Candice Clement/Dan Cava

Minutes 3/14/05

FORL 3160

 

  • Class began with Dr. Reimer returning the rough drafts that were submitted before Spring Break.  He then proceeded to distribute his list of comments for each individual draft (which I thought was very helpful).
  • Dr Reimer also answered any questions regarding our papers and topics.  He commented on how quickly many of us forgot to use the same critiques that we used when grading other papers, when writing our own papers.
  • Dan asked Dr. Reimer what he thought of the Oscar’s and the class had a small discussion about which films and actors won awards and why, etc.
  • We then began the next section on Italian film with a brief PowerPoint display:

 

ITALIAN FILM

·                    After WWI, Italian Film doesn’t find its feet until the 40s.

·                    Italy become an epicenter for epics, “sword and sandal” films

Ø      Epics- considered the most famous type of film in Italy

        The 20’s was a lackluster period for Italian film due to:

1.      the devastation by the WWI that Italy never recovered from.

2.      the influence of fascism/Mussolini killed the film industry and had effects similar to those felt by Germany during Nazism/ lack of creative freedom.

 

     The 30’s – Italy was still under fascist rule

1.      Combination of Soviet-style propaganda and entertainment

2.      So-called white telephone films – only the wealthy owned white telephones.

3.      Mother Earth – Allesandro Blasetti 1931. Was a historical, allegorical account that tied into Italian Nationalism.

 

                           The 40’s – NeoRealism- when Italian film comes into its own.

·                    Lasts only 4-5 years; still influences filmmaking to this day, especially modern 3rd world fimmaking since the 50s.

·                    “Do we want our movies to just be “perfect” or do we want them to say something?”

1.      This movement took films out of the studio and away from the

                                     actors,often using non-professionals.

2.      Neorealism attempted to capture social reality – not romantic reality. 

3.      Several film movements relied on Neorealism (ex: the Scandinavian Mvmt.)

4.      Obsessione – Luchino Visconti, 1942.  Used Neorealist

      techniques:

o       Moving camera

o       Long take shooting

o       Blunt and gritty prose

o       Desperation in contemporary Italy

  • Elements of Neorealism:

Ø      Show things as they are, NOT as we wish them to be.

Ø      Use facts RATHER than fiction.

Ø      Depict common man, NOT heroes.

Ø      Reveal the everyday, NOT the exceptional. (Rather than writing something contrived, Neorealists would go out and find their story)

Ø      Show man’s relationship to his real society, RATHER than his romantic dreams.

Ø      These efforts were championed by Cesare Zavattini, a writer.

 

  • Themes of NeoRealism:

Ø      Social Issues

§         End of War devastation.   (Right vs. Left)

§         Poverty of lower classes.

§         Disastrous economy

§         Unfeeling nature of bureaucracy – how it interacted with the common man’s plight.

Ø       Common Man

o       Workers

o       Non-Professional actors

Ø      Anti-Fascist

o       Left-oriented movement

o       Opposed by Centrist to Right government.

 

  • FILMS:

 

Ø      Open City

§         Roma Citta Aperta (Italian title is more place specific)

§         Directed by Roberto Rossellini

§         A mix of Neorealism and melodrama

§         A film of Italian partisans of WWII – antiwar film

Ø    The Bicycle Thief

o       Ladri di biciclette ( The Bicycle Thieves)

§         A poverty that causes the poor to steal from eachother.

o       Vittorio de Sica

o       Non –professional actors

o       Too critical for the RIGHT

o       Not engaging in politics enough for the LEFT.

 

·        Legacy of NeoRealism

o       Brief Movement (1945-51)

o       Influenced the films of Third World cinema

o       Non- glossy productions

o       Non- Professional actors

o       Interest in social conditions, NOT entertainment.

o       Gave name of a style of unadorned filmmaking (a.k.a. Neorealism)

 

·                    Rebirth of Realism = Neorealism.

 

The class ended with a segment from a Martin Scorcese documentary on early Italian film.  It was very dark in the classroom, so taking notes on the film was difficult.  The segment we viewed presented Paisa, an episodic flight about the Italian plight during WWII.  The episodes dealt with social fallout from the war, racial tensions, and sacrifice.