Slide 1Slide 2Slide 3Slide 4Slide 5Slide 6Slide 7Slide 8Auteur TheorySlide 10Slide 11Slide 12Slide 13Slide 14Slide 15Who speaks? Who is the author? Who controls what the text (movie) "says"?In film (especially in American movies) this is often difficult to establish•Commercial model of moviemaking•Many “cooks”—Read those end credits•Remakes/Sequels/Prequels/Adaptations•Etc.???l. Auteur theory developed by French writers in Andre Bazin's journal, Cahiers du Cinema during the 1950's (other theories--realism, genre theory)Andre Bazin2. An auteur is noted to have a distinctive style and preoccupations--themes, visual & production styles, ways of handling scenes, etc. . . . recurring motifs•NOTE:Iconography = widely understood cultural symbols vs.Motif = recurring theme in a single film (or a set of films by same auteur)•NOTE:Iconography = widely understood cultural symbols vs.Motif = recurring theme in a single film (or a set of films by same auteur)Check out the black leather jacket•NOTE:Iconography = widely understood cultural symbols vs.Motif = recurring theme in a single film (or a set of films by same auteur)Strangers on a Train3. Is an auteur always a director?•Auteur = director?•Auteur = star?•Auteur = screenwriter?4. "Film-style" shooting gives the auteur artistic power5. Can we identify an auteur empirically? •(Patrika Janstova, 2007 masters thesis, Cleveland State—the case of Jane Campion (The Piano, In the Cut)Content analysis of all 6 Jane Campion-directed films as of 2007 plus a matched sample of 18 “non-Campion” films (random sample of films matched on genre (drama), years, English language)Measured 56 form (techniques) and 113 substance (themes and character quality) variablesAuteur Theory•Campion films significantly:Fewer male leadsMore female and male nudityMore sex (esp. oral sex and kissing)More often using female POVMore physical and sexual abuse to opposite genderMore identity change due to marriage, religionMore instances of psychological disorderMore characters traveling, living abroad, appearing lonely, Less non-diegetic musicMore closeups of face, hands, feet, arms, legs, touchingMore shots of mirrors, windowsMore slow motionMore hand-held cameraMore use of color filters (red, blue)Greater presence of angelsTempering Auteur Theory with Reception Theory•Assuming an active audience•“The text proposes, the viewer disposes.”Let’s watch a portion of Hitchcock: The Man and His Movies (1975, D: Richard Schickel)Common Thematic Motifs•falsely accused man•"The villain doesn't kick the dog - - he's a charmer.“•aloof blonde woman (e.g., Grace Kelly, Tippi Hedren, Eva Marie Saint) . . . sexual fire beneath a cool exterior•malevolent crowd•ironic use of religious symbols•use of some important cultural artifact (a "safe" place) at the narrative climax (e.g., Albert Hall, Mt. Rushmore, Statue of Liberty, a train, a merry-go-round)•"Film is life with the dull parts cut out.“•Carefully planned mise-en-scene (memorized his storyboards)•Hitch's own cameo appearances--a gimmick •Key production techniques . . . e.g., high-angle shots, canted camera angles, CUs, tracking shots•Bomb theory of suspense•Hitch's own fears & phobias•MacGuffin theory of dramatic foilsLet’s watch a portion of Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow (1985, D: Kevin Brownlow)Common Thematic Motifs•The Keaton character - - stone-faced, he is considered a brainless idiot, & is kicked around (literally!) by others. . . but in all things perseveres & prevails.•The plot - - a young man courts a woman whose social position is more respectable than his own. Through ingenuity, & feats of daring & imagination, he wins her. (NOTE: Keaton did all his own stunts.)•Keaton's adversaries: machines & nature•Usual shot is LS, to show relation of man to