Avant Garde Cinema

Choose 3 of the films we watched in class and answer the following questions. Answer all questions for each film to create at least 3 hearty paragraphs.

Le Retour a la Raison
Entr'acte
Le Ballet Mecanique
Un Chien Andalou
Meshes of the Afternoon (this is the one with the Maya Deren interview)

What do you notice about the film's presentation of cinematic space? What do you see on screen? For example, lots of landscapes or closeups? Moving or statics camera?

How does the director's use of lighting help to create meaning?

Do you identify with the camera's lens? What does the director compel you to see? What is left to your imagination? What does the director leave out altogether? Describe the mise-en-scene and how it helps to create meaning in the film.

What implicit meaning do you find in the film?

If you can't get enough of the avante garde cinema, check out this site: http://www.ubu.com/film/.

If you want to look more into Jonas Mekas, go here: http://jonasmekas.com/diary/

Seven Samurai

Take a look at this quote from the article I handed out on Wednesday and discuss it using solid, cinematic evidence from the film:

...Kurosawa in The Seven Samurai emphasizes the unbridgeable differences between the villagers and their hired defenders. Though the townspeople and the samurai can fight in temporary alliance, they can never fight for the same goals: the villagers fight for home and family, the samurai for professional honor. The only society allowed to the samurai is their own; if civilization has no place for them, they must make a place of their own. The formation of the samurai's separate, self-enclosed society--the professional group--is the subject of some of the finest passages in Kurosawa's film...

Here is a link to the article.

If you have Hulu Plus, you can re-watch scenes on there. You can also find scenes online via YouTube, etc. It is helpful to choose a five-minute scene on which to base your response.

All blog responses are due by next Friday, June 20, as I have to get grades in!

Jules and Jim

Choose one of the following clips and do a full analyzation of the scene, just as you would do for the final oral presentation. Be sure to discuss the scene cinematically and include discussion of the scene and its relation to the film as a whole, a quote from a review or critique, the sociocultural context in which the film was made. Here is the direct wording from the top markband on the rubric:

"There is a coherent, incisive, insightful and detailed evaluative interpretation of
the extract, displaying an excellent understanding of how meaning is constructed
through the use of film language, with an excellent awareness of the extract’s
relationship to the film as a whole. There is a persuasive explanation for the selection
of the extract. The critique shows an excellent awareness of the film’s genre and/
or its place in a broader sociocultural context. There is an insightful analysis of
the director’s intention. Simple description is negligible and analysis is clear and
thorough."

Clip 1
http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/245569/Jules-and-Jim-Movie-Clip-The-French-Girl.html

Clip 2
http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/245567/Jules-and-Jim-Movie-Clip-Our-Friend-Thomas.html

Breathless

Read the article I handed out in class. Choose a 5 minute scene in Breathless and respond to the following quote. Be sure to write at least 2 paragraphs. Respond to each others' posts. Here's the quote:

"This basic sequence of events is the minimal thread of continuity that holds the filmic narrative together. However, causal development and character motivation in the traditional sense are relatively loose. While the film does not reject narrative conventions as a whole, it goes a long way towards weakening the tight-knit structure and explanatory mechanisms affiliated with dominant narrative. The film's visual construction works even more aggressively against conventional film style. It systematically departs from the aesthetic guidelines and rules defined by continuity editing, relying variously on long-take sequences (often shot with hand-held camera) and jump cutting."

The 400 Blows

Watch this video of Truffaut talking about Rossellini and Hitchcock. Wouldn't you want him (and perhaps his translator) at dinner with you one evening?

Read this essay and think about what it says in terms of mise-en-scene and The 400 Blows. Utilize at least one quote from this essay to back up any discussion of an aspect of mise-en-scene that you want to include in your analysis of one of the following scenes. Analysis should be at least 3 solid paragraphs and mimic what you will do next year for your assessment. Remember to analyze the meaning of the scene as well as its relationship to the film as a whole. Discuss cinematic elements!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uP2eWHdZLDE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9I-gsap0po

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERAGjXnXQwk

White Heat

In at least 3 hearty paragraphs, discuss White Heat, as well as the characteristics of the gangster genre and its role as an art form. In your discussion, bring in another gangster film if you've seen one on your own (The Godfather, Goodfellas, etc.). Your discussion should be in relation to this Robert Warshow article about the gangster as an individual. I want to see 2 quotes from the article in your discussion. Use your film textbook for more information on the gangster genre.

Bicycle Thieves

Analyze a scene from Bicycle Thieves. Be sure to read the handouts I've given you. 

Choose a 5 minute scene and analyze it completely. Remember that you need to mention why you chose the scene and this scene's relation to the film as a whole. In addition, pay close attention to: mise-en-scene, lighting, camera angles, shot types, etc. Here is a list of items to pay attention to when you write your 750 words (minimum) (and when you do your oral presentation):

• How well do I understand how meaning is constructed through the use of film language in this extract?
• How well do I understand the extract's relationship to the film as a whole?
• How well do I understand the influences of the film's genre?
• How well can I place the film and this extract in a broader socio-cultural context?
• How insightful is my analysis of the director's intention?
• How coherent, incisive, insightful, and detailed is my evaluative interpretation of this extract?

Here is a list of "vocab" you should use:

• narrative
• direction
• cinematography
• mise-en-scene
• lighting (which is often, but not always, considered part of mise-en-scene)
• camera movement
• editing
• sound (diegetic and non-diegetic)

Be sure your paper is AT LEAST 750 words. Watch the clip a number of times. Let your ideas flow. Spend time with this. If you don't, your presentation next year will suffer. It will be difficult if you don't practice. If you do what I ask, that will be an easy assessment for you!