Glenn Gordon
`Film is the most important art form of the 20th Century!’
February2002
`Film is the most important art form of the 20th Century?’ The statement itself is a contextual one. It depends almost entirely on the individual’s interpretation of art. At the turn of the century society went through an industrial revolution. It was a time when society underwent radical new changes, which also demanded new methods of communication and new cultures being born or expanding. Automobiles had just appeared for the first time; new automated machines were moving into factories; great new inventions were evolving. Our aspirations prior to this period in history may have been looked upon as preposterous, so coming into the 20 th century created an immense opportunity for people to present new ideas for a new century. It also heralded the beginning of a new medium to record the moment and promote a new vision to the rest of the world. With this revolution came the anticipation of a more liberal society, prompting the desire of the artistically creative to express their work more seductively. Prior to this period Art was limited to the painted variety, an individual representation of the world used as a medium of self-expression. This could perhaps explain why today art is regarded with such a high value and sometimes almost priceless. It is simply because the artist was conveying on canvass what was going on in his society. His work was merely a reflection of his time and expressionism was greatly influenced by what was going on around him. Authors of Film Art, David Bordwell & Kristen Thompson noted that “It is common to suggest that at different points in history, the stories, themes, values or imagery of the genre harmonise with public attitudes”. (Bordwell & Thompson 1997: 55) Nowadays Art has progressed and has now developed into a variety of forms. In the day of the traditional artist, he could never have foretold that his work would be so highly valued for having literally captured a moment in time. His work told a story of what life was like in his period; therefore in many years’ to come, people in future society would gaze upon his work in awe as if it had travelled in time. The painting itself was a narrative form. If Art is to be defined, as `visual communication’ then certainly much of what we know of our own cultural development during the 20th century is almost entirely attributed to art.
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Glenn Gordon
`Film is the most important art form of the 20th Century!’
February2002
Capturing our history soon demanded much more convincing methods.
People’s
attitudes had changed, and with it came expectations of the still images of art and photography. New cultures and technology inspired the image to move and when it did, it drew much public attention. Mass public manipulation could be gained through this new medium. The moving image didn’t just entertain and educate; it was also soon to provide an effective means of propaganda. As the 20th century tiptoed into the 1920’s, the full potential of Film became realised as a revolutionary form of art. Germany was perhaps the first to host the marriage of Art and film in the early twenties. Of course there was still no sound, so non-diegetic sound and the mise-en-scene collaborated to produce the narrative for the film. All of which were the ingredients for German expressionism. An example of this emerged in the form of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari; a dark and sombre film designed to shock and frighten the audience, using music, make-up, lighting and painted sets and props created for dramatic effect. Like the horror movie, Westerns also emerged as a prominent genre in the era of silent moviemaking.
Much can be said about the parallels between art and film.
Certainly as a medium, Film is definitely the most important art form of the 20 th century. The silent newsreels record moments in our history as it happened. Art and photography on the other hand could only capture an image of the moment and leave our minds to provide the narrative. Filmmakers of the time took advantage of this and discovered that they could creatively exaggerate their society and lifestyle for dramatic effect. German expressionism is a fine example in its manipulation of non-diegetic sound and images, used to create an atmosphere which successfully intimidates the audience. The horror genre today dominates the film industry. It is cheaper to make and is merely modified from film to film. We now see earlier horror classics being remade. Nosferatu gave birth to the likes of Dracula, Frankenstein, The Werewolf and the Mummy, all of which dominated film in the 1940’s. Filmmakers copied each other and further developed special effects. As Bordwell & Thompson explain in Film Art: “The fact that every genre has fluctuated in popularity reminds us that genres are tightly bound to cultural factors. (55) A more recent example of post modernism was The Fly, which was first seen in the 1950’s and remade in the 1980/90’s. Genre can be interpreted as the culture of the film
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Glenn Gordon
`Film is the most important art form of the 20th Century!’
February2002
industry, and largely depends on the audience expectations. The earlier Fly would not have had the same impact on today’s audience as its remake, although the fact that it was remade was perhaps an acknowledgement by Hollywood that it was indeed a classic. This might be attributed to the original character, Vincent Price, who became identified with the horror genre. So as the protagonist develops an identity, so too does the audiences expectations, and so the influence of his movies becomes associated with fear. Jeff Goldblum however would not have the same effect, as he cannot be typecast as a horror star, having appeared in various film genre. The impact on the audience in this case was largely dependent on the special effects, which were to be re-cycled and used in further horror movies. This would seem to indicate that the star is no longer the main character as his identity becomes less important and gives way to special effects. This could perhaps be one reason for the demise of the Western genre in the 1970’s. It was at its peak in the fifties and sixties, yet was one of the main genres to emerge in early filmmaking while it gave a cultural recognition of the American Wild West. Although then, westerns were at a primitive stage as the hero always wore White, while the villain was identifiable by wearing Black. In these westerns we witness genre as a social factor, defining femininity and masculinity. Women were portrayed as mother and housekeeper, while masculinity is emphasised as the hero. John Ford films often demonstrated this. John Wayne and Randolph Scott were the icons of masculinity. However, Ford’s films had reached the classic stage in the forties and fifties.
Genre harmonising with public
attitudes was mentioned earlier and we can see its development at this point in cinematic history. In the movie `Aliens’ the role was reversed and Ripley, the female protagonist was the hero. A political statement may have been made later in the trilogy by placing the hero, Ripley, among a cast of men. As to whether Film can be described, as an Art Form is debatable. Traditional Artists may have an opposing view. As previously discussed there are similarities in terms of being a medium of communication. Film and Art are undoubtedly effective methods of seduction and we often find the same terminology being applied to both. Words like `style’ usually imply a hidden meaning as if to psychoanalyse the creator of the work and their method of subconsciously conveying a message. However, when it comes to art
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Glenn Gordon
`Film is the most important art form of the 20th Century!’
February2002
imitating life, Hollywood exaggerates this effectively. Although traditional art may have been accused of doing the same. Again, terminology plays its role in the form of `skill’, which is usually applied to the methods used to evoke the audience emotions. A painting can be inviting to its audience, leaving them to create their own narrative by interpretation. Likewise Hollywood perhaps does the same. An example was expressed earlier by comparing both the Fly movies. In its earlier version, psychology was used to provoke fear. In its more recent version, special effects were used to achieve the same results. Of course this is a direct reflection of society on both occasions, and here we find again that the relationship between art and society is a very strong bond indeed. While an audience may recognise this and indeed often identify with it, they rarely recognise the mechanics and structure of what they are seeing on screen. In their book, Film Art: An Introduction, David Bordwell & Kristen Thompson made the following observation, “Sitting in a darkened theatre watching an enthralling movie, we may find it difficult to remember that what we are seeing is not a natural subject, like a flower or an asteroid. Cinema is so captivating that we tend to forget that movies are made. An understanding of the art of cinema depends initially on recognition that a film is produced by both machines and human labour.” (3) This seems to indicate that art manifests itself as an ability to communicate realism or convince the audience, whether it is subliminal or otherwise. This being the case, then the art of cinema certainly demonstrates this most effectively. The one word that exudes from this relationship is `media,’ an effective form of visual communication and control. This brings us back to the definition of art and its methods of simulating society. Perhaps the term `expressionism’ is what invited film into the world of art, certainly as a visual function, and when looked at further, the term mise en scene describes a more accurate meeting point. In composing a painting all the objects and props must be assembled to create a setting for the story. Mise-en-scene also demonstrates this. Mise-en-scene is a theatrical term in which all that appears on the stage our frame is there for a purpose. Six elements
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Glenn Gordon
`Film is the most important art form of the 20th Century!’
February2002
combine in its composition: Setting, Costume and Make-up, Actors expression and movement, Lighting, Screen space and Time. All these elements combine to create the setting for the story, which can be easily anticipated from this. This in itself can tell the story without the character. David Bordwell & Kristen Thompson observed that, “Since the early days of cinema, critics and audiences have understood that setting plays a more active role in cinema than in most theatrical styles.” Andre Bazin writes: The human being is all-important in the theatre. The drama on the screen can exist without actors. A hanging door, a leaf in the wind, waves beating on the shore can heighten the dramatic effect. Some film masterpieces use man only as an accessory, like an extra, or in counterpoint to nature, which is the true character. (172) In looking back on Film over the twentieth century we can find many relationships or inferences to other films which might otherwise have no link at all, yet inevitably there is always a cultural link. For example, Arnold Swartzenaegers role as The Terminator can be associated with Marlon Brandos role in the 1950’s, The Wild One, simply because of the leather jacket and the motorcycle.
The symbolic gesture of toughness is
automatically associated and so identifies a relationship between both movies. Again, we find ourselves within the realms of media and its influence. Of course some may not have seen either one of these movies, but it can be guaranteed that a relationship or association with any movie throughout film history can be established. Advertisements often use such intertextuality to manipulate the sub-conscience of the audience. The very fact that a creative medium can be used to evoke human emotion so effectively is in itself `An Art,’ as this is how Art may be defined. If we examine our own society and lifestyle today we can determine that film is indeed an important and highly influential contributor.
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Glenn Gordon
`Film is the most important art form of the 20th Century!’
February2002
BIBLIOGRAPHY Bordwell, D & Thompson, K. (1979) `The Shot: Mise-en-Scene, Aspects of Mise-enScene’, in C. Ward, N. Blaine, and C. Berkowitz (eds.) (1997) Film Art, An Introduction, Fifth Edition Bordwell, D & Thompson, K. (1979) `Types of Films, Film Genres’, in C. Ward, N. Blaine, and C. Berkowitz (eds.) (1997) Film Art, An Introduction, Fifth Edition Bordwell, D & Thompson, K. (1979) `The Work of Film Production, Technical Factors in Film Production’, in C. Ward, N. Blaine, and C. Berkowitz (eds.) (1997) Film Art, An Introduction, Fifth Edition
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