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Assignment 1 Brief: Module Journal and Book Review: Blog

Entry 1: Film Genre

Grant, B.K., 2007. Film genre: From iconography to ideology (Vol. 33). Wallflower Press.

Barry Keith Grant’s Film genre: From iconography to ideology is a book that seeks to elaborate on concept of genre and why it is important in contemporary cinema. Precisely, has delved into the definition of what film genre is and has done this by drawing examples and case studies from different parts of the world. The particular attention that he has placed emphasis on is western films and in particular Hollywood. Barry, as seen in the introductory chapter of his book has explained that film genre refers to a thematic categorization of film. Using the example of film noir, the author has explained that the films that are considered under this genre have the same general themes that include but not limited to cynicism and cynical heroes, elaborate lighting effects and the idea that crime is an idea that the society today benefits from –as it is a way through which peace and justice are secured.

Chapter 3 of the book is about genre and authorship wherein the author invites the idea that the film author, mostly producer, imbues the film with their ideas and belief. Perhaps, this explains why films that are authored by the same person happen to fall within the same genre.  This book has delved into key issues on film genre and underpin the ideas that have been discussed in the module. Specifically, the issues discussed by Barry align with the discussions on film genre as a whole and adds value to what has been learned.

Ekinci, B.T. 2020, ""Youtuber Movies" From New Media to the Cinema", CINEJ Cinema Journal, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 94-118.

The author of this article has made three main arguments which are all aligned towards the concept of film genre. The author has firstly indicated that as a result of the emergence of new media, old tropes of film and film genres as a whole are being replaced or rearranged. Technology has presented platforms such as YouTube where any user can be able to produce their own film clips and content. The second has also written that the emergence of the internet and computer technology has led to an almost complete overhaul of culture as people are influenced by and influence each other through the internet. Thirdly, with digitalization, the control that the media and film industry had on the audience has diminished. However, the film industry can benefit from these developments as new genres can be developed out of these social cultural shifts.

In the details of the article that author has written that there is a close relationship that is being formed between the traditional media and the new media and the these has created mutual benefits between the film producers and audiences. What this article has highlighted is that in order for a full reconciliation of the traditional and new media to be realised, film genre criticisms are unavoidable. After all, these two media place the old school film industry against an energized and empowered young generation. The common feature that this article has with the Barry Keith Grant book is that they both address the concept of film genre. Further to this, both resources acknowledge that there are changes that are taking place fat in the film industry and this is contesting the status quo of the existing genres. From the lens of film noir, each of the two authors admit that with the changes that have emerged especially in the latter part of the 20th century and the 21st, a new age film nor is inevitable.

References

Grant, B.K., 2007. Film genre: From iconography to ideology (Vol. 33). Wallflower Press.

Ekinci, B.T. 2020, ""Youtuber Movies" From New Media to the Cinema", CINEJ Cinema Journal, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 94-118.

 Entry II: Classic Film Noir

The details of the book by Kaplan Women in film noir is testament of the changes that swept across the film industry after the advent of film noir. The author has emphasized that there was an evident role change for women in film when this style/ genre emerged. There is an evident conflict in the role that women should play in an evidently patriarchal society. In film noir, the family and its relationship are the focal point of representations in film. Kaplan has written that film noir illuminated the struggles that existed between men and women in a patriarchal society of the early to mid-20th century. Another issue that is brought out in the Kaplan book is the ordering of sexuality and the patriarchal right especially for men. While men in society are drawn to the sexuality of their female counterparts in society and outside of the family, they are at the same time endevour to emphasize that their masculinity accords them their patriarchal rights. Kaplan notes that there is an evident contradiction in society as depicted in film noir. This contradiction is evidenced in the film Piccadilly (1929) where there is an attempt to resign the female characters Shosho and Mabel to their patriarchal defined roles yet the society, as depicted in film, desires the new found social position where they act and play roles in the public. The latter is in reference to the fact that these two worked in a local restaurant as dancers and performers. Although there are romantic conflicts that emerge between the women characters in the film; Shosho and Mabel, as they fight for the attention of the male protagonist figures, there is an evidently complex depiction of women and their roles. In this case in particular, these women endevour to keep their relationships and families in order yet they are embroiled in their public role in society.

The arguments that are presented by Kaplan highlight important issues in the history of film noir. They especially emphasize how the role of women as subordinate to their male counterparts changed and how this films elevated their roles as objects of the male gaze and desire on the one hand the position in introducing the themes of sexuality and romance. In truth, while film noir caused major shifts in the way patriarchy and role of women were represented and perceived, it was especially important that at this point, women were elevated and could take leading roles in films. Biesen and Chinen (2005) have written a full book on the history of film noir. While the reference of this style cum genre of fil is analyzed retrospectively, the two authors have stated that it is/ was characterized by features such as pessimism, cynicism and death and this often took place in the streets where crime was rife. The origin of film noir is traced in the 1940s and 50s after the second world war and a decade after the Great Depression.  Majorly, the classical film noir films were centered on c rime, detective themes and thriller.

References

Biesen, S.C. and Chinen, S., 2005. Blackout: World War II and the origins of film noir. JHU Press.

Kaplan, E.A. ed., 2019. Women in film noir. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Entry III: Women in Film Noir

The film Laura (1944) has all the hallmarks of a film noir. This is especially so considering that there are numerous female characters who have taken central roles in the film. In fact, the title of the film is indicative of this fact as it is a detective film investigating the death of Laura Hunt, an advertising executive. The detective assigned the task to unmask who Laura’s killer is transported into a web of lies with key suspects being Shelby Carpenter, Laura’s boyfriend and Lydecker, a columnist who mentored Laura. Laura (1944) was told in an interesting narrative way with the plot being the key. Given that the film is styled around film noir, the adventures and thrill of the investigations and the events following the discovery that Lydecker was the killer is what was emphasized on. The narrative, to put it in a few words, is rather complex and twisted making the audience unsure who the eventual antagonist will end up being and, equally important, who will end up being Laura’s lover.

Falling in line with the typologies of female characters in film noir, the characters of Laura and Diane Redfern are accorded the feme fatal characters. On face value, they appear innocent and devoid of any possible harm to anyone. However, as the detective discloses later into the film, they are conniving characters who use their mind, wit and bodies to achieve their cynical objectives. Naremore (2008) has noted that women in film noir play an important yet interesting role that, arguably, was absent in the classical films of other genres. The idea of a feme fatale and good girl next door as the formations of female characters changed the way the male protagonist act and are represented. For the most part and as is depicted in Laura (1944), the two types of women are completely different with the feme fatal seeking to serve her cynical goals while her good girl next door counterpart seeks to do that which is right at all time. For the most part, Naremore (2008), the male protagonist is drawn to the feme fatale owing to her extra ordinary beauty, courage and independence of mind.

On her part, Kaplan holds the view that while film noir has shifted focus away from male characters towards women, there is a conflict that emerged and has to do with the representation of a women as either a family maker or one set out to serve the interest of the society. To this end, Kaplan is fast to clarify that film noir did not always depict women as an object of the male gaze or desire but often added to the complexity of having a female protagonist and characters in crime and thriller films.

References

Kaplan, E.A. ed., 2019. Women in film noir. Bloomsbury Publishing

Naremore, J., 2008. More than night: Film noir in its contexts. Univ of California Press.

   Entry IV: E-Book Review of a book on Film Noir

The book that has been selected for review in this section is one that looks at the concept of film genre alongside another related aspect especially in contemporary film, science fiction. Titled Tech-noir: The fusion of science fiction and film noir this book seeks to draw a relationship between film noir and science fiction. This resource is an edited collection wit the first publication dating back in 2008 and has since had a couple of editions. There are two broad ways in which this book relates to the module. Firstly, the book has detailed an analysis of the history of film noir placing its origin to German Expressionist film which has already been discussed in class. A parallel has then been drawn between the developments and changes that have taken place in film noir and science fiction. In the introductory chapters of the book the author has argued using facts that film noir is not a style but rather a genre as it has all the hallmarks of a film genre including style, themes and unique narrative elements.  

The primary argument that this book has presented is that there is a close relationship that has always existed between film noir and science fiction. In elaborating this claim, the author has written that each of these two elements cannot exist independent of each other. For one, the author claims, film noir was in part influenced by the social changes that were taking place in society such as war, the Great Depression and scientific developments. Arguably, n a majority of the film noirs in Hollywood and beyond, and where the hallmark elements of cynicism, mystery, crime and surrealism are present, aspects of high tech and science fiction are ever present. In chapters four and six for instance, it has been demonstrated that through the global occurrences such as the atomic bomb development and detonation, the World War II, cinema has been influenced in quite a handful of ways.

The approach of the book and the details that it has offered has shed a few important highlights on the areas of film noir and film genre. For instance, the book has insisted that film noir is classified as a genre because it comprises films that have comparable themes, films that have comparable narrative elements such as the style of narration and aesthetic approaches that are unique. The fact that makes the book original is that it is the first of its kind to delve into the research of a particular genre of film, film noir in this case, and to make a one on one relationship assessment with science fiction. Another aspect that has been highlighted by the film is that there is no one film genre or feature of cinema for that matter that operates independently in a closed circle. There are factors that are beyond film that impact the way these genres develop and advance. Suffice to say, the fact that the author has widely consulted from other books makes this work even more valuable. What is more, there are a handful of case studies of film noir films that are based on science fiction that have been dissected in great details. These include The Matrix, Blade Runner and The Terminator. This, to say the least, adds credibility to the contents of the book.

Although the author chose a unique area of study making the work contained in the book original, there are other research studies that have been done that tried to make connections and links between a genre of film and an aspect of technology. Therefore, this in itself in a way validates the approach that has been taken by the Meehan. The strong point of this book is that it is the crystallization of an ongoing debate on the influence of film noir on other aspects other than film. These influences include culture and fashion. Meeehan (2015) has noted that the intersection of science fiction and film noir has had noticeable influences on contemporary fashion and sub-cultures. One area of weakness identified in the book is that the author has chosen to work with a very wide theme. Science fiction and film noir are by their own rights very broad areas of study and the author could have narrowed down the focus further down. Arguably, the audience that is targeted by this book are researchers and scholars in the fields of cinema and technology. The book is also resourceful to people seeking to understand the history of film especially on genres that are not broadly covered such as horror, romance and teen films.

Reference

Meehan, P., 2015. Tech-noir: The fusion of science fiction and film noir. McFarland.