1. A cult film.
It is a known fact that taste in movies is something that is different for every person. But that doesn’t mean people can’t agree on anything in this matter.
Some films capture the hearts of many people all over the world, and are loved and remembered by all. These films deserve a place in history books. We refer to them as ‘Classics’. E.g. Citizen Kane, Casablanca, The Godfather …
Of course not all films that are viewed by millions of people are classics. Some film producers like Jerry Bruckheimer are known to produce action-packed, hyped up, commercial films with low artistic value and make billions of dollars. These films are called box office hits, because their main success is at the box office.
E.g. Pirates of the Caribbean, American Pie, Titanic …
But what exactly is a cult hit? Cambridge advanced learner’s dictionary defines ‘cult’ as someone or something that has become very popular with a particular group of people.
What is a particular group of people you might ask. Well the answer to that question can be traced back to the beginning of the art of cinematography. Since the beginning of cinema there have been film fans and film fanatics. The latter were - and still are – those who live and die for movies, people who see five new films a week.
These people are what one would call ‘particular’. They are no longer satisfied by the average Hollywood movie. They want something special, something that sets the film above others.
But what exactly makes ‘Reservoir Dogs’ a cult film?
2. Tarantino
In January of 1991 a film titled Reservoir Dogs (1992) hit the Sundance Film festival. The writer-director was a first-timer by the name of Quentin Tarantino. The film garnered critical acclaim and the director became a legend in the England, UK and the cult film circuit.
The fact that it was directed by Tarantino was enough to make sure this movie would be one.
Of course this did not happen over night: after having seen his three first films it became clear that he had some trademarks of his own that made his movies original.
• There is always a long pointless conversation that is remotely or not at all relevant for the course of the movie. E.g. ‘the Madonna conversation’ in the beginning sequence of ’Reservoir Dogs’, ‘the the differences of European fast food conversation’ in ‘Pulp Fiction’ …
• He always ads a Dutch element to his films:
Beginning the mid 1920s, Hollywood’s ostensibly all-powerful film studios controlled the American film industry, creating a period of film history now recognized as “Classical Hollywood”. Distinguished by a practical, workmanlike, “invisible” method of filmmaking- whose purpose was to demand as little attention to the camera as possible, Classical Hollywood cinema supported undeviating storylines (with the occasional flashback being an exception), an observance of a the three act structure, frontality, and visibly identified goals for the “hero” to work toward and well-defined conflict/story resolution, most commonly illustrated with the employment of the “happy ending”. Studios understood precisely what an audience desired, and accommodated their wants and needs, resulting in films that were generally all the same, starring similar (sometimes the same) actors, crafted in a similar manner. It became the principal style throughout the western world against which all other styles were judged. While there have been some deviations and experiments with the format in the past 50 plus ye...
Phillips, W. (2002). Thinking about film . In Film an introduction (pp. 403-438). Boston : Bedford/St.Martin's .
Even though there is a great amount of audience participation, one really has to turn your attention to the actors in the movie. It takes a special kind of person to really understand the movie they are in.
The debate over Casablanca and Citizen Kane has been a classic argument between film critics and historians alike because both of these pieces contain great cinematographic value, and are timeless pictures that have managed to captivate audiences well beyond their era. However, the real question at hand is which film is the greatest? Which film transformed the future of American film making? It is these questions that I as many others have, will attempt to answer in the following essay as I explain why I believe Citizen Kane has achieved the status of greatest film ever made.
Bugliosi, Vincent, with Curt Gentry. Helter Skelter: The True Story of The Manson Murders. New York and London: Norton, 1994.
Classical Hollywood is a tradition of methods and structures that were prominent American cinema between 1916 and 1960.Its heritage stems from earlier American cinema Melodrama and to theatrical melodrama before that. Its tradition lives on in mainstream Hollywood to this day. But what is it?
Hollywood in the 30’s and 40’s was the golden-age of a new era of filmmaking. The films of that period went beyond the silent films being produced in the past. Diagetic sounds like dialogue and more advanced filmic techniques would push cinema to a new mode of filmmaking, that being classicism. The classical Hollywood structure was being developed in the past with silent films but it came to full fruition in the 30’s, where many filmmakers would produce feature-length films with fully developed storylines and the use of glamorous lighting and larger-than life characterizations to give audiences a more cinematic experience. Genre films like: the gangster, comedy, western, horror, and other various genres of the era, provided large revenue for studios and the creative means for filmmakers to manipulate the mise-en-scene to make each genre films slightly different from the rest. Classicism would provide audiences with clear-cut characterizations, simple storylines, non-intrusive directing, and simple but entertaining conclusions that neatly wrap up the story.
Stanley, Robert H. The Movie Idiom: Film as a Popular Art Form. Illinois: Waveland Press, Inc. 2011. Print
In Hollywood today, most films can be categorized according to the genre system. There are action films, horror flicks, Westerns, comedies and the likes. On a broader scope, films are often separated into two categories: Hollywood films, and independent or foreign ‘art house’ films. Yet, this outlook, albeit superficial, was how many viewed films. Celebrity-packed blockbusters filled with action and drama, with the use of seamless top-of-the-line digital editing and special effects were considered ‘Hollywood films’. Films where unconventional themes like existentialism or paranoia, often with excessive violence or sex or a combination of both, with obvious attempts to displace its audiences from the film were often attributed with the generic label of ‘foreign’ or ‘art house’ cinema.
With many different genres and types of filmmaking, it can result in a large variety of stories and conflicts. Nevertheless, film has always brought people together as a society. If there is one thing everyone can notice about films is the achievement in style and directing. The three directors talked about in this paper are the most successful at delivering a breathtaking style and direction to their films. Baz Luhrmann, Wes Anderson, and Martin Scorsese have produced and directed films over decades and each film as impacted not only the United States but worldwide. With the unmistakable trademarks that each director has, it is very easy to feel sucked into the world in which they are shaping around you and the story. Because of these three directors, the film world and industry has been revolutionized for many centuries to come.
In this paper I will offer a structural analysis of the films of Simpson and Bruckheimer. In addition to their spectacle and typically well-crafted action sequences, Simpson/Bruckheimer pictures seem to possess an unconscious understanding of the zeitgeist and other cultural trends. It is this almost innate ability to select scripts that tap into some traditional American values (patriotism, individualism, and the obsession with the “new”) that helps to make their movies blockbusters.
Barsam, R. M., Monahan, D., & Gocsik, K. M. (2012). Looking at movies: an introduction to film (4th ed.). New York: W.W. Norton & Co..
Every year new movies are released and I am always impressed the quality and effort put into making an effective
...y need to change their priorities. Make movies that people like, but also, don’t force it and don’t make people believe false things. Society would be better if Hollywood would influence good instead of immoral and iffy standards.
Barsam, Richard. Looking at Movies An Introduction to Film, Second Edition (Set with DVD). New York: W. W. Norton, 2006. Print.