Difference between pages "JCM412512/Mise-en-scene (Discussion)" and "JCM412-512 Seminar in American Cinema"

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'''UserName: tcfuser''' <br />
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[[Image:DoubleIndemnity.jpg|thumb|Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck in the film noir, ''[[wikipedia:Double Indemnity|Double Indemnity]]''.]]
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'''Password: tcfuser'''
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'''TCF 440/540 Seminar in American Cinema''' is a discussion-oriented course taught by [[User:Jeremy Butler|Jeremy Butler]].
  
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Much as Bordwell/Thompson do with ''Our Hospitality'', we will examine the '''narrative functions''' of mise-en-scene in a short scene from ''[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0138097/ Shakespeare in Love]'' (John Madden, 1998). (See [http://www.tcf.ua.edu/EO/DV/FilmArt/ShakespeareFromDVD.php video clip].)
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== Course objectives ==
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==Plot summary==
 
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[[Image:ShakespeareInLove006.jpg|thumb|left|600px|Opening shot from the ''Shakespeare in Love'' scene.]]
 
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<br clear="all">
 
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From http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0138097/plotsummary :
 
  
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Romantic comedy set in London in the late 16th century: Young playwright William Shakespeare struggles with his latest work "Romeo and Ethel the Pirate's Daughter". A great fan of Shakespeare's plays is young, wealthy Viola who is about to be married to the cold-hearted Lord Wessex, but constantly dreams of becoming an actress. Women were not allowed to act on stage at that time (female roles were played by men, too), but dressed up as a boy, Viola successfully auditions for the part of Romeo. Soon she and William are caught in a forbidden romance that provides rich inspiration for his play.
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The student will learn the three major critical methods applied to the American cinema: genre study, the auteur "theory," and the star "system." We will begin with the film noir, director Howard Hawks and actor Humphrey Bogart, and then, during the second half of the semester, turn our attention to the melodrama, director Douglas Sirk, and actress Lana Turner.
  
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==Discussion questions==
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Our focus will shift back and forth from the primary texts (the films themselves) to the writings on them. The latter will eventually lead us into considerations of feminism, Marxism, structuralism and semiotics.
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#'''Group 1:''' What narrative meaning does the set design suggest? Or in other words, what narrative function does it serve? How does it help to establish the characters and their relationship? What are "objective correlatives" or "icons"? How might we see them in action in this scene, helping to build the narrative?
 
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#'''Group 2:''' What narrative meaning does the costume design suggest? Or in other words, what narrative function does it serve? How does it help to establish the characters and their relationship? How might we see objective correlatives/icons in action in this scene, helping to build the narrative?
 
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#'''Group 3:''' Describe the four basic characteristics of light in film (and television)--including specific instances of three-point lighting and high/low key lighting. ([http://www.tcf.ua.edu/jbutler/MadMen/ See ''Mad Men'' lighting grid.]) What narrative meaning does the lighting design suggest? Or in other words, what narrative function does it serve? How does it help to establish the characters and their relationship? How might we see lighting's characteristics in action in this scene, helping to build the narrative?
 
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#'''Group 4:''' What narrative meaning does the actor movement (that is, "blocking") suggest? Or in other words, what narrative function does it serve? How does it help to establish the characters and their relationship? How might we see blocking in action in this scene, helping to build the narrative? If this were a silent film, what narrative meaning would be signified by blocking?
 
  
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== Bibliography ==
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== Online study guides ==
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#Jeremy G. Butler, ''Television: Critical Methods and Applications'' (Routledge)
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===Chronological order===
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#David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson, ''Film Art: An Introduction'' (McGraw-Hill)
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#Film Analysis: [[BordwellThompson/Narrative Form (Discussion)|Discussion]] of film form chapters, ''Film Art''
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#Classical Style I: [[TCF440540/Mise-en-scene (Discussion)|Discussion]] of mise-en-scene
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#Classical Style II: [[TCF440540/Cinematography (Discussion)|Discussion]] of cinematography
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#Editing: [[TCF440540/Editing (Discussion)|Discussion]] of editing
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#Sound: [[TCF440540/Sound (Discussion)|Discussion]] of sound
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#Concept of Genre: [[Concept of Genre (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Concept of Genre (Discussion) | Discussion]] of Kitses (6-27), Buscombe (33-45), Collins (157-163).
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#Film Noir as Genre: [[Film Noir as Genre (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Film Noir as Genre (Discussion)|Discussion]] of Silver & Ursini (17-26, 37-52, 53-64, 65-76).
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#Concept of Authorship: [[Concept of Authorship (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Concept of Authorship (Discussion)|Discussion]] of Caughie (9-16, 22-67).
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#Howard Hawks as Auteur: [[Howard Hawks as Auteur (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Howard Hawks as Auteur (Discussion)|Discussion]] of Sarris (on Hawks, 52-56), Caughie (138-151), Hillier & Wollen (26-31, 32-34, 68-71, 83-86, 111-119).
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#Noir & Sexuality: [[Noir & Sexuality (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Noir & Sexuality (Discussion) | Discussion]] of Place (47-68), Dyer (52-72).
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#Concept of Star: [[Concept of Star (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Concept of Star (Discussion)|Discussion]] of Dyer (Stars, 106-50; recommended: 88-105).
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#Humphrey Bogart as Star: [[Humphrey Bogart as Star (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Humphrey Bogart as Star (Discussion)|Discussion]] of Sklar (104-120, 165-176, 227-251).
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#Domestic Melodrama as Genre: [[Domestic Melodrama as Genre (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Domestic Melodrama as Genre (Discussion)|Discussion]] of Haskell (153-188) -- in-class discussion preempted by midterm exam.
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#Domestic Melodrama Since World War II: [[Domestic Melodrama Since World War II (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Domestic Melodrama Since World War II (Discussion)|Discussion]] of Gledhill (5-39), Elsaesser (43-69).
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#Melodrama Variations: TV Soap Opera: [[Melodrama Variations: TV Soap Opera (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Melodrama Variations: TV Soap Opera (Discussion)|Discussion]] of Butler ("Apparatus," 53-70), Butler ("Actors," 75-91).
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#Douglas Sirk as Auteur: [[Douglas Sirk as Auteur (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Douglas Sirk as Auteur (Discussion)| Discussion]] of Sarris (on Sirk, 109-110), Fischer (3-28, 268-272); recommended: Doherty ([http://www.tcf.ua.edu/EO/SirkEssay.htm online]).
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#Lana Turner as Star: [[Lana Turner as Star (Lecture)| Lecture]] / [[Lana Turner as Star (Discussion)| Discussion]] of Dyer (30-52) [Also in Fischer (186-206)].
  
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==External links==
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===List of lecture notes===
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#[http://www.tcf.ua.edu/Classes/Jbutler/T440/VisualStyleIllustrations.htm Mise-en-scene Illustrations]
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[[:Category:TCF440/540 Lecture]]
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#[http://www.tcf.ua.edu/EO/DV/FilmArt/ShakespeareFromDVD.php ''Shakespeare in Love'' video clip]
 
  
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[[Category:TCF440/540 Discussion]]
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===List of discussion notes===
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[[:Category:TCF440/540 Discussion]]
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 +
==Study groups==
 +
<table border="1" cellpadding="5">
 +
  <tr>
 +
    <td valign="top">'''Group 1'''
 +
      <ul>
 +
<li> Kenny Haggerty </li>
 +
<li> Morgan Bruffy </li>
 +
<li> Mallory Clark </li>
 +
<li> Caitlyn Cofer </li>
 +
<li> Abigail Connally </li>
 +
<li> Brian DeLuca </li>
 +
      </ul>
 +
    <p>'''Group 3'''</p>
 +
    <ul>
 +
<li> Mark Lent </li>
 +
<li> Katherine Jackson </li>
 +
<li> Clifton Lewis </li>
 +
<li> Colter Longshore </li>
 +
<li> Donald Miller </li>
 +
    </ul></td>
 +
    <td valign="top">'''Group 2'''
 +
      <ul>
 +
<li> Bill Hartwig </li>
 +
<li> Alex Jones </li>
 +
<li> Lorrie Flowers </li>
 +
<li> Stephanie Lichtenstein </li>
 +
<li> Sophie Hall</li>
 +
<li> Jake Hinson </li>
 +
    </ul>
 +
    <p>'''Group 4'''</p>
 +
    <ul>
 +
<li> Alex Seiver </li>
 +
<li> Nick Penfold </li>
 +
<li> James Piazza </li>
 +
<li> Alex Pointer </li>
 +
<li> Shelby Utsey </li>
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<li> James Ed West </li>
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    </ul></td>
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  </tr>
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</table>
 +
 
 +
== Texts & resources ==
 +
 
 +
===Books===
 +
 
 +
#David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson, ''Film Art: An Introduction''.
 +
#John Caughie, ed., ''Theories of Authorship'' (Boston: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1981).
 +
#Richard Dyer, ''Stars'', Second Edition, Supplementary Chapter by Paul McDonald (London: British Film Institute, 1998).
 +
#Recommended, not required: Lucy Fischer,ed., ''Imitation of Life: Douglas Sirk, Director'' (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1991).
 +
 
 +
===Articles and book chapters===
 +
#Jim Kitses, ''Horizons West'' (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1969) 6-27.
 +
#Edward Buscombe, "The Idea of Genre in the American Cinema," ''Screen'', 11.2 (1970): 33-45.
 +
#Richard Collins, "Genre: A Reply to Ed Buscombe," ''Movies and Methods'', ed. Bill Nichols (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976) 157-163.
 +
#Alain Silver and James Ursini, eds., ''Film Noir Reader'' (New York: Limelight, 1996).
 +
#Andrew Sarris, ''The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929-1968'' (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1973) 52-56, 109-110.
 +
#Jim Hillier and Peter Wollen, eds., ''Howard Hawks American Artist'' (London: British Film Institute, 1996).
 +
#Janey Place, "Women in Film Noir," ''Women in Film Noir'', ed. E. Ann Kaplan (London: British Film Institute, 1998) 47-68.
 +
#Richard Dyer, "Homosexuality and Film Noir," ''The Matter of Images: Essays on Representations'' (London and New York: Routledge, 1993) 52-72.
 +
#Robert Sklar, ''City Boys: Cagney, Bogart, Garfield'' (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1992).
 +
#Molly Haskell, "The Woman's Film," in ''From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies'' (New York: Penguin, 1974) 153-188.
 +
#Christine Gledhill, "The Melodrama Field: An Investigation," ''Home is Where the Heart Is: Studies in Melodrama and Woman's Film'', ed. Christine Gledhill (London: British Film Institute, 1987) 5-39.
 +
#Thomas Elsaesser, "Tales of Sound and Fury: Observations on the Family Melodrama," ''Home is Where the Heart Is'', 43-69.
 +
#Jeremy G. Butler, "Notes on the Soap Opera Apparatus: Televisual Style and ''As the World Turns''," ''Cinema Journal'', 25.3 (1986): 53-70.
 +
#Jeremy G. Butler, "'I'm Not a Doctor, But I Play One on TV': Characters, Actors, and Acting in Television Soap Opera," ''Cinema Journal'' 30.4 (1991): 75-91.
 +
#Lucy Fischer, "Three-Way Mirror: Imitation of Life," ''Imitation of Life: Douglas Sirk'', Director ed. Lucy Fischer (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press) 3-28.
 +
#Paul Willemen, "Distanciation and Douglas Sirk," ''Imitation of Life: Douglas Sirk, Director'', 268-272.
 +
#Recommended, not required: Thomas Doherty, "Douglas Sirk: Magnificent Obsession," ''The Chronicle Review'', 49, no. 12 (November 15, 2002), p. B16. Available online.
 +
#Richard Dyer, "Four Films of Lana Turner," ''Movie'' 25: 30-52.
 +
 
 +
[[Category:TCF440-540]]
 +
[[Category:TCF Classes]]

Revision as of 15:38, 18 January 2012

Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck in the film noir, Double Indemnity.

TCF 440/540 Seminar in American Cinema is a discussion-oriented course taught by Jeremy Butler.

Course objectives

The student will learn the three major critical methods applied to the American cinema: genre study, the auteur "theory," and the star "system." We will begin with the film noir, director Howard Hawks and actor Humphrey Bogart, and then, during the second half of the semester, turn our attention to the melodrama, director Douglas Sirk, and actress Lana Turner.

Our focus will shift back and forth from the primary texts (the films themselves) to the writings on them. The latter will eventually lead us into considerations of feminism, Marxism, structuralism and semiotics.

Online study guides

Chronological order

  1. Film Analysis: Discussion of film form chapters, Film Art
  2. Classical Style I: Discussion of mise-en-scene
  3. Classical Style II: Discussion of cinematography
  4. Editing: Discussion of editing
  5. Sound: Discussion of sound
  6. Concept of Genre: Lecture / Discussion of Kitses (6-27), Buscombe (33-45), Collins (157-163).
  7. Film Noir as Genre: Lecture / Discussion of Silver & Ursini (17-26, 37-52, 53-64, 65-76).
  8. Concept of Authorship: Lecture / Discussion of Caughie (9-16, 22-67).
  9. Howard Hawks as Auteur: Lecture / Discussion of Sarris (on Hawks, 52-56), Caughie (138-151), Hillier & Wollen (26-31, 32-34, 68-71, 83-86, 111-119).
  10. Noir & Sexuality: Lecture / Discussion of Place (47-68), Dyer (52-72).
  11. Concept of Star: Lecture / Discussion of Dyer (Stars, 106-50; recommended: 88-105).
  12. Humphrey Bogart as Star: Lecture / Discussion of Sklar (104-120, 165-176, 227-251).
  13. Domestic Melodrama as Genre: Lecture / Discussion of Haskell (153-188) -- in-class discussion preempted by midterm exam.
  14. Domestic Melodrama Since World War II: Lecture / Discussion of Gledhill (5-39), Elsaesser (43-69).
  15. Melodrama Variations: TV Soap Opera: Lecture / Discussion of Butler ("Apparatus," 53-70), Butler ("Actors," 75-91).
  16. Douglas Sirk as Auteur: Lecture / Discussion of Sarris (on Sirk, 109-110), Fischer (3-28, 268-272); recommended: Doherty (online).
  17. Lana Turner as Star: Lecture / Discussion of Dyer (30-52) [Also in Fischer (186-206)].

List of lecture notes

Category:TCF440/540 Lecture

List of discussion notes

Category:TCF440/540 Discussion

Study groups

Group 1
  • Kenny Haggerty
  • Morgan Bruffy
  • Mallory Clark
  • Caitlyn Cofer
  • Abigail Connally
  • Brian DeLuca

Group 3

  • Mark Lent
  • Katherine Jackson
  • Clifton Lewis
  • Colter Longshore
  • Donald Miller
Group 2
  • Bill Hartwig
  • Alex Jones
  • Lorrie Flowers
  • Stephanie Lichtenstein
  • Sophie Hall
  • Jake Hinson

Group 4

  • Alex Seiver
  • Nick Penfold
  • James Piazza
  • Alex Pointer
  • Shelby Utsey
  • James Ed West

Texts & resources

Books

  1. David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson, Film Art: An Introduction.
  2. John Caughie, ed., Theories of Authorship (Boston: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1981).
  3. Richard Dyer, Stars, Second Edition, Supplementary Chapter by Paul McDonald (London: British Film Institute, 1998).
  4. Recommended, not required: Lucy Fischer,ed., Imitation of Life: Douglas Sirk, Director (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1991).

Articles and book chapters

  1. Jim Kitses, Horizons West (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1969) 6-27.
  2. Edward Buscombe, "The Idea of Genre in the American Cinema," Screen, 11.2 (1970): 33-45.
  3. Richard Collins, "Genre: A Reply to Ed Buscombe," Movies and Methods, ed. Bill Nichols (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976) 157-163.
  4. Alain Silver and James Ursini, eds., Film Noir Reader (New York: Limelight, 1996).
  5. Andrew Sarris, The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929-1968 (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1973) 52-56, 109-110.
  6. Jim Hillier and Peter Wollen, eds., Howard Hawks American Artist (London: British Film Institute, 1996).
  7. Janey Place, "Women in Film Noir," Women in Film Noir, ed. E. Ann Kaplan (London: British Film Institute, 1998) 47-68.
  8. Richard Dyer, "Homosexuality and Film Noir," The Matter of Images: Essays on Representations (London and New York: Routledge, 1993) 52-72.
  9. Robert Sklar, City Boys: Cagney, Bogart, Garfield (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1992).
  10. Molly Haskell, "The Woman's Film," in From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies (New York: Penguin, 1974) 153-188.
  11. Christine Gledhill, "The Melodrama Field: An Investigation," Home is Where the Heart Is: Studies in Melodrama and Woman's Film, ed. Christine Gledhill (London: British Film Institute, 1987) 5-39.
  12. Thomas Elsaesser, "Tales of Sound and Fury: Observations on the Family Melodrama," Home is Where the Heart Is, 43-69.
  13. Jeremy G. Butler, "Notes on the Soap Opera Apparatus: Televisual Style and As the World Turns," Cinema Journal, 25.3 (1986): 53-70.
  14. Jeremy G. Butler, "'I'm Not a Doctor, But I Play One on TV': Characters, Actors, and Acting in Television Soap Opera," Cinema Journal 30.4 (1991): 75-91.
  15. Lucy Fischer, "Three-Way Mirror: Imitation of Life," Imitation of Life: Douglas Sirk, Director ed. Lucy Fischer (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press) 3-28.
  16. Paul Willemen, "Distanciation and Douglas Sirk," Imitation of Life: Douglas Sirk, Director, 268-272.
  17. Recommended, not required: Thomas Doherty, "Douglas Sirk: Magnificent Obsession," The Chronicle Review, 49, no. 12 (November 15, 2002), p. B16. Available online.
  18. Richard Dyer, "Four Films of Lana Turner," Movie 25: 30-52.
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