“Cinema is the ultimate pervert art. It doesn’t give you what to desire — it tells you what to desire,” according to Slavoj Zizek, a Slovenian Marxist philosopher. Just like in the article “The MP3 as a Cultural Artifact” by Jonathan Sterne, where an MP3 is said to be promiscuous, Cinema; according to Zizeki — said to be the same. This point will be further discussed later in the paper. This paper aims to show cinema as a medium of communication by explaining what cinema is, and relating it to different theories by notable authors and philosophers. The definition of cinema, how it is a medium of communication, relations to theories, and brief case studies will be explored. What is Cinema? Cinema can be taken to mean very different things at different times —a physical space (“I am going to the cinema.”), a medium of entertainment (“Casablanca is a cinema masterpiece!”), or even an entire industry with all the connections and entanglements that entails (“I am studying Bollywood cinema.”). (Gordon Gray, x) Although, in this paper cinema will not be referred to as one of these in particular, but in general, the different meanings will be selected to portray different aspects of cinema, both new and old. Cinema is a medium of communication because it sends a message. A film has a reason for being made. For example, Crash; a movie by Paul Haggis — aims to show the role of race and class in the average society. The movie sends a message by showing that it is essential to wipe out racism in our communities because it fosters unnecessary hatred for people who may be helpful to us sometime. Cinema communicates to us in ways other mediums can’t. It uses visual, and audio (sometimes) to stimulate our minds, and make us aware of things t... ... middle of paper ... ...ma." (86 Quotes). N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2014. . Taras, David, Maria Bakardjieva, and Frits Pannekoek. How Canadians Communicate: Media, Globalization, and Identity. Calgary: University of Calgary, 2007. N. pag. Print. "The Medium Is the Message." Prezi.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2014. . Thornham, Sue, Caroline Bassett, and Paul Marris. Media Studies: A Reader / Edited by Sue Thornham, Caroline Bassett and Paul Marris. New York: New York UP, 2009. Print. "TV IS THE NEW CINEMA: Putting 2013 Behind Us." Thompson on Hollywood. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2014. . Youngblood, Gene. "Synaesthetic Cinema: The End of Drama." Expanded Cinema. New York: Dutton, 1970. N. pag. Print.
Stanley, Robert H. The Movie Idiom: Film as a Popular Art Form. Illinois: Waveland Press, Inc. 2011. Print
Mulvey, Laura. “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.” Narrative Apparatus Ideology. Ed. Philip Rosen, (New York: Columbia UP, 1986), 198-209.
In the textbook ‘American Film: A History’, Jon Lewis discusses the components which he believes are markers of “the end of cinema as we know it”. By Cinema, Jon Lewis is meaning the all-encompassing thing that is film-making and film-viewing, as well as the marketing, and business side of Hollywood itself. The changes that resulted from the conglomerate business model, the marketing system of the industry and the advance in technology are the major argument points discussed by Lewis, however I think that technology itself is truly the overarching cause of the changes that’ve been seen.
A dynamic interplay of art and life can be evinced in the relationship between films and society. Films provide escape from daily life, opportunity to solve mysteries, chances to identify with powerful competent heroes and discussions of morality that are comfortingly unambiguous. By opening a window on exotica, films enable us to become voyeurs, secret observers of the personal and even intimate lives of characters even when we know that the stories are largely fantasies. The present thesis proposes to focus its attention on film studies, subsumed within Cultural Studies to examine Alfred Hitchcock’s oeuvre. Cultural Studies evident in the study of cultural artifacts (films, music, novels) and examination of practices (sports, national events) is
Mulvey, Laura. “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema” Visual and Other Pleasures. Bloomington: Indiana Univ. Press, 1989. 14 - 26.
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, examining post classical at which time the relationship between them will become evident. It is my intention to reference films from both movements and also published texts relative to the subject matter. In order to illustrate the structures involved I will be writing about the subjects of genre and genre transformation, the representation of gender, postmodernism and the relationship between style, form and content.
Whether it’s George Lucas’s classic space opera “Star Wars” or Quentin Tarintino’s gory action films, everyone loves movies. From action to satire there is a movie for everyone, but the medium in which we view these movie are always changing. The cinema has held its title as the go-to for watching the latest flicks, but with the exponential strides, we have made in entertainment technology it seems as if this era is coming to an end. From laptops to tablets you can view a new movie with the push of a button while in the comfort of your own home. This new medium for viewing has divided the population, as we compare and contrast the differences between the two before making a decision on what should our source of entertainment be , cinema or
Bazin, Andre. “Evolution of the Language of Cinema.” What is Cinema Volume 1, edited and translated by Hugh Gray, 23-40. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London: University of California Press, 1967.
Since the creation of films, their main goal was to appeal to mass audiences. However, once, the viewer looks past the appearance of films, the viewer realizes that the all-important purpose of films is to serve as a bridge connecting countries, cultures, and languages. This is because if you compare any two films that are from a foreign country or spoken in another language, there is the possibility of a connection between the two because of the fact that they have a universally understanding or interpretation. This is true for the French New Wave films; Contempt and Breathless directed by Jean-Luc Godard, and contemporary Indian films; Earth and Water directed by Deepa Mehta. All four films portray an individual’s role in society using sound and editing.
The introduction of films began in the early era of 1920s and since then technology in many forms as such Televisions which featured documentary and made films more popular with in audiences, according to commentators it is said that film has become the most global and popular seen and followed form of culture. (Shiel, 2001; Urry & Larsen, 2011). Furthermore in late 1960s cinemas and theaters were popular among people also due to entertainment and transformation of different cultures, it has since then captured a large number of tourists. Today that trend has changed into television viewing, which is hence said it is the major leisure activity among people. In addition to that seeing films...
Gunning, Tom 2000, “The Cinema of Attraction: Early film, its spectator, and the avant-garde.” Film and theory: An anthology, Robert Stam & Toby Miller, Blackwell, pp 229-235.
Gallagher, T. 2002. Senses of Cinema – Max Ophuls: A New Art – But Who Notices?. [online] Available at: http://sensesofcinema.com/2002/feature-articles/ophuls/ [Accessed: 8 Apr 2014].
Nevertheless, the question at hand is whether theatre will have a role in the society of the future, where cinema, digital television, and computers will continue to expand and grow. The answer to this question is yes. Heading into the 21st century, theatre will only be a fraction in a solid media industry. However, despite all the excitement technology brings with it, they will never replace theatre because it has something that can not be recreated or offered anywhere else. The cinema and its larger than life world appeals as an affordable alternative. Digital television provides digital interaction between the viewer and the producer. Theatre on the other hand, and its contents may take on a larger dimension, but we receive it directly in flesh and blood – one to one. The magical atmosphere between an actor and spectator who are constantly aware of each other and the theatre’s level of engagement is fundamentally more human and far more intimate.
‘Then came the films’; writes the German cultural theorist Walter Benjamin, evoking the arrival of a powerful new art form at the end of 19th century. By this statement, he tried to explain that films were not just another visual medium, but it has a clear differentiation from all previous mediums of visual culture.
Everyday we encounter the media in some form. It could be waking up to the sound of the radio, or passing billboards in the streets or simply just watching television. They are a lot of different forms of media, for example, verbal or written media, visual media and aural media. Examples of media would include newspapers, magazines, film, radio, television, billboard advertisements as well as the internet. Media studies came about because of the developments in mass communication and it provokes the generation of exigent questions about what we think we know as well how we came about knowing it. There are always changes in the media and the term “media” refers to the many ways of physically forming meanings as well and carrying them. The term “media studies” on the other hand, means different courses priorities different media; different theories and different learning outcomes (Bazalgette, 2000).