For silent and experimental film fans, four box sets dedicated to the most historically important American moving images.
Treasures From American Film Archives
Extensive info at Silent Era
This info from The National Film Preservation Foundation:
Academy Film Archive, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences™
Luis Martinetti, Contortionist (1894, 1 minute), peepshow kinetoscope of the Italian acrobat made by the Edison Co.
Caicedo, King of the Slack Wire (1894, 1 minute), the first film shot outdoors at the Edison Studios.
The Original Movie (1922, 8 minutes), silhouette animation satire on commercial filmmaking, by puppeteer Tony Sarg.
Negro Leagues Baseball (1946, 8 minutes), footage featuring Reece "Goose" Tatum, the Indianapolis Clowns, and the Kansas City Monarchs.
Alaska Film Archives, University of Alaska Fairbanks
The Chechahcos (1924, 86 minutes), first feature shot entirely on location in Alaska.
Anthology Film Archives
Rose Hobart (1936, 19 minutes), artist Joseph Cornell's celebrated found-footage film.
Composition 1 (Themis) (1940, 4 minutes), Dwinell Grant's stop-motion abstraction.
George Dumpson's Place (1965, 8 minutes), Ed Emshwiller's portrait of the scavenger artist.
George Eastman House
The Thieving Hand (1908, 5 minutes), special-effects comedy.
The Confederate Ironclad (1912, 16 minutes), Civil War adventure, here accompanied by the original music score, in which the tough heroine saves the day.
The Land Beyond the Sunset (1912, 14 minutes), social problem drama about a tattered newspaper boy who yearns for a better life.
Snow White (1916, 63 minutes), live-action feature of the Brothers Grimm tale starring Marguerite Clark.
The Fall of the House of Usher (1928, 13 minutes), avant-garde landmark created by James Sibley Watson, Jr., and Melville Webber from Poe's short story.
Japanese American National Museum
From Japanese American Communities (1927-32, 7 minutes), home movies shot by Rev. Sensho Sasaki in Stockton, California, and Tacoma, Washington.
Library of Congress
Demolishing and Building Up Star Theatre (1901, 1 minute), the time-lapse demolition of a New York building, preserved from a paper print.
Move On (1903, 1 minute), Lower East Side street scene, preserved from a paper print.
Dog Factory (1904, 4 minutes), trick film about fickle pet owners, preserved from a paper print.
Princess Nicotine; or, The Smoke Fairy (1909, 5 minutes), special-effects fantasy of a tormented smoker, by the Vitagraph Company.
White Fawn's Devotion (1910, 11 minutes), probably directed by James Young Deer and the earliest surviving film by a Native American.
Minnesota Historical Society
Cologne: From the Diary of Ray and Esther (1939, 14 minutes), small town portrait by amateur filmmakers, Dr. and Mrs. Dowidat.
Museum of Modern Art
Blacksmithing Scene (1893, 1 minute), first U.S. film shown publicly.
The Gay Shoe Clerk (1903, 1 minute), comic sketch with celebrated early editing.
Interior New York Subway, 14th St. to 42nd St. (1905, 5 minutes), filmed by Biograph's Billy Bitzer shortly after the subway's opening.
Hell's Hinges (1916, 64 minutes), William S. Hart Western about a town so depraved that earns its own destruction.
The Lonedale Operator (1911, 17 minutes), D.W. Griffith's race-to-the-rescue drama, starring Blanche Sweet.
Three American Beauties (1906, 1 minute), with rare stencil color.
National Archives and Records Administration
We Work Again (1937, 15 minutes), WPA documentary on African American re-employment, including excerpt from Orson Welles' stage play of "Voodoo Macbeth".
The Autobiography of a Jeep (1943, 10 minutes), the story of the soldier's all-purpose vehicle, as told by the jeep itself.
Private Snafu: Spies (1943, 4 minutes), wartime cartoon for U.S. servicemen, directed by Chuck Jones and written by Dr. Seuss.
The Battle of San Pietro (1945, 33 minutes), celebrated combat documentary directed by John Huston.
The Wall (1962, 10 minutes), USIA film on the Berlin Wall made for international audiences.
National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution
From The Keystone "Patrician" (1928, 6 minutes), promotional film for new passenger plane.
From The Zeppelin Hindenburg (1936, 7 minutes), movies by a vacationing American family made on board this famous lighter-than-air-craft, one year before its destruction.
National Center for Jewish Film
From Tevye (1939, 17 minutes), American Yiddish-language film, directed by Maurice Schwartz, adapted from Sholem Aleichem's stories.
National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
From Accuracy First (ca. 1928, 5 minutes), Western Union training film for women telegraph operators.
From Groucho Marx's Home Movies (ca. 1933, 2 minutes).
National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
From Beautiful Japan (1918, 15 minutes), early travel-lecture feature by Benjamin Brodky.
New York Public Library
From La Valse (1951, 6 minutes), pas de deax from George Balanchine's 1951 ballet, featuring Tanaquil Le Clercq and Nicholas Magallanes and filmed at the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.
Battery Film (1985, 9 minutes), experimental documentary of Manhattan, by animator Richard Protovin and photographer Franklin Backus.
Northeast Historic Film
From Rural Life in Maine (ca. 1930, 12 minutes), footage filmed by Elizabeth Wright near her farm of Windy Ledge, in southwestern Maine.
From Early Amateur Sound Film (1936-37, 4 minutes), scenes of family life captured by sound-film hobbyist Archie Stewart.
Pacific Film Archive
Running Around San Francisco for an Education (ca. 1938, 2 minutes), early political ad, shown in San Francisco theaters, that helped win approval of local school bonds.
OffOn (1968, 9 minutes), Scott Bartlett's avant-garde film, the first to fully merge film and video.
UCLA Film & Television Archive
Her Crowning Glory (1911, 14 minutes), household comedy, with comic team John Bunny and Flora Finch, about an eight-year old who gets her way.
I'm Insured (1916, 3 minutes), cartoon by Harry Palmer.
The Toll of the Sea (1922, 54 minutes), Anna May Wong in an early two-strip Technicolor melodrama, written by Frances Marion, and here accompanied a performance of the original music score.
The News Parade of 1934 (10 minutes), Hearst Metrotone newsreel summary of the year.
From Marian Anderson: The Lincoln Memorial Concert (1939, 8 minutes), excerpt from a concert film, reconstructed from newsreels, outtakes, and radio broadcast materials.
West Virginia State Archives
From West Virginia, the State Beautiful (1929, 8 minutes), amateur travelogue along Route 60.
From One-Room Schoolhouses (ca. 1935, 1 min), amateur footage from rural Barbour County.
4 DVDs
DVD RELEASE: May 10th, 2005 (First Edition 2000)
SYSTEM: NTSC
SCREEN: Various from (Picture boxed) 1.15:1 to Full Screen (Standard) - 1.33:1
COLOR: Black & White/Colour
AUDIO: Dolby Digital 2.0 (Mono)
LANGUAGE: Silent/English
INTERTITLES: English
RUNTIME: 642 minutes
FILE SIZES: 6.64/7.34/6.54/7.09GB
more volume and link download information click here
Showing posts with label American Movie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label American Movie. Show all posts
Jul 29, 2010
Treasures From American Film Archives (4 Volumes, 2000-2009)
Jul 3, 2010
Capt. America as Propaganda Tool
Left-minded staffers at Marvel can't resist the urge to use new issue of Captain America to promote anti-Middle America sentiment.
Ed Brubaker, writer for Marvel working on "Captain America" - Two Americas has denied his involvement in a political jab that was written into the comic book to be released soon. While that small aspect of the insult will be removed before the issue hits stores, the message itself is intact and waiting to be bought and internalized by readers everywhere.
I'm going to have to go on a bit of a rant here because, while I know that both political parties in this country are equally petty and capable of slander and libel, the left has media and entertainment in their back pocket. What does that mean for us? It means we get bombarded w/ anti-military, anti-middle America, anti-anything traditional propaganda on a daily basis even though it reflects the views of less than half of the U.S. population. It's called a bully pulpit and anyone w/ real conviction for their beliefs and a spine doesn't give their opinion from behind a camera or microphone or on the pages of a comic book... they do it face to face with their opponents and challenge them to a real debate.
While this is hardly new at Marvel (we had BHO featured in an edition of Spider-Man after he was elected), picking the Marvel Superhero who was SPECIFICALLY created to embody American Exceptionalism as a tool to criticize those members of our population who still believe in American Exceptionalism is in very poor taste. What's more, the fact that the perpetrators didn't even stop to think about that bit of hypocrisy, shows how out of touch they really are with the American public.
nd so it goes... "In issue No. 602 of Captain America, "Two Americas, Part One," the title hero and The Falcon, a black superhero from New York City, stumble upon a protest rally in Boise, Idaho. They see scores of protesters carrying signs that say "Stop the Socialists!" and "Tea Bag The Libs Before They Tea Bag YOU!"
Captain America says the protest appears to be an "anti-tax thing," and Falcon jokes that he likely would not be welcomed into the crowd of "angry white folks." (imagine if Capt. America had said something similar at say... an ACLU rally).
There's obviously more to the article beyond what I've already written that can be viewed at the source link but I'm going to go ahead and drop it now and see what you guys/gals think. [comicbookmovie.com]
Mar 3, 2010
Treasures From American Film Archives
Academy Film Archive, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences™
Luis Martinetti, Contortionist (1894, 1 minute), peepshow kinetoscope of the Italian acrobat made by the Edison Co.
Caicedo, King of the Slack Wire (1894, 1 minute), the first film shot outdoors at the Edison Studios.
The Original Movie (1922, 8 minutes), silhouette animation satire on commercial filmmaking, by puppeteer Tony Sarg.
Negro Leagues Baseball (1946, 8 minutes), footage featuring Reece "Goose" Tatum, the Indianapolis Clowns, and the Kansas City Monarchs.
Alaska Film Archives, University of Alaska Fairbanks
The Chechahcos (1924, 86 minutes), first feature shot entirely on location in Alaska.
Anthology Film Archives
Rose Hobart (1936, 19 minutes), artist Joseph Cornell's celebrated found-footage film.
Composition 1 (Themis) (1940, 4 minutes), Dwinell Grant's stop-motion abstraction.
George Dumpson's Place (1965, 8 minutes), Ed Emshwiller's portrait of the scavenger artist.
George Eastman House
The Thieving Hand (1908, 5 minutes), special-effects comedy.
The Confederate Ironclad (1912, 16 minutes), Civil War adventure, here accompanied by the original music score, in which the tough heroine saves the day.
The Land Beyond the Sunset (1912, 14 minutes), social problem drama about a tattered newspaper boy who yearns for a better life.
Snow White (1916, 63 minutes), live-action feature of the Brothers Grimm tale starring Marguerite Clark.
The Fall of the House of Usher (1928, 13 minutes), avant-garde landmark created by James Sibley Watson, Jr., and Melville Webber from Poe's short story.
Japanese American National Museum
From Japanese American Communities (192..., 7 minutes), home movies shot by Rev. Sensho Sasaki in Stockton, California, and Tacoma, Washington.
Library of Congress
Demolishing and Building Up Star Theatre (1901, 1 minute), the time-lapse demolition of a New York building, preserved from a paper print.
Move On (1903, 1 minute), Lower East Side street scene, preserved from a paper print.
Dog Factory (1904, 4 minutes), trick film about fickle pet owners, preserved from a paper print.
Princess Nicotine; or, The Smoke Fairy (1909, 5 minutes), special-effects fantasy of a tormented smoker, by the Vitagraph Company.
White Fawn's Devotion (1910, 11 minutes), probably directed by James Young Deer and the earliest surviving film by a Native American.
Minnesota Historical Society
Cologne: From the Diary of Ray and Esther (1939, 14 minutes), small town portrait by amateur filmmakers, Dr. and Mrs. Dowidat.
Museum of Modern Art
Blacksmithing Scene (1893, 1 minute), first U.S. film shown publicly.
The Gay Shoe Clerk (1903, 1 minute), comic sketch with celebrated early editing.
Interior New York Subway, 14th St. to 42nd St. (1905, 5 minutes), filmed by Biograph's Billy Bitzer shortly after the subway's opening.
Hell's Hinges (1916, 64 minutes), William S. Hart Western about a town so depraved that earns its own destruction.
The Lonedale Operator (1911, 17 minutes), D.W. Griffith's race-to-the-rescue drama, starring Blanche Sweet.
Three American Beauties (1906, 1 minute), with rare stencil color.
National Archives and Records Administration
We Work Again (1937, 15 minutes), WPA documentary on African American re-employment, including excerpt from Orson Welles' stage play of "Voodoo Macbeth".
The Autobiography of a Jeep (1943, 10 minutes), the story of the soldier's all-purpose vehicle, as told by the jeep itself.
Private Snafu: Spies (1943, 4 minutes), wartime cartoon for U.S. servicemen, directed by Chuck Jones and written by Dr. Seuss.
The Battle of San Pietro (1945, 33 minutes), celebrated combat documentary directed by John Huston.
The Wall (1962, 10 minutes), USIA film on the Berlin Wall made for international audiences.
National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution
From The Keystone "Patrician" (1928, 6 minutes), promotional film for new passenger plane.
From The Zeppelin Hindenburg (1936, 7 minutes), movies by a vacationing American family made on board this famous lighter-than-air-craft, one year before its destruction.
National Center for Jewish Film
From Tevye (1939, 17 minutes), American Yiddish-language film, directed by Maurice Schwartz, adapted from Sholem Aleichem's stories.
National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
From Accuracy First (ca. 1928, 5 minutes), Western Union training film for women telegraph operators.
From Groucho Marx's Home Movies (ca. 1933, 2 minutes).
National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
From Beautiful Japan (1918, 15 minutes), early travel-lecture feature by Benjamin Brodky.
New York Public Library
From La Valse (1951, 6 minutes), pas de deax from George Balanchine's 1951 ballet, featuring Tanaquil Le Clercq and Nicholas Magallanes and filmed at the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.
Battery Film (1985, 9 minutes), experimental documentary of Manhattan, by animator Richard Protovin and photographer Franklin Backus.
Northeast Historic Film
From Rural Life in Maine (ca. 1930, 12 minutes), footage filmed by Elizabeth Wright near her farm of Windy Ledge, in southwestern Maine.
From Early Amateur Sound Film (193..., 4 minutes), scenes of family life captured by sound-film hobbyist Archie Stewart.
Pacific Film Archive
Running Around San Francisco for an Education (ca. 1938, 2 minutes), early political ad, shown in San Francisco theaters, that helped win approval of local school bonds.
OffOn (1968, 9 minutes), Scott Bartlett's avant-garde film, the first to fully merge film and video.
UCLA Film & Television Archive
Her Crowning Glory (1911, 14 minutes), household comedy, with comic team John Bunny and Flora Finch, about an eight-year old who gets her way.
I'm Insured (1916, 3 minutes), cartoon by Harry Palmer.
The Toll of the Sea (1922, 54 minutes), Anna May Wong in an early two-strip Technicolor melodrama, written by Frances Marion, and here accompanied a performance of the original music score.
The News Parade of 1934 (10 minutes), Hearst Metrotone newsreel summary of the year.
From Marian Anderson: The Lincoln Memorial Concert (1939, 8 minutes), excerpt from a concert film, reconstructed from newsreels, outtakes, and radio broadcast materials.
West Virginia State Archives
From West Virginia, the State Beautiful (1929, 8 minutes), amateur travelogue along Route 60.
From One-Room Schoolhouses (ca. 1935, 1 min), amateur footage from rural Barbour County.
4 DVDs
DVD RELEASE: May 10th, 2005 (First Edition 2000)
SYSTEM: NTSC
SCREEN: Various from (Picture boxed) 1.15:1 to Full Screen (Standard) - 1.33:1
COLOR: Black & White/Colour
AUDIO: Dolby Digital 2.0 (Mono)
LANGUAGE: Silent/English
INTERTITLES: English
RUNTIME: 642 minutes
FILE SIZES: 6.64/7.34/6.54/7.09GB
download information via this link
Mar 8, 2008
Movie Review: Fighting for Life
A Truly Indie release of an American Film Foundation presentation. Produced by Terry Sanders. Executive producer, Tammy Alvarez. Co-producer, Jennifer Glos. Directed by Terry Sanders. Written by Sanders, Christine Wiser.
The only people who seem immune to the politics of the Iraq War are also at its epicenter: the doctors and nurses who mend and tend to the wounded, and who provide the heart and soul of Terry Sanders' "Fighting for Life." Docu about combat medicine is getting a limited theatrical release and will likely follow the route of most Iraq War-themed cinema, onto the scrap heap of theatrical -- which doesn't make it any less of a film, but may make us less as an audience.
"Fighting for Life" apparently was originated by Sanders as a profile of the Maryland-based Uniformed Services U. of the Health Sciences, from which, the film tells us, 25% of active-duty physicians have graduated. It has also come under consistent attack by budget-cutting congressmen more concerned with the spoils of war than its casualties.
Having witnessed the work done in the field, Sanders broadened the movie's scope to include combat hospitals, rehabilitative units and, inevitably, the horrendous physical damage. What's onscreen is among the most disturbing footage to come out of the Iraq cinema experience: The squeamish might find the USU cadaver scenes even more disturbing than the images of soldiers' injuries. But the footage makes a profound point about what kind of person can practice this kind of medicine at all, much less do it in a war zone.
Sanders and his crew probe relentlessly with their cameras, never recoiling from the most horrendous, bone-revealing injury, or from the long road of pain and disability ahead for most of the very young people on stretchers, or from the older but unjaded medical teams around them. Pic makes it clear how much recovery is going to be needed for everyone, and not just the legless, armless combat vets.
"Fighting for Life" is briskly paced, and there's often a palpable, appropriate sense of disorientation parlayed through the roaming p.o.v., which can often leave a viewer wondering what exactly he or she is looking at -- did that used to be a leg? It's an artistic decision and a correct one, because as much as one might like to, it's very tough to look away.
The film makes the most of the seemingly unlimited access provided by USU, whose administration was probably aware of just how valuable such exposure could be for their institution. Production values, especially the HD camerawork, are tops.
Camera (color, HD), Erik Daarstad, Buddy Squires; editors, Brian Johnson, Anne Stein; music, Scott Michael Ford; sound, Samuel Lehmer; assistant director, Brittany Sanders. Reviewed on DVD, Los Angeles, March 4, 2008. Running time: 89 MIN.
This review written by By JOHN ANDERSON, published at www.variety.com
Jul 26, 2007
Al Pacino Biography
Real Name: Alfredo Pacino
Occupation: Actor, Director, Writer
Date of Birth: April 25, 1940
Place of Birth: New York, NY, USA
Sign: Sun in Taurus, Moon in Sagittarius
Education: High School of the Performing Arts dropout; studiedacting at the Actors Studio and the Herbert Berghof Studio, both in New York City.
Relations: Kid: Julie Marie (mother, Jan Tarrant); Companion:Beverly D'Angelo (actress)
Nickname: Sonny
Height: 5' 6"
Mini Biography:
One of the greatest actors in all of film history, Al Pacino established himself during one of film's greatest decades, the 70s, and has become an enduring and iconic figure in the world of American movies. Born on April 25th, 1940 in New York City, Pacino's parents (Salvatore and Rose) divorced when he was young. His mother moved them into his grandparents' house. Pacino found himself often repeating the plots and voices of characters who he had seen in the movies, one of his favorite activities. Bored and unmotivated in school, the young Al Pacino found a haven in school plays, and his interest soon blossomed into a full-time career. Starting on the stage, Pacino went through a lengthy period of depression and poverty, sometimes having to borrow bus fare to make it to auditions. He made it into the prestigious Actors Studio in 1966, studying under the legendary acting coach Lee Strasberg, creator of the Method Approach that would become the trademark of many 70s era actors. Making appearances in various plays, Pacino finally hit it big with "The Indian Wants the Bronx", winning an Obie award for the 1966-67 season. Gaining notoriety on the theater scene, Pacino then won the Tony Award for "Does the Tiger Wear a Necktie?". His first feature films made little departure from the gritty realistic stage performances that earned him respect: he played a junkie in Me, Natalie (1969) and Panic in Needle Park, The (1971). What would come next would change his life forever.
The part of Michael Corleone in Godfather, The (1972) was one of the most sought-after roles in film history. Robert Redford, Warren Beatty, Jack Nicholson, 'Ryan ONeal, Robert De Niro, and a host of others were bandied about for the role, but director Francis Ford Coppola had his heart set on the unknown Italian Pacino. From the studio, to the producers, to the cast on down, nobody else wanted Al Pacino. Though Coppola won out through slick persuasion, Pacino was in constant fear of being fired and replaced at any minute during the hellish shoot. But the role was a career-making hit, and earned him his first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Instead of taking on easier projects for money, Pacino threw his support behind tough important films, such as the true life crime drama Serpico (1973) and the tragic real life bank robbery film Dog Day Afternoon (1975). Pacino opened eyes around the film world for his brave choice of roles; and he was nominated three consecutive years for the "Best Actor" Academy Award. He faltered slightly with Bobby Deerfield (1977), but regained his stride with the law film ...And Justice for All (1979), for which he received another Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. This would unfortunately signal one of the only bad points in his career, one that produced the flops Cruising (1980) and Author! Author! (1982). He took on another vicious gangster role and cemented his legendary status in the ultra-violent Scarface (1983), but a monumental mistake was about to follow. Revolution (1985) endured an endless and seemingly cursed shoot in which equipment was destroyed, weather was terrible, and Pacino became terribly ill with pneumonia. Constant changes in the script also further derailed an already terrible project. The Revolutionary War film is considered one of the worst films ever, gained Pacino his first truly awful reviews, and kept him out of movies for the next four years.
Returning to the stage, Pacino has done much to give back and contribute to the theatre, which he considers his first love. He directed a film Local Stigmatic, The (1989) but it remains unreleased to the public. His self-imposed exile lifted, he returned in striking form in Sea of Love (1989) as a hard-drinking cop. The film marks the second phase of Pacino's career, the first film to feature his now famous dark, owl eyes and hoarse, gravelly voice. Making a return to the Corleones he made Godfather: Part III, The (1990), and earned raves for his first comedic role in the colorful Dick Tracy (1990). This earned him another Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, and two years later he was nominated for Glengarry Glen Ross (1992). He went into romantic mode for Frankie and Johnny (1991). In 1992 he finally won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his amazing performance in Scent of a Woman (1992). A mix of technical perfection (he plays a blind man) and charisma, the role was tailor-made for him, and remains a classic. The next few years would see Pacino becoming more comfortable with acting and movies as a business, turning out great roles in great films with more frequency and less of the demanding personal involvement of his wilder days. Carlito's Way (1993) proved another gangster classic, as did the epic crime drama Heat (1995) directed by Michael Mann. He returned to the director's chair for the highly acclaimed and quirky Shakespeare adaptation Looking for Richard (1996). City Hall (1996), Donnie Brasco (1997), and Devil's Advocate, The (1997) all came out in this period. Reteaming with Mann and then Oliver Stone, he gave two commanding performances in Insider, The (1999) and Any Given Sunday (1999).
In his personal life, Pacino is one of Hollywood's most enduring and notorious bachelors, having never been married. He has a daughter Julie Marie with acting teacher Jan Tarrant, and a new set of twins with long-time girlfriend Beverly D'Angelo. His romantic history includes a long-time romance with Godfather co-star Diane Keaton. With his intense and gritty performances, Pacino was an original in the acting profession. His Method approach would become the process of many actors throughout time, and his unbeatable number of classic roles has already made him a legend among film buffs and all aspiring actors and directors. His commitment to acting as a profession and his constant screen dominance has established him as one of movies' legends.
*IMDb mini-biography by
Brian Stewart
Trivia
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Salary
Godfather: Part II, The (1974) $500,000 + 5% of gross
Godfather: Part III, The (1990) $5,000,000
Insomnia (2002) ca. $11,000,000
Hegemony and Counter Hegemony in The Godfather Trilogy
Part 1. Introduction
The Marxist thinker Antonio Gramsci argues that mass media plays a significant role in the creation of values and beliefs that are to be followed by the general public. Political power is derived from the moral and intellectual leadership, authority, or consensus that arise from this 'false consciousness'. (Hainsworth,2000) Hegemony in mass media lies in the way it makes the ruling ideology seem natural, distracts the masses from their oppression, and enhances the social stability. It is the dominance and subordination that exists within people's practical and un-self-conscious awareness of the world, a lived system of meanings, a more or less unified moral order, which is confirmed and nuanced in experience to c onstruct a person's sense of reality and identity. ( Bell in Forbes 2000) . Hegemony is the "social basis of the proletarian dictatorship". (Gramsci, 1971: 443)
"I believe in America , America has made my fortune". These are the famous words Francis Ford Coppola chose to open his epic "Godfather" trilogy. This apparently ultra-hegemonic exclamation is soon rendered sardonic as the scene develops and the viewers are exposed to more details. The speaker, Amerigo Bonaserra, a middle-aged undertaker, has come to ask for help in avenging the abasement of his daughter. Having lost his faith in the dysfunctional police and judicial system, he now seeks justice in the hands of Vito Corleone, the head of America 's most powerful crime organization.
Even before hearing the full story, Bonaserra's opening line is implicitly cynical. " I believe in America ". Why? Because " America has made my fortune". It seems that, in this undertaker's opinion at least, even faith is driven by a financial imperative.
Unlike many other things, the popularity and acceptance of a text are not dictated by crime lords or politicians. As Andrew Hart states "…the meaning is not in the text, but in the reading" (in Hanes 2000). While critics might grasp and wrestle with an author's original meaning, or a text's initial ideological purpose there is no assurance that viewers, or readers, will respond in the same way. (Papke 2004) The Godfather 'case' is fascinating as it is a rare occasion when public, critical, and intellectual opinion almost unanimously agrees on the quality and significance of a film. (CultureVulture.com)
Ever since the beginning of the 20 th century, the American culture industry had established cultural hegemony in all branches. (Saraki 2004) In this essay I will examine the ability of a cultural product, a mainstream film in this case, to convey multiple, and opposing ideologies, and show how an author's subversive critique of existing society, may be read as a song of praise for the ruling ideology.
Part 2. Undertaking Capitalism
The trilogy tells the story of the Corleones, an Italian-American family of Sicilian origin, whose patriarch, Vito, and, later on, his son Michael, head one of the major crime organizations in New York .
The story of Michael Corleone is an ultra-moralistic plot about a man who loses everything in the quest for ultimate power. Traditionally, power and control are needed in order to secure the family. In the pursuit of these, Michael sacrifices his family and ends up dying alone. Coppola contrasts Michael's moral disorientation with the life of his father, Vito.
Don Vito was no less ruthless or ferocious, but is depicted as a man who always forgives his kin. He has, in his own words, a "weakness for his kids".
Don Vito forgoes vengeance for crimes committed by, or against, his sons and values family, and loyalty, above all (Voytilla, 1999:168). Michael, on the other hand, uses these same values as an excuse to kill his older brother and brother in law, as well as dozens of other people, in order to secure his own supremacy, a supremacy that serves only itself.
Michael's hypocrisy is further emphasized in the final scenes of the 1 st and 2 nd movies, in which murder is juxtaposed with religious sermons. Michael's vendettas are presented not as self-defense, but as infamia , a sin. (Crowdus, 1994:87).
In line with other films of the Post-Vietnam-Pre-Watergate era, like A Clockwork Orange , Dirty Harry, and Straw Dogs , The Godfather depicted a society excessively violent and morally bankrupt. (Man, 1994) Francis Ford Coppola hoped to use the family business as a metaphor for American greed and Capitalism. (Papke, 2004). Michael's story is the story of America , a nation that, while fighting for the supremacy of its constituting values, compromises these same values and forsakes the end for the means. Coppola believes he depicted Michael Corleone as nothing short of a "Monster"(in Ibid.). And so, critics such as Glenn Man, Pauline Kael, and Leslie Fiedler (Papke, 2004) see "The Godfather" as a scathing critique of American Capitalist society. (Man, 1994).
It is thus possible to claim that the aversion the audience feel towards Michael Corleone, as the signifier of capitalism, serves as a subversive agent that works to disturb the existing status quo, and undermines some of the fundamental values of capitalism.
But, as every Mafioso knows, one should never accept a first offer. According to Paul Kooistra, author of Criminals as Heroes , the movie not only tells us that Michael Corleone robbed and killed but, more importantly, that he did it with style. The outlaw is endowed with "endearing qualities- loyalty to friends, compassion for downtrodden, courage… honesty (most of the time), and cleverness in abundance".(Kooistra, 1989:22)
Seeing the criminal portrayed as the hero and being rewarded for his actions makes the viewing public believe they can, and should, succeed in his way. Rebelling against authority, it seems, produces fame, and, often, good fortune. (Mills, 2004) As Noam Chomsky claims, by so depicting such individuals, the film industry may seem to sell to the public the idea that it is possible and, even necessary, to rebel against authority (in Ibid.).
Reading this, a person with no prior background might think "The Godfather" films are underground propaganda, known only to neo-Marxist scholars and distributed secretly. The truth is, the first two "Godfather" films were the largest grossing movies of their time (Denault, 2000), and the whole three are still considered as some of the most popular and profitable films ever made. The success of the movies was not a result of a grassroots counter-revolution flamed by scholars and social critics, but a production of one of Hollywood's biggest studios, Paramount Pictures, that was embraced by the establishment and swept 9 Oscar awards.
Part 3. Overtaking Socialism
As Blumler and Katz point out, audiences actively consume various texts, and popular texts are those which are able to satisfy one (or more) of four main needs (in Hanes,2000): Diversion, Personal Relationships, Personal Identity, and Surveillance.
By understanding the way in which The Godfather satisfies each of these four needs, it is possible to explain the trilogy's immense popularity, as well as potential hegemonic agency.
The movie helps viewers escape from the pressures of daily life.(Ibid) While concentrating on the problems and concerns of fictional characters, they are rendered oblivious, if momentarily, of their own problems.
This occupies the masses with fictive trivialities, and distracts them from facing real issues in the here and now.
While watching the movie, viewers also fulfill the need for personal relationships. The highly charismatic Michael and Vito Corleone are seen as mentors for many (mostly male) viewers worldwide. As the movie becomes more and more popular, it provides viewers a common interest around which they can interact and thus create new bonds. This, in turn, serves as a diversion, as virtual communities are established on the basis of fictive trivialities and the masses are distracted from issues of real concern.
The role "The Godfather" films play in satisfying those two needs is not different from that of a soccer game, a good meal, or any other form of entertainment. It is in the satisfaction of the latter two needs, for Personal Identity and Surveillance, where things become less obvious. Viewers look at the media for information about the world and often compare their own life with the lives of the characters on the screen in order to re-affirm, or question, their personal identity. (Ibid.) The media tells them what is acceptable and what is considered abnormal or perverse. By use of narrative, the media also shows them the possible consequences of various behaviors.
As mentioned earlier, the three movies depict an excessively violent and morally bankrupt society.(Man,1994) While describing crime may seem counter-hegemonic, or at least critical, it also plays an important part in defining the boundaries of good and bad. Simply put, the portrayal of crime in the movies defines what crime is, it outlines what is, and what is not, socially permissible.
By saying that corrupt politicians are bad, the movie implies that politicians who are not corrupt are good and accepts their sovereignty. The depiction of explicit violence supports the common view that oppression and subordination are necessarily affiliated with physical force.
The Corleone family's aspiration for respectability and social acceptance often seem conventionally American (Crowdus, 1994:86), and it is easy for contemporary audiences to identify with their motives, if not with the specific tactics. But even as far as the tactics are concerned, some would go as far as to claim that since the days of the puritan settlers and the Indians, Americans created a cultural myth of a communal Eden that must be redeemed through violence. (Grant, 1999:23-40)
This means that violence, physical as other, is an acceptable mean to the realization of the American Dream, and "The Godfather" reinforces this view.
It is possible to say, then, that the film is Hegemonic and its pervasiveness works to reinforce the ruling ideology. While this point is still argued by audiences, critics, and even the director himself, there is one thing on which almost everyone agree.
Part 4. "It's my family, Kay. Not me."
In the world of The Godfather , bending the rules is permissible, and usually profitable. But while many social and religious values are forsaken, one stands untouched- Family.
The concept of family is most important to the Mafiosi, because it is the one that must come first, the one that provides justification and comfort. Don Corleone is first and foremost a family man.(Browne,1999) Many will not approve of the manner in which the Corleones conduct their business, but few will not sympathize with Vito's deep concern for his family.
Vito Corleone has built an empire on murder and abuse. Like any other man, he makes his sacrifices (loses his son and his health), but ultimately his life is depicted as a success. He is rich, powerful, has a family that loves him, and dies in old age while playing with his grandson in the family vineyard, after passing his business to his son and successor, Michael.
Michael dies alone, in Sicily , after being renounced by his wife and son. His daughter, brother, and friends are dead by, or because of, him. He has no apparent heir, and the only witness to his death is a little dog.
Both Vito and Micahel have been ruthless criminals. Both of them successfully conducted the same business in the same methods. How could it be, then, that Vito's life is an American dream, while Michael's is an Italian tragedy?
The answer lies in the difference between the two. On his quest for power and control, Michael betrayed one value too much- he compromised his family. He killed his brother, Fredo, and brother in law, Carlo. Both were rogues and deserved to be punished, but in killing them he betrayed the mere value that he was set out to defend - he compromised the means for the end, the power for the family. As Michael himself puts it, while trying to be strong for the family, he lost the family.
Michael is not punished for being a criminal or going against his fellow men. He is punished for going against his family. The trilogy establishes, on all levels, that Family is the ultimate excuse for all evils, not only the ones committed in the main narrative but also for such non-diegetic evils as the casting of the director's sister (Talia Shire), Daughter, Father, and Mother into the films.
Part 5. Conclusion.
The nuclear family (no pun intended) is the bedrock of domestic life under capitalism. The family provides emotional support for the labouring population, and a measure of social cohesion and stability. A wage earner, demeaned at work, could accept his lot more readily if he/she had his/her personal needs met at home where he/she was "boss". Domestic responsibilities also reinforced the power of the employer- a worker has to consider his dependant wife and children before slugging the foreman or voting to go on strike. (Capitalism & Homophobia, 2004) The family is the main instrument through which views and wealth are passed on to future generations,(Durkheim,1978) and thus plays a fundamental role in maintaning social stability and promoting the ruling ideology.
America was established on equality, freedom of speech, and human rights. While trying to protect and promote these virtues, the Americans have forsaken many of them. Positioning the Corleones as a metaphor, Coppola tries to warn America of the tragic outcome this may entail.
Still, this is not to say that the movie is a scathing critique of capitalism. "The Godfather" does not depict the dangers of capitalism, but the dangers to capitalism. It is an ultra-hegemonic praise song for the family institution and serves, for many, as a guide and model of capitalist success. While the criticism is there, most viewers choose to overlook the violence and take in only the Corleone's cunning business instincts and admirable family values. They leave the guns, but take the Canolli.
Dror Poleg, January 2004
More about The Godfather Trilogy Links:
- http://www.thegodfathertrilogy.com/godfather.html
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Godfather
Jul 25, 2007
The Alamo (2004 film)
Directed by : John Lee Hancock
Produced by : Ron Howard, Mark Johnson
Written by : Leslie Bohem, Stephen Gaghan, John Lee Hancock
Starring : Dennis Quaid, Billy Bob Thornton, Jason Patric, Patrick Wilson, Emilio Echevarría, Jordi Mollà, Leon Rippy, Tom Davidson, with Marc Blucas, and Robert Prentiss
Music by :Carter Burwell
Cinematography : John O'Connor, Dean Semler
Editing by : Eric L. Beason
Distributed by : Touchstone Pictures
Release date(s) : April 9, 2004
Running time : 137 min.
Language : English
Budget : $95 million
The Alamo is a 2004 movie, a second major studio film about the legendary Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution, that was shot and scheduled for release initially in December 2003 and then rescheduled for release in April 2004. This remake was directed by native Texan John Lee Hancock, and produced by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, and Mark Johnson. Its script is credited to Hancock, John Sayles, Stephen Gaghan and Leslie Bohem. Its production budget was $95,000,000. It was produced and distributed by Touchstone Pictures.
It was shot near Austin, Texas between January and June 2003, mostly on a local property named Reimers Ranch. The film's art direction devoted the greatest care to historical accuracy and verisimilitude; for instance, the mission's facade does not feature the well-known "hump" at the top, a detail that was actually added years after the battle during a restoration.
In contrast to the earlier 1960 film, the 2003 script makes an effort to depict the political points of view of both the Mexican and Texan sides. Santa Anna is featured as a much more prominent character.
The cast includes Billy Bob Thornton as a demythologized (but still eccentric and strong-willed) Davy Crockett, Jason Patric as James Bowie, stage actor Patrick Wilson as Travis, Dennis Quaid as Sam Houston, Emilio Echevarría as Santa Anna, and Jordi Molla as Seguin.
The film was highly unsuccessful at the box office, opening on Easter weekend to mostly middling reviews and a low box office turnout. In its first weekend, it was defeated in box office numbers by a resurgent The Passion of the Christ. It cost over $140 million USD to make and market the film but earned only $9.1 million USD in its first weekend. By its second month of release, the film had yet to muster $30 million USD in domestic earnings. It ended its theatrical run with a worldwide gross of slightly less than $26 million [1].
The film was originally set up with Imagine Entertainment with Ron Howard in the director's chair and producing partner Brian Grazer taking on producing duties. Russell Crowe was originally set as Sam Houston, Ethan Hawke as William Barret Travis and Billy Bob Thornton as Davy Crockett. But there were financial and creative disagreements between Imagine and Disney, particularly with Howard wanting a $200 million budget. Disney rejected Imagine's proposal for the film which in turn, Howard, Grazer, Crowe and Hawke left the project. Disney opted to go with director John Lee Hancock and the budget was at $95 million. Thornton was the only one to remain throughout the project.
Yet again, William Travis and Jim Bowie are portrayed as constantly arguing, while, in actuality, they only argued twice.
No flag was seen flying from the Alamo in this film. Given the debate as to precisely what flag was flying (Travis' famous letter made reference to a flag, but not its description), it is possible that it was safer in the name of accuracy not to have one flying.
Many of the extras that took part in the film were actual descendants of the Alamo defenders.
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