularly associated with the works of Salvador Dali, Surrealist art takes imagery and ideology and creates correlation where there is none, creating new forms of art. In this essay I will look to explore the inception of the surrealist movement, including the Surrealist Manifesto, to stress the importance of these artists and their work in the 20th century and beyond. I also will look to films from our European Cinema course to express how films incorporate the influence of surrealism both intentionally and unintentionally.

A film that I found to be interesting and entertaining was Volver (2006) by Pedro Almodovar. Almodovar is a director that received acclimates of being a very distinct auteur very early in his career. Almodovar’s style and influences are prominent all throughout Volver. I will be discussing Volver and how it has become a typical icon film of Almodovar’s work. Many of Almodovar’s film are reflective of his upbringing. Almodovar said, “You can say my films are melodramas, tragicomedies, comedies or whatever because I used to put everything together and even change genre within the same sequence and very quickly” (Kinder 37). Typically his films have very distinct aspects in them that vary and is what makes an Almodovar film. Almodovar films

David Bordwell wrote his article ‘The Art Cinema as a Mode of Film’ in an effort to convey the main idea that “art cinema” can be considered as a distinct mode of film practice, through its definite historical existence alongside other cinematic modes, set of formal conventions, and implicit viewing procedures. Rather than searching for the source of the art, or what drives the art in film, Bordwell compares art cinema to the classical narrative cinema, and highlights the differences in narrative structure. Bordwell makes the assumption that it defined itself against the classical narrative mode; especially with the way it deals with space, time, and the cause and effect link of events.

The influential career of Leni Riefenstahl has been a point of great contention amongst scholars and filmmakers over the last few decades. The legacy Riefenstahl leaves behind are her achievements and failures of her

The major influences that led to Leni Riefenstahl’s rise to prominence includes a fateful event that kindles her fascination with film, the continual influence of mountain (Berg) films and acclaimed director Dr Arnold Fanck as well as her first début as a director and producer.

Alfred Hitchcock is widely regarded as a prime example of an auteur, a theory that emerged in the 1950s by Truffaut, in the ‘politique des auteurs’ of Cahiers du Cinema (Tudor 121). The auteur theory, as defined by Andrew Tudor, is premised on the assumption that “any director creates his films on the basis of a central structure”(140) and thus, if you consider their films in relation to each other, commonalities can be found within them. These commonalities work to demonstrate the view of the director as “the true creator of the film” (Tudor 122). Evidence of an auteur can be found in examining a director’s creative tendencies, in their distinctive themes and motifs, stylistic choices,

As one of the most widely acclaimed and influential directors of the postwar era, Stanley Kubrick enjoyed a reputation and a standing unique among the filmmakers of his day. He had a brilliant career with relatively few films. An outsider, he worked beyond the confines of Hollywood, which he disliked, maintaining complete control of his projects and making movies according to his own ideas and time constraints. To him, filmmaking was a form of art and unlike Hollywood, not a business.

Luhrmanns style of adapting and crafting film is knows as “ Red Curtain Cinema.” This style of genre which

This review will also evaluate the quality of the films and focus on areas of strengths and weaknesses within both films. Summary German

Bergman’s The Seventh Seal illustrates that art can compel artists to find reasoning and ease in topics of death and faith. The film is heavily laced with artistic references and symbols from the medieval period like the dance with death, death playing chess, and skulls. During this time, many artists focused the subject of their art on death and spirituality. The power of art can compel artists to attempt to find answers and reason in their environment. Just as Block tries to hinder death with a simple game of chess. Block uses a game of chess to try to survive; he plays with death in hopes of winning life. Simply, this is a parody of attempts to find resolution with very little knowledge of the end matter. It is an allegory of how humans

In February of 1994, Wigand worked with Lowell Bergman on a “60 Minutes” segment on the Philip Morris fire safe cigarette. Bergman had been given internal documents anonymously and recruited Wigand to interpret information. The story aired on March 27, 1994. In March of 1995, Bergman proposes an expose on Brown and Williamson. After approval, Wigand begins working with Bergman in Louisville, KY. In August of 1995, Wigand agrees to an interview with “60 Minutes” and is reassured it will not air without his permission. In October of 1995, The Wall Street Journal released a story featuring Brown & Williamson’s internal reports revealing how added ammonia based compounds are used to enhance nicotine uptake in users. The added chemicals make the nicotine more potent when inhaled. Wigand assisted with this article but was not named in the article (2).

Casablanca, first released on January 23rd, 1943 is undoubtedly one of the masterpieces of Classical Hollywood film. Written and released in the midst of World War Two it explores themes such as love, desire and especially sacrifice. Although the love story of the protagonists is the cause and catalyst for most of the narrative, one would not necessarily associate it with the conventional Classical Hollywood love story. Rather as a fabula based on the principle of the importance of sacrifice in order to overcome a common enemy, in this case the Nazis. Casablanca does indeed contain many of the common characteristics identified with the Classical Hollywood film. An example being the the way director, Michael Curtiz used a mainly chronologically ordered narrative structure and the utilisation of a Cause and Effect chain. In this essay I will looking at the various ways I believe this film does fall into the criteria of a Classical Hollywood narrative and also how some could perceive that it does not.

Furthermore, with their rise in the Industrial Revolution, jobs began to manifest; however, working conditions were periodically rough. Industrial workers became rich and other people remained poor. The concern for greater equality grew as reformers fought to abolish class differences; thus decreasing income and redistributing wealth from the rich to the poor. Later Sweden became “folkhemmet” or “the home of the people”. A substantial difference between the modern Swedes and their Viking past is their communication; we noticed how their constant involvement in wars caused them to fall socially and economically whereas in modern Sweden their focus is working together and establishing a neutral ground for their

The art of film made it’s way into the penetration stage around the turn of the century and remained there until