Post by dontdigonswine on Mar 13, 2007 23:29:09 GMT -5
Be forewarned, the following paper contains much b.s.ing and copying from my notecards. Therefore it sounds very boring and has no transitions...
FRENCH NEW WAVE
In every art form, there are periods of time that bring much needed innovation and inspiration. In 1950s, America had just finished its “golden age of cinema,” a period that left France in the dust in that particular subject. Then a group of film critics jumpstarted a revolution of sorts in French filmmaking, given the title the French New Wave. The French New Wave of cinema is one of the most influential and creative periods in the history of film.
The earliest traces of the French New Wave can be found in auteurism, the popular theory in film criticism. Auteurism is the belief that a film reflects its creator’s creative personality and that this creator is in charge of the film from conception to execution. This theory was famously employed by the Cahiers du cinema, a group of French film critics. One of these critics, François Truffaut, once said that “French cinema has degenerated into films made to win prizes at festivals, rather than because anyone has anything urgent to say.” (Ellis, p. 292)
Since auteurism encouraged the creator of a film to be involved in process from “conception to execution,” some directors conceived their ideas while filming. Cahiers du cinema member Alexandre Astruc believed in “camera stylo.” Camera stylo is when a director “writes with his camera,” which is a means of creating a film in its making rather than merely supplying images and sounds for a fully realized and pre-fixed idea. (Ellis, p. 293)
Auteurism is a very director-oriented theory. It encourages one to view a specific director and all of his works. It was highly criticized by conventional directors because it suggested that a poor film was still good because it was made by a “favorable director.” Auteurism is also strongly against “metteurs en scene,” which are interpreters or realizers of someone else’s idea. The auteur theory favors directors like von Sternberg, Hitchcock, or Lang because they made films mostly of ideas which were of their own conception. (Ellis, p. 294)
The auteur theory also preferred a film in which a script was its weakest aspect or films in which its “content is slightest precisely because they allowed the director’s creative personality to be disclosed most nakedly, without the cloak of a satisfying form.” Auteuristes characteristically would prefer a film made later in a director’s career, because the director has a more matured and experienced vision. This is another reason why conventional directors criticized the theory. An auteuriste may prefer Mr. Arkadin to Citizen Kane, simply because it was made later in Orson Welles’ career. (Ellis, p. 295)
François Truffaut first coined the term “auteur” in his 1954 essay “Une certaine tendance du cinema français.” In this article, Truffaut said “there are no good and bad movies, only good and bad directors.” Truffaut appreciated directors with a distinct visual style (Hitchcock) and similar themes (Renoir’s humanism). He believed that auteur did not mean a director had to have similar films in every aspect of filmmaking, but in some aspects. (Wikipedia, no pages)
There were many influences on the most prominent French New Wave directors. The Cahiers du cinema noted three directors more than any others as “auteurs.” These directors were Robert Bresson, Ingmar Bergman, and Luis Buñuel. These directors are few of the only ones who, according to the group of critics, “make their work seem at once old-fashioned and uniquely modern; timeless perhaps.” (Ellis, p. 298)
Robert Bresson was a French film director whose two most famous films at the time were A Man Escaped (1956) and Pickpocket (1959). (Wikipedia, no pages) Bresson demanded absolute control over every aspect of his films, because each one was so personal to him. He concentrated his films only on the questions that bothered him, mostly morality and theology. Bresson is one of the first directors Truffaut noted as an auteur. (Ellis, pp. 296-298)
Ingmar Bergman was a Swedish director that Godard called “the most original auteur of the modern European cinema.” He is somewhat standard in direction, but obsessive in the questions that drive his movies. Cahiers du cinema admired him because of his ability to transform his ideas into a passionate cinematic creation. (Ellis, pp. 298-301) His body of work includes Wild Strawberries, The Seventh Seal (both 1957), and his later masterpiece Fanny and Alexander (1982). (Wikipedia, no pages)
Luis Buñuel, a Spanish-born director, his considered by many to be the master of surrealism. In every one of his films, he uses dreams and hallucinations to capture the irrational drives and fears underlying human behavior. His surrealistic satire on the bourgeois institutions that annoy him what distinguishes him as an auteur. (Ellis, pp. 302-304) His body of work includes his famous short Un Chien Andalou, The Exterminating Angel, Belle de jour, and his masterpiece The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie. (Wikipedia, no pages)
After a decade of criticism, the members of Cahiers du cinema, who believed that criticism is only a “stepping stone to creation,” begin making films of their own. These members are Alexandre Astruc, Roger Leenhardt, Francois Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol, Jacques Rivette, Jacques Doniol-Valcroze, and Eric Rohmer. The French New Wave is a very unique era, in that it is very rare for a creative movement to be sparked by a critical movement (Ellis, p. 305).
Possibly the most famous French New Wave director of all is Francois Truffaut. He most commonly made films involving romantic realism. Many times, he brought his own life experiences into his directorial vision. His films featured much homage to other films or directors, especially Hitchcock (Ellis, p. 311). Truffaut’s first film was The 400 Blows in 1959. It was the autobiographical story of a 12-year old boy named Antoine Doinel stuck between the juvenile judicial and penal system. In one scene of the movie, Doinel runs to a cinema to hide from his parents (Wikipedia, no pages).
The next biggest name in the French New Wave is Jean-Luc Godard, who is possibly the most influential of all New Wave directors. His first few films were dedicated to American films, such as Breathless to old gangster films of the 1930s. He believed there were two kinds of cinema: documentary and theater. He believed that ultimately, they were one in the same (Ellis, p. 315).
Godard also loved quotations. He was sometimes criticized for putting them too blatantly into his films. He was also known for promptly shooting his pictures. One of his most acclaimed films, Band of Outsiders, was shot in only 25 days. Godard also seemed to have a good handle on how to treat his actors. He would write the dialogue for his films last minute, so his actors would not have that much time to memorize. In reducing rehearsal time, the actors seemed to loosen up in speech and performance (Interview with Jean Collet, np).
In Godard’s younger days of directing, the morals of his films were mostly philosophical. As he grew older, they became more and more political. But it was his inventiveness with a camera and his actors that made him such an important figure in French filmmaking (Ellis, p. 315).
The third most popular director, and much less than Truffaut and Godard, was Alain Resnais. Most of Resnais’s films focus on the memory of its characters and past regrets. His films also seem to focus on older characters, unlike Truffaut and Godard. Resnais may not be considered an auteur because of his frequent collaborations with others for the conception of his films. His films did have similar themes and a certain distinguishable feel to them (Ellis, p. 312).
In the late 1940s, the number of French films being played in French cinemas compared to American films was staggeringly low. The Blum-Byrnes agreement required French cinemas to show French films at least 16 weeks out of the year. But this agreement surprisingly only added to the stagnation of French production of films. 16 weeks was still very small out of 52 weeks in the year. Cliché formulaic plots with the same popular actors became standard and French audiences became restless and unimpressed. The French industry was faltering quickly and surely (Ellis, p. 306).
The avance sur recettes would give films extra monetary backing mid-production if the film looked artistically promising. This was a form of promoting creativity. Also, with an increase in unique films, the avance sur recettes helped audiences accept innovation and more personal filmmaking. This in turn allowed the French New Wave to arrive much easier (Wikipedia, np).
The 1959 Cannes Film Festival was definitely the turning point for the French New Wave. It provided the necessary vehicle to popularize these innovative French films. There were three films in particular that awed Cannes audiences. Those films were Black Orpheus by Marcel Camus, The 400 Blows by Francois Truffaut, and Hiroshima, mon amour by Alain Resnais. Black Orpheus won the Palme d’Or (Grand Prize).
Black Orpheus is a film based off of the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice. It was filmed entirely in Brazil, using Brazilian directors. It went on to win Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards. Hiroshima, mon amour was written by noveau roman novelist Marguerite Duras, in collaboration with director Alain Resnais. It is the story of the love affair between a French actress and a Japanese architect, intertwined with symbolism for the Hiroshima bombing (Wikipedia, np).
Although these films did well at the Cannes Film Festival, there were other French films released in that same year that helped start the French New Wave era. Breathless by Jean-Luc Godard was a film tribute to American gangster films. It included innovative jump-cuts, camera movement, as well as innovative character conversations. It sparked the careers of both Godard and star Jean-Paul Belmondo. The Cousins was the second film from Claude Chabrol. It continued off where his first film, Le Beau Serge, left off. Both included subtle evaluations of its main characters (Ellis, p. 308).
More and more groundbreaking films were produced in forthcoming years. Truffaut’s next film was Shoot the Piano Player in 1960. It is about a washed-up classical pianist who bottoms out after his wife commits suicide. The film features many jump cuts and out-of-sequence camera shots. Truffaut then made what some consider to be his masterpiece in 1962: Jules and Jim. It is also considered by some to be the most complete of the entire French New Wave. It is the story of the two title characters’ friendship and how it is affected by war, relationships, and ultimately a woman named Catherine. Catherine epitomizes beauty- the ultimate woman. The ending is considered to be one of the most anti-climactic endings in film history. The film flirts with many profound concepts of love, beauty, life, and death (Wikipedia, np).
The next popular film by Godard was Band of Outsiders in 1964. It is about two criminals who force a college student to assist them in a robbery of her own house. It features many conversations and scenes completely tangential to the plot and is highly regarded as Godard’s “most accessible film.” Godard’s next successful film was Masculine-Feminine in 1966. It was sort of a time capsule for the young French generation of the 1960s. Jean-Pierre Leaud, the star of Truffaut’s Antoine Doinel series, also starred in this film (Wikipedia, np).
Between 1959 and 1963, approximately 170 directors made their first feature films in France. Most of these directors lacked the genius of Godard and Truffaut. Many of them were too caught up in self-indulgence. This overwhelming amount of mediocre directors is what caused the eventual cessation of the New Wave (Ellis, p. 309).
Looking through textbooks and other sources of history, it is difficult finding an exact definition for what unique characteristics were present in French New Wave films. There were many philosophical and technical qualities that were commonly found in the films. Still, some of the qualities depend on the particular director. One universal characteristic is the ambition to be innovative (Ellis, p. 310).
In French New Wave films, there was commonly the presence of existentialist philosophy. This is because of the inspiration these directors took from philosophers such as Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. The French New Wave filmmaker’s viewpoint may sometimes be distanced and anti-sentimental to their characters. They may feel a personal connection to the themes their films convey and use the characters as tools (Phillips, np).
Many times events that happened were unprepared for and unexplained, such as anti-climactic deaths or abrupt endings. Francois Truffaut’s films are somewhat infamous for this, such as The 400 Blows and Jules and Jim (Phillips, np). The actions of characters in French New Wave films are notoriously questionable. They are commonly illogical and arbitrary. The ridiculous actions of these characters can only be explained by the setting they are in. The French New Wave universe is one devoid of logic, justice, or even order. It is a world that allows its characters to be responsible on their own terms (Neupert, np).
Another anti-formulaic attribute of films from this era is the abandonment of the usual ascending climax. New Wave films very rarely made sure all loose ends were tied for the audience. They may end with a character achieving a personal change or realizing the answer to a philosophical question (Phillips, np).
Many New Wave filmmakers were against the idea of an imaginary force deciding the outcome of characters, as well as people in real life. They would rather see randomness replace fate as a deciding force in their films, believing it was more realistic. The main objective for some films rely completely on audience participation. Many times, audiences took from the film what they could to make sense of it. This allowed for many interpretations or opinions of the same film (Phillips, np).
The organization of time and space was very intuitive for filmmakers. They would plan these elements according to feeling rather than chronology. This was the reason for common jump-cuts and abrupt transitions. Many New Wave filmmakers were gurus of cinema. They absorbed many films as critics; therefore they knew much about the subject of filmmaking. This made it easier for them to manipulate the little cinematic elements. Some films were made purely as “objects for contemplation” in their own right, rather than commentaries on the world around them. Many films were made only for importance inside the dark realm of the cinema, and of no importance to reality. These were films for film lovers (Phillips, np).
The French New Wave helped spread the view of film as an art form. Before, cinema was thought of as primarily a commercial industry. The French New Wave brought to it complexities and depth. The French New Wave was an era that helped develop the “art cinema” genre, which are films that exist with radically different narrative forms or structures. These films rarely challenge more popular films economically, but for select audiences who scavenged cinemas looking for food for thought, they were highly satisfying (Ellis, p. 315).
FRENCH NEW WAVE
In every art form, there are periods of time that bring much needed innovation and inspiration. In 1950s, America had just finished its “golden age of cinema,” a period that left France in the dust in that particular subject. Then a group of film critics jumpstarted a revolution of sorts in French filmmaking, given the title the French New Wave. The French New Wave of cinema is one of the most influential and creative periods in the history of film.
The earliest traces of the French New Wave can be found in auteurism, the popular theory in film criticism. Auteurism is the belief that a film reflects its creator’s creative personality and that this creator is in charge of the film from conception to execution. This theory was famously employed by the Cahiers du cinema, a group of French film critics. One of these critics, François Truffaut, once said that “French cinema has degenerated into films made to win prizes at festivals, rather than because anyone has anything urgent to say.” (Ellis, p. 292)
Since auteurism encouraged the creator of a film to be involved in process from “conception to execution,” some directors conceived their ideas while filming. Cahiers du cinema member Alexandre Astruc believed in “camera stylo.” Camera stylo is when a director “writes with his camera,” which is a means of creating a film in its making rather than merely supplying images and sounds for a fully realized and pre-fixed idea. (Ellis, p. 293)
Auteurism is a very director-oriented theory. It encourages one to view a specific director and all of his works. It was highly criticized by conventional directors because it suggested that a poor film was still good because it was made by a “favorable director.” Auteurism is also strongly against “metteurs en scene,” which are interpreters or realizers of someone else’s idea. The auteur theory favors directors like von Sternberg, Hitchcock, or Lang because they made films mostly of ideas which were of their own conception. (Ellis, p. 294)
The auteur theory also preferred a film in which a script was its weakest aspect or films in which its “content is slightest precisely because they allowed the director’s creative personality to be disclosed most nakedly, without the cloak of a satisfying form.” Auteuristes characteristically would prefer a film made later in a director’s career, because the director has a more matured and experienced vision. This is another reason why conventional directors criticized the theory. An auteuriste may prefer Mr. Arkadin to Citizen Kane, simply because it was made later in Orson Welles’ career. (Ellis, p. 295)
François Truffaut first coined the term “auteur” in his 1954 essay “Une certaine tendance du cinema français.” In this article, Truffaut said “there are no good and bad movies, only good and bad directors.” Truffaut appreciated directors with a distinct visual style (Hitchcock) and similar themes (Renoir’s humanism). He believed that auteur did not mean a director had to have similar films in every aspect of filmmaking, but in some aspects. (Wikipedia, no pages)
There were many influences on the most prominent French New Wave directors. The Cahiers du cinema noted three directors more than any others as “auteurs.” These directors were Robert Bresson, Ingmar Bergman, and Luis Buñuel. These directors are few of the only ones who, according to the group of critics, “make their work seem at once old-fashioned and uniquely modern; timeless perhaps.” (Ellis, p. 298)
Robert Bresson was a French film director whose two most famous films at the time were A Man Escaped (1956) and Pickpocket (1959). (Wikipedia, no pages) Bresson demanded absolute control over every aspect of his films, because each one was so personal to him. He concentrated his films only on the questions that bothered him, mostly morality and theology. Bresson is one of the first directors Truffaut noted as an auteur. (Ellis, pp. 296-298)
Ingmar Bergman was a Swedish director that Godard called “the most original auteur of the modern European cinema.” He is somewhat standard in direction, but obsessive in the questions that drive his movies. Cahiers du cinema admired him because of his ability to transform his ideas into a passionate cinematic creation. (Ellis, pp. 298-301) His body of work includes Wild Strawberries, The Seventh Seal (both 1957), and his later masterpiece Fanny and Alexander (1982). (Wikipedia, no pages)
Luis Buñuel, a Spanish-born director, his considered by many to be the master of surrealism. In every one of his films, he uses dreams and hallucinations to capture the irrational drives and fears underlying human behavior. His surrealistic satire on the bourgeois institutions that annoy him what distinguishes him as an auteur. (Ellis, pp. 302-304) His body of work includes his famous short Un Chien Andalou, The Exterminating Angel, Belle de jour, and his masterpiece The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie. (Wikipedia, no pages)
After a decade of criticism, the members of Cahiers du cinema, who believed that criticism is only a “stepping stone to creation,” begin making films of their own. These members are Alexandre Astruc, Roger Leenhardt, Francois Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol, Jacques Rivette, Jacques Doniol-Valcroze, and Eric Rohmer. The French New Wave is a very unique era, in that it is very rare for a creative movement to be sparked by a critical movement (Ellis, p. 305).
Possibly the most famous French New Wave director of all is Francois Truffaut. He most commonly made films involving romantic realism. Many times, he brought his own life experiences into his directorial vision. His films featured much homage to other films or directors, especially Hitchcock (Ellis, p. 311). Truffaut’s first film was The 400 Blows in 1959. It was the autobiographical story of a 12-year old boy named Antoine Doinel stuck between the juvenile judicial and penal system. In one scene of the movie, Doinel runs to a cinema to hide from his parents (Wikipedia, no pages).
The next biggest name in the French New Wave is Jean-Luc Godard, who is possibly the most influential of all New Wave directors. His first few films were dedicated to American films, such as Breathless to old gangster films of the 1930s. He believed there were two kinds of cinema: documentary and theater. He believed that ultimately, they were one in the same (Ellis, p. 315).
Godard also loved quotations. He was sometimes criticized for putting them too blatantly into his films. He was also known for promptly shooting his pictures. One of his most acclaimed films, Band of Outsiders, was shot in only 25 days. Godard also seemed to have a good handle on how to treat his actors. He would write the dialogue for his films last minute, so his actors would not have that much time to memorize. In reducing rehearsal time, the actors seemed to loosen up in speech and performance (Interview with Jean Collet, np).
In Godard’s younger days of directing, the morals of his films were mostly philosophical. As he grew older, they became more and more political. But it was his inventiveness with a camera and his actors that made him such an important figure in French filmmaking (Ellis, p. 315).
The third most popular director, and much less than Truffaut and Godard, was Alain Resnais. Most of Resnais’s films focus on the memory of its characters and past regrets. His films also seem to focus on older characters, unlike Truffaut and Godard. Resnais may not be considered an auteur because of his frequent collaborations with others for the conception of his films. His films did have similar themes and a certain distinguishable feel to them (Ellis, p. 312).
In the late 1940s, the number of French films being played in French cinemas compared to American films was staggeringly low. The Blum-Byrnes agreement required French cinemas to show French films at least 16 weeks out of the year. But this agreement surprisingly only added to the stagnation of French production of films. 16 weeks was still very small out of 52 weeks in the year. Cliché formulaic plots with the same popular actors became standard and French audiences became restless and unimpressed. The French industry was faltering quickly and surely (Ellis, p. 306).
The avance sur recettes would give films extra monetary backing mid-production if the film looked artistically promising. This was a form of promoting creativity. Also, with an increase in unique films, the avance sur recettes helped audiences accept innovation and more personal filmmaking. This in turn allowed the French New Wave to arrive much easier (Wikipedia, np).
The 1959 Cannes Film Festival was definitely the turning point for the French New Wave. It provided the necessary vehicle to popularize these innovative French films. There were three films in particular that awed Cannes audiences. Those films were Black Orpheus by Marcel Camus, The 400 Blows by Francois Truffaut, and Hiroshima, mon amour by Alain Resnais. Black Orpheus won the Palme d’Or (Grand Prize).
Black Orpheus is a film based off of the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice. It was filmed entirely in Brazil, using Brazilian directors. It went on to win Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards. Hiroshima, mon amour was written by noveau roman novelist Marguerite Duras, in collaboration with director Alain Resnais. It is the story of the love affair between a French actress and a Japanese architect, intertwined with symbolism for the Hiroshima bombing (Wikipedia, np).
Although these films did well at the Cannes Film Festival, there were other French films released in that same year that helped start the French New Wave era. Breathless by Jean-Luc Godard was a film tribute to American gangster films. It included innovative jump-cuts, camera movement, as well as innovative character conversations. It sparked the careers of both Godard and star Jean-Paul Belmondo. The Cousins was the second film from Claude Chabrol. It continued off where his first film, Le Beau Serge, left off. Both included subtle evaluations of its main characters (Ellis, p. 308).
More and more groundbreaking films were produced in forthcoming years. Truffaut’s next film was Shoot the Piano Player in 1960. It is about a washed-up classical pianist who bottoms out after his wife commits suicide. The film features many jump cuts and out-of-sequence camera shots. Truffaut then made what some consider to be his masterpiece in 1962: Jules and Jim. It is also considered by some to be the most complete of the entire French New Wave. It is the story of the two title characters’ friendship and how it is affected by war, relationships, and ultimately a woman named Catherine. Catherine epitomizes beauty- the ultimate woman. The ending is considered to be one of the most anti-climactic endings in film history. The film flirts with many profound concepts of love, beauty, life, and death (Wikipedia, np).
The next popular film by Godard was Band of Outsiders in 1964. It is about two criminals who force a college student to assist them in a robbery of her own house. It features many conversations and scenes completely tangential to the plot and is highly regarded as Godard’s “most accessible film.” Godard’s next successful film was Masculine-Feminine in 1966. It was sort of a time capsule for the young French generation of the 1960s. Jean-Pierre Leaud, the star of Truffaut’s Antoine Doinel series, also starred in this film (Wikipedia, np).
Between 1959 and 1963, approximately 170 directors made their first feature films in France. Most of these directors lacked the genius of Godard and Truffaut. Many of them were too caught up in self-indulgence. This overwhelming amount of mediocre directors is what caused the eventual cessation of the New Wave (Ellis, p. 309).
Looking through textbooks and other sources of history, it is difficult finding an exact definition for what unique characteristics were present in French New Wave films. There were many philosophical and technical qualities that were commonly found in the films. Still, some of the qualities depend on the particular director. One universal characteristic is the ambition to be innovative (Ellis, p. 310).
In French New Wave films, there was commonly the presence of existentialist philosophy. This is because of the inspiration these directors took from philosophers such as Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. The French New Wave filmmaker’s viewpoint may sometimes be distanced and anti-sentimental to their characters. They may feel a personal connection to the themes their films convey and use the characters as tools (Phillips, np).
Many times events that happened were unprepared for and unexplained, such as anti-climactic deaths or abrupt endings. Francois Truffaut’s films are somewhat infamous for this, such as The 400 Blows and Jules and Jim (Phillips, np). The actions of characters in French New Wave films are notoriously questionable. They are commonly illogical and arbitrary. The ridiculous actions of these characters can only be explained by the setting they are in. The French New Wave universe is one devoid of logic, justice, or even order. It is a world that allows its characters to be responsible on their own terms (Neupert, np).
Another anti-formulaic attribute of films from this era is the abandonment of the usual ascending climax. New Wave films very rarely made sure all loose ends were tied for the audience. They may end with a character achieving a personal change or realizing the answer to a philosophical question (Phillips, np).
Many New Wave filmmakers were against the idea of an imaginary force deciding the outcome of characters, as well as people in real life. They would rather see randomness replace fate as a deciding force in their films, believing it was more realistic. The main objective for some films rely completely on audience participation. Many times, audiences took from the film what they could to make sense of it. This allowed for many interpretations or opinions of the same film (Phillips, np).
The organization of time and space was very intuitive for filmmakers. They would plan these elements according to feeling rather than chronology. This was the reason for common jump-cuts and abrupt transitions. Many New Wave filmmakers were gurus of cinema. They absorbed many films as critics; therefore they knew much about the subject of filmmaking. This made it easier for them to manipulate the little cinematic elements. Some films were made purely as “objects for contemplation” in their own right, rather than commentaries on the world around them. Many films were made only for importance inside the dark realm of the cinema, and of no importance to reality. These were films for film lovers (Phillips, np).
The French New Wave helped spread the view of film as an art form. Before, cinema was thought of as primarily a commercial industry. The French New Wave brought to it complexities and depth. The French New Wave was an era that helped develop the “art cinema” genre, which are films that exist with radically different narrative forms or structures. These films rarely challenge more popular films economically, but for select audiences who scavenged cinemas looking for food for thought, they were highly satisfying (Ellis, p. 315).
