International Cinema Through WWII Notes: module 8 film

International Cinema through World War II

Global Migration

  • Up to and through WWII, many people left their home countries to find safer places to live, untouched by war.
  • Many individuals involved in filmmaking migrated to Hollywood.
  • Hollywood creators began to admire international films more, influencing their productions.

France During WWII

  • The Nazis installed the Vichy government in power.
  • Much of the French cinema during this time was escapist, with a few exceptions.
Jean Renoir
  • Achieved success in France, with The Grand Illusion (1937) being his most famous film.
  • The Grand Illusion is an anti-war film that was well-received by the public and critics.
  • Renoir left France after the Nazi occupation in 1940 and continued directing in Hollywood.
Rene Clair
  • Also left France shortly after its fall.
  • His most popular American film was I Married A Witch (1942), which inspired the TV show Bewitched.
Jean Cocteau
  • Cocteau stayed in Paris and made a very influential film reminiscent of early French cinema: Beauty and the Beast (1946).

France - Post WWII and the New Wave

  • Filmmakers in France pushed the boundaries of filmmaking with the New Wave movement in the 1960s.
  • In the 1950s, they started analyzing filmmaking.
Cahiers Du Cinéma
  • Translated into “notebooks on cinema”.
  • First published in 1951.
  • Co-founded by André Bazin, Jacques Doniol-Valcroze, and Joseph-Marie Lo Duca.

Germany and Nazi Cinema

  • Under the Nazi party, cinema was nationalized, and all films had to be approved by the Reich Film Chamber.
  • Many talented filmmakers left Germany before or during the war.
Leni Riefenstahl
  • A propagandist documentarian who did her most well-known work under the Nazi party.
  • Triumph of the Will (1935).
  • Olympia (1938), a chronicling of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.

Italy's Fascist Cinema

  • Benito Mussolini consolidated film production and distribution through Ente Nazionale Industrie Cinematografiche or ENIC.
Cinecitta
  • Construction started in 1935.
  • A giant film studio outside Rome, Italy.
  • It was the most modern production facility in Europe.
  • Many propaganda films were produced through ENIC.
  • Many influential Italian directors got their start, such as Roberto Rossellini.
Roberto Rossellini
  • Wanted to make a film about Rome at the end of the war.
  • Rome becomes a character itself in his film.
  • He wanted to showcase what the city and its people experienced during WWII.
Open City (1945)
  • Rossellini's film.
  • This film started the Neorealist movement, also referred to as Italian Neorealism.
Neorealism = New Reality
  • Out of necessity, Italian filmmakers were forced to use:
    • black and white film
    • amateur actors
    • shoot on location
  • All these things created a movement called Neorealism
  • These films showcased the difficulty of working-class people.
  • It reflected the psyche of many Italians at the time who were coming out of a brutal war and a destroyed country.
  • Neorealism was a bellwether for social change in Italy.
  • Neorealist films influenced many major filmmakers from the 1960s to today.
  • Neorealism was very different from what Hollywood was producing at the time.
Open City (1945) - cont.
  • Considered an extremely powerful representation of humanity in film.
Vittorio De Sica
  • Directed The Bicycle Thief (1948).
  • This film received international praise and was screened around the world.
  • The Bicycle Thief is the most popular film of the Neorealist period.
The Bicycle Thief - cont.
  • De Sica wanted the film to look very real, almost like watching a documentary.
  • The star of the film is Lamberto Maggiorani, who was an unemployed construction worker with no acting experience at the time.
Cahiers Du Cinéma - Revisited
  • The writers were obsessed with Italian Neorealism, and it would inspire the many French filmmakers of the 1960s.

Japan

  • Before WWII ended, one of Japan's most well-known directors would begin his long career.
  • This director would influence many filmmakers around the world.
  • Many say he is one of the most influential filmmakers in cinema history.
Akira Kurosawa
  • His first film, Judo Saga (1943).
  • This film does not feel like a freshman filmmaker directs it.
  • It has the developed style Kurosawa would use for the rest of his long career.
  • He directed 30 films in an almost 60-year career.
Seven Samurai (1954)
  • Kurosawa co-wrote, directed, and edited this film.
  • It centers around seven samurai that villagers hire to protect their crops.
  • It is a masterpiece.
  • It is one of the most referenced pieces of cinema ever.
Yasujirō Ozu
  • Started directing in the silent era but directed into both the sound and color era; he was directing from 1927 until he died in 1963.
  • Ozu is often referred to as “the most Japanese of all directors.”
  • He was mentioned in an earlier module.
  • He was hired at first as a camera assistant; then, he moved into directing.
  • Unfortunately, his first film has been lost. It was the Sword of Penitence (1927).
  • Opportunity to screen Late Spring (1949).
  • It is an example of the Japanese genre of Shomin-geki, which are films about middle-class Japanese life; it translates to “dramas of ordinary people.”

India

  • Bombay was and still is the center of film production in India.
  • Although many genres are produced, musicals are the most popular.
Alam Ara or The Light of the World (1931)
  • This film was India's first sound film and a spectacular musical.
  • Directed by Ardeshir Irani, it set the tone for today's Bollywood films.
  • It is a love story between a prince and a poor woman.

Hollywood in Crisis

  • There would be a monumental shift in Filmmaking in America in the 1960s, but first, we need to explore what was leading up to that, and most of the catalyst for the transition started in the 1940s.
The Collapse of the Studio System
  • In 1944, the U.S. Supreme Court decided the de Havilland decision, and actress Olivia de Havilland brought a suit against Warner Bros.
  • This decision freed actors from their restrictive seven-year contracts.
1948 U.S. vs. Paramount Studios
  • Many studios owned studios, distributed the films, and owned the theaters where the films were played.
  • Although all studios were doing it, Paramount Studios was sued for this practice.
  • It was found that by doing all three, studios were creating a monopoly.
  • Paramount agrees to give up ownership of theaters.
  • All other studios do the same before they suffer litigation.
The Miracle (1948)
  • A film by Roberto Rossellini.
  • A woman meets a stranger, a fisherman, and becomes pregnant but believes he is Jesus.
  • This film is about mental illness and the perception of reality.
  • But it was deemed blasphemy (Mocking of God) and banned by New York state in 1950.
The Miracle (1948) - cont.
  • The Distributor of the film fought back and the fight went to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1952.
  • It won under the First Amendment
  • This decision is named The Miracle Decision.
House on Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)
  • HUAC was already a force in the country, but they decided to go after Hollywood.
  • It was believed that there were Communists in Hollywood, and the committee was tasked to find them.
  • This committee was created in 1938 to investigate alleged Communist activities in privately and publicly owned organizations.
The Hollywood Ten
  • More than 200 people were brought to speak to the committee.
  • These ten were the most outspoken and would not name names.
  • They were imprisoned, fined thousands of dollars, and banned from the film industry.
Blacklisting
  • Many other talented people were blacklisted, not just actors but across all of Hollywood.
  • People were forever blacklisted and would not work in the film business again.
  • Studios fired many, careers and lives were over with no proof of wrongdoing.
  • Blacklisting occurred in part because Hollywood Studio heads were afraid of Government interference in their business.
  • There was also a “red scare” with the movie-going public.
  • By firing these people, the studios seemed proactive in fighting Communism.
  • This would keep people going to the movies!

Shift in Entertainment Consumption

International Taste in Film
  • American Soldiers coming back from WWII and are more interested in Foreign Films.
Suburbanization post-war
  • G.I. Bill was awarded (post WWII), which led to families moving to the suburbs and out of big cities.
  • The big cities are where the movie palaces were!
Television becomes popular!
  • People enjoy staying at home.
  • 1949 – 1 million TV sets
  • 1952 – 10 million
  • 1959 – 50 million
  • Basically, in 1959 there are 50 million reasons not to go out to the movies.
  • In 1957, a television would cost approximately 229.95229.95 which translates to approximately 2500.002500.00 today, making it a significant investment.