I have been spending a substantial amount of time recently viewing the flicks Stanley Postmodern horror “comedies of remarriage” and the essays in it in the book Pursuits of Happiness. We are able to leave aside the issue of whether it kind of film truly is really a genre by itself – there appears to become some debate about this – but repeated viewing of those films, along with research of Postmodernism critical theory essays in it, is unquestionably a most lucrative exercise.
One thing that strikes use is how little Modernist film characteristics has an interest inside a film qua film throughout the majority of his essay on Sturges’ glorious comedy starring Stanwyck and Fonda he is possibly covering a play, Modernist films written, staged, or filmed. True, in early stages he discusses a video camera movement (that is misidentified as ‘wandering’ – the scene under consideration is achieved with a straight cut), the humorous opening credit sequence, and, later, he is doing address REFLEXITIVITY with regards to the photograph from the three card hustlers, in addition to stating, inside a discussion concerning the mirror Jean stands up to see the other passengers around the ship, Postmodernism in film SlideShare “… we’re informed this film knows itself to possess been written and directed and photographed and edited.” Maybe it will, maybe it does not – but when it will, it will so in ways apparent simply to a philosopher or perhaps a serious film scholar. It does not display this understanding of itself in the manner, say, the microphone hanging over an actor’s mind is plainly visible inside a Godard film.
But aside from this, there’s little in Cavell’s essay that tackles the film as part of a distinctive artistic medium. For instance it might be, I believe, completely from character for Cavell to discuss the transition cut in the “smokestack” from the little boat Fonda and Demarest consume the Amazon . com towards the smokestack from the cruiseship (consider Kubrick cutting in the tossed bone towards the spaceship) or on using stock footage of the cruiseship sailing around the sea that Sturges uses here. There’s also crazy Hollywood conventions we have to endure here – for example, when Fonda and Demarest first come aboard the cruiseship, so how exactly does Stanwyck just have an apple handy to bounce him around the mind with? Or this – the small boat they have been in the Amazon . com with only happens so that you can interact with the sea liner in the center of the ocean? Obviously, I realize that Cavell’s concerns lie in various areas – he states he isn’t pretending to become writing film critique – yet sometimes when i read his postmodern-film-approach-the-lady-eve if he is not giving the motion picture facets of cinema somewhat short shrift.
Peter Quinones may be the author from the #Bestseller, it of tales Postmodern Deconstruction Madhouse.