The article describes the role of auteurism in 1960s and 1970s Hollywood, and discusses New Hollywood’s relationship with the working class. The centralization of the director’s ideas caused a drift away from labor unions as directors wanted to make sure that everyone who worked on their films stood behind his vision. The article claims that may films focused on trying to get middle-class youth, specifically college students, to disaffiliate from their societal standings by highlighting counter-cultural ideas. The article mainly discusses however, New Hollywood films that elucidate the struggles of the working class and its backlash against the ideas of the counter-cultural movement. It discusses the New Hollywood films about the working class, Joe and Five Easy Pieces, and their roles in modern society and the film industry.
The article helps one to understand the film Easy Rider because it describes the popular concept of auteurism in the 1960s and 1970s. It shows the effects of the concept on the film industry and allows the reader to have some insight into the different social movements of the 1960s and 1970s. While the article mentions that many of the New Hollywood films, like Easy Rider, dealt with the idea of counterculture, it discusses two films that are somewhat adverse to the counterculture of the time. This allows the reader to understand the historical and social context of Easy Rider. While many affiliate New Hollywood with counterculture, it is important to note that auteurism is an important aspect of the movement and weighs more heavily in the vision of the director than the concepts that were popular.
Call#: Van Pelt Library PN1995.9.H6 H75 2002
Berenstein analyzes film reviews and marketing ploys during the first cycle of classic Hollywood horror films (1931-1934) concluding that the horror film served as an ideal site for the "performance"of socially prescribed gender roles, behaviors, and heterosexual coupling rituals. Film studios, exhibitors,and reviewers relied upon gender assumptions, but in contradictory ways. Many film reviwers ignored questions of gender all together treating the horror film audience as an "ungendered" mass, while other reviews expressed surprise that horror films would be as popular with women as they were. The marketing and promotion of horror films, however, rarely took women for granted. Many horror films--such as Dracula (1931)--were promoted as frightening thrillers and romances hoping to appeal to both male and female audiences (assuming a gendered split in interest). Horror film promotional gimmicks took a variety of forms, but many revolved around personifying "fear" as feminine. Gender expectations were that women scream and shriek during horror films, while men displayed bravery (or, masked their own fear which was seen as feminine). If studios and exhibitors (and the films themselves) relied on these assumed gender roles, it's likely that audiences both played along with these assumptions (in a "performative" sense) as well as reactedin oppositional and contradictory ways. There are some issues with Berenstein work. She seemst o implicitly criticize 1930s film reviewers for speaking of the "horror fan" instead of the "female" (or "male") horror fan. While acknowledging that issues of gender are important, speaking of the "female" horror fan is itself not without problems. For one, it also assumes (and thereby reinforces) a gendered difference in audience reactions to horror. While this difference may be true (to some degree, in some ways) it is an empirical question. Although Berenstein acknowledges a space for male and female audience members to act and react outside of proscribed gender roles, she does so only grudgingly.
Call#: Van Pelt Library PN1995.9.H6 H674 2004
This edited collection of essays has the overarching goal of exploring the horror film genre by paying attention to the technical and industrial aspects of film that distinguish horror films from horror in other media (such as literature or comic books). The two general questions that the essays-to one degree or another-address are: what role does technology play in the production of horror films, and what role does technology play in the distribution, exhibition, and reception of horror films? ("technology" defined broadly to include production equipment, industrial mechanisms, ideological mechanisms, etc.). The first section of the book consists of essays that explore various technologies and formal innovations employed in the production of horror films. The second section of the book deals with issues surrounding horror films in the marketplace (advertising, distribution, and reception). Finally, the third section examines discursive and ideological aspects of the horror genre from censorship to fan discourse.
Philip Simpson's chapter entitled "The Horror 'Event' Movie: The Mummy, Hannibal, and Signs" explores horror films as they are positioned as Hollywood blockbusters. These marketing and promotion of these films often downplay or outright deny the film's association with the horror genre (still often seen as a marginal or low brow genre). Simpson argues that these horror 'event' movies reach a larger mainstream audience by using star actors and high profile directors, high production values, and genre mixing. Simpson distinguishes between major studio horror films and "second tier" cult audience films. While it is true that many of the films that Simpson discusses are marketed as something other than horror (either as thrillers, adventure films, or even supernatural thrillers), it is not clear where the division between A-list productions and "second tier" films lies. He cites the $100 million dollar domestic theatrical gross mark as certifying a blockbuster, but fails to cite many of the low budget, independent, or "second tier" horror films that crossed that barrier such as The Blair Witch Project (1999), The Ring (2002), and The Grudge (2004).
Variety.com - MPAA tries to remove NC-17 stigma: Glickman takes a hard look at ratings
Sat., Mar. 10, 2007
Variety.com - Fox Atomic brings new twists: Genre Label Adds to Conventional Tactics.
Tue., Feb. 20, 2007
by Steven Zeitchick
The article discusses the creation of Fox Atomic--a division of Fox Film Entertainment dedicated to genre films and youth markets. However, Fox Atomic doesn't want to just create and market movies, rather "it wants to create entire worlds around those movies." The Fox Atomic website enlists current trends in digital culture to reach out to young, tech savy audiences. The studio has a presence in Second Life called "Fox Atomic Island, a virtual movie studio where citizens can pick up and play with avatars from all its leading pics." It also holds mashup and machinima contests, includes movie related video games on its website, as well as user forums and information on forthcoming releases. In addition, Fox Atomic has created a comics division that will release comics based on movie properties that are not adaptations of the films, but rather engage in "cross-media" storytelling. Current and upcoming film releases include The Hills Have Eyes 2, 28 Weeks Later, and Touristas.
Although other film studios and distributors have a web presence and engage with digital culture, few have ventured quite as far as Fox Atomic. The article remains skeptical as to the success of this strategy as it is still unproven in its ability to generate ticket sales, but this sort of "web 2.0" interactivity and media convergence may be something that film studios can ill afford to ignore.
Call#: Van Pelt Library PN1995.9.H6 H45 2004
Heffernan’s book seeks to investigate the economic and industrial aspects of the horror film genre that many scholarly accounts (which typically focus on cultural and/or aesthetic issues) fail to adequately consider. The book focuses on the postwar period (1953-1968); a period comprised of drastic changes in the film industry (i.e., Paramount decree, TV, technological innovation), and charts some of the functions or positions that horror genre pictures filled during this time period. He argues that this period—which is book-ended by 3D technology and the adoption of the MPAA rating system—saw a major cultural and economic shift in the production and reception of horror movies. This was partially due to the Supreme Court’s Paramount decision in 1948 which required the break-up of Hollywood’s vertically integrated system of production, distribution, and exhibition. As Hollywood studios began producing fewer films, independent distributors and exhibitors needed more product to fill out their schedules including B-pictures for the bottom half of popular double-feature bills. Heffernan argues that “low” genres like horror and sci-fi played an important part in the testing and development of new technologies and methods of production, distribution, and advertising to accommodate various changes including suburbanization, the growth of television, new youth markets, and the new economic and business structures of the film industry. Although written as a “corrective” to scholarship which focuses solely on culture and aesthetics, Heffernan avoids “economic determinism” by deftly intertwining the exploration of various aesthetic and formal changes of the horror genre during this period including greater psychological realism and, of course, graphic gore.
Using Philadelphia as his test market, Heffernan chronologically traces the distribution and exhibition patterns of various horror films across both theatrical and television venues. He begins with the early 1950s cycle of 3D horror films arguing that the narrative and stylistic norms of the horror genre could best negotiate the conflicting demands of “attraction” (the gimmick shots) and narrative integration of the classical Hollywood model, and also detailing the challenges faced by small theater owners to equip theaters to show 3D. Heffernan continues through the 50s and 60s exploring the impact of Hammer’s color saturated and bloody Gothic updates of the classic Universal monsters, how shortages in production from majors caused independent distributors and exhibitors to get into the production business, how the rise in art theaters utilized both exploitation/genre films and art cinema (i.e., “paracinema”), and the rise of “adult” horror in the late 60s. Overall, Heffernan’s book is well-researched, clearly written, and provides a wealth of knowledge for film scholars interested in the economic side of the industry—especially those interested in genre film. The only quibble is with the brief conclusion “The Horror Film in the New Hollywood.” It feels not only tacked on, but somewhat dismissive of the horror film post-1968. He also makes some broad—and I believe incorrect—claims such as that in the 1980s horror film spectacle overwhelms narrative. This comment flies in the face of the convincing arguments he lays out in discussing the intricate relation between technology and genre film of the 50s and 60s (such as horror’s ability to navigate 3D and narrative).
Hollywood gossip column describing the economic difficulties of Hollywood stars.
The opening of the column describes in a unique way how Hollywood stars have to be much more careful about their money during this period of economic hardship. Another example of how the Depression affected the Hollywood film industry. By Uri Friedman
This column discusses how the economic issues in Hollywood caused by the Depression have made Hollywood stars intent on finding ways to preserve their wealth. He describes in vivid terms how the Depression has ravaged the glamorous film industry. By Uri Friedman
Broadway critic’s musings about how the entertainment industry will handle the sudden Wall Street economic crash.
This column expresses the writer’s worry that the stock market crashes, which had occurred only days before the column was printed, would have negative effects on theater attendance, exhibition, and production. He explains how in times of economic crisis, luxuries are often the first to be disregarded, even if they would help people escape their economic misery. By Uri Friedman
Film critic’s assessment of Hollywood in the late 1920s.
Discusses the upheavals that talking pictures have caused in the Hollywood film industry and warns Philadelphia readers that getting a job as an extra in Hollywood at the time is very difficult. His statements describe an unfortunate state of affairs in Hollywood that would be fully realized with the coming stress of the Depression. By Uri Friedman
Greenspan then turns to the compiled score for Alexander’s Ragtime Band. This film is significant because it details the development of the popular song and is also a biography of Berlin, in a sense. The film’s score only had three pieces composed for it, the rest of the twenty-three pieces were compiled from previous works. Greenspan uses this film to show how popular songs were placed in film at that time and also shows its significance in the history of film and Berlin’s career.
Greenspan concludes her article with an explanation of how Berlin went to Hollywood and adapted himself for scoring films. He not only developed his style for film music but put songs in films in a way that was original and innovative.
This article gives an interesting look at the early film score and how the popular song fit into it. Irving Berlin is an Icon and he demonstrates the connection between the music and film worlds. He shows how the two adapt and fuse together.
Call#: Van Pelt Library PN1993.5.U6 B655 1985
David Bordwell, Kristin Thompson, and Janet Staiger have provided the canonical and definitive study of the Hollywood film industry of the classical era--approximately 1917 to 1960. As the subtitle to the book indicates, this study looks at the intersection of film style and modes of production (including technology, business models, studio ownership, technical craft, etc.) and generally argues that the studio era of Hollywood is marked by a fairly coherent aesthetic system and consistent style which the modes of production worked to reinforce. According to Bordwell, the classical style does not consist of iron-clad rules, but rather offers a paradigm of "bounded alternatives" from which filmmakers can choose allowing individual creativity while still reinforcing the overall aesthetic system. Additionally, the system is flexible enough to incorporate stylistic innovations into its own schemata--for example, German Expressionism was incorporated into both the horror films of the 1930s and the cycle of film noir in the 1940s and 50s. The book is extensively researched, highly detailed, and very useful for anyone researching Hollywood cinema. The approach to this book is based in industrial history and formal aesthetic analysis of films--it is not a cultural studies text nor does it engage critical theory is any sustained way (which is part of its strength). However, nothing prevents one from applying the insights from Bordwell, Thompson, and Staiger to a cultural studies project. If you are looking for a more cultural history of Hollywood, then Robert Sklar's Movie-made America: A Cultural History of American Movies is a good bet.
Call#: Van Pelt Library PN1995.7 .L37 2000
James Lastra situates the development of sound technology within the context of modernity with special attention paid to the relation of sound to other representational technologies such as photography and phonography. The book attempts to trace the exchanges and shifting relationships between human senses, technologies, and forms of representation (i.e., senses shaped technology development and those devices shaped our sensory experiences). The first couple chapters are a more general account of the material history of sound technology as both a means of simulating the sensory capacities of the ear and as a means of "writing" sound. The remaining chapters are nominally about the cinema beginning with the coming of sound and moving through the classical Hollywood system. Overall, Lastra's book is indebted to cultural theorists of modernity (Benjamin, Comolli, Adorno) which is not surpising as Lastra teaches at Chicago along with other modernity film scholars Tom Gunning and Miriam Hansen. The book has many strengths including giving ample attention to the practices and theories of early film sound technicians and engineers (and not just academic theorists), but suffers a bit from lack of attention to actual films themselves. Chapters 5 & 6 claim to examine the relationship between sound aesthetics, technology and film form, but while attention is paid to various sound technologies and ideas of "realism" there is little attention paid to demonstrating their effect on the form of actual films. Still, it is a well written and interesting book that will be especially useful for those interested in modernity, technology and theories of representation.
Arnold, next, examines the audience’s response to early Indian film music and its meaning. She claims that the music was successful by evidence of record sales, radio song requests and articles in film magazines. She then explains the connection between the film and the music, and the importance of creating music that is meaningful within the film but simple enough that the audience can relate to it. Arnold continues with a look at the way music was made and connected to the audience post-1960. She claims that India’s film music is both a part of mass consumption and mass appeal. This is evident not only through the sales but what Arnold calls “the active participation in Hindi film song performance.” She further explains the great appeal of the Hindi film song to the people.
Arnold concludes with a look at the connections and importance of the relationships between the film industry, the television media and the government-run radio to the film song.
This article provides an interesting look into the function of film music in the Hindi world. It allows one to compare the work and the development of the film song in India to Hollywood.
Smith, Jeff (Jeffrey Paul). Sounds of commerce : marketing popular film music / Jeff Smith. [0231108621 (cloth : alk. paper)] New York : Columbia University Press, c1998.
Call#: Van Pelt Library ML2075 .S65 1998
The article is short, but gives a very interesting comparison of the music and film industries and a common problem that technology brought. Penenberg shows different approaches to how to solve illegal downloads and piracy, noting the difficulty of the task but giving examples of viable solutions. It is a very informative article and it provides an idea of how the film industry might develop.
This article deals with peer-to-peer (P2P) sharing and the film industry. The ninth circuit court ruled in the case of MGM v. Grokster. The court ruled that some file sharing Internet services are not liable for copyright infringement committed by their users. This is a big blow to both the music and film industries. David Bell and Jeffery Sullivan acknowledge this decision as “legally correct,” but they are also aware of its implications for the entertainment industries. The sellers of copying equipment are not liable for the use of the equipment in copyright infringement, as decided by the Supreme Court in Sony v. Universal. Since Grokster and Streamcast were found to have substantially legitimate uses, they fell under the precedent set by the Sony case.. Next, MGM tried to prove vicarious copyright infringement through direct infringement by a primary party, direct financial benefit by the defendants and the ability of the defendants to supervise the users. This was not proven because the relationship between software provider and user is decentralized and the software provider has no obligation to monitor the actions of its users. This ruling was appealed. The appeal questions if the defendants are responsible for secondary copyright liability because of the large amount of infringement. Here, Bell and Sullivan explain the standards for secondary liability. They argue that the court was to narrow in its definitions for knowledge of infringement and contributions to primary infringement. Next the article deals with pervious rulings on the case and the necessity of proving legitimate uses if one is to use the Sony verdict in its favor. The article deals with if and how the Supreme Court should address and respond to this case. The next part of the article explains existing legislation. It states that copyright holders cannot recover loses from secondary copyright infringement. It also looks at cases of the record industry against Internet Service Providers, noting the protection of software companies and ISPs. The article looks at the Induce act, which was brought up fro review recently and would make software companies liable for encouraging copyright infringement. The article shows the pros and cons of this piece of legislation. Other pieces of legislation brought up in the article are the Piracy Deterrence and Education Act, the Protecting Intellectual Rights Against Theft and Expropriation Act and the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act. The article concludes with an explanation of the possible effects of the Supreme Court’s decision on the case.
The article provides a detailed explanation and example of the copyright issues brought up by P2P technology. There is a good analysis of the case as well as explanations and references to copyright law and how these issues are being dealt with outside of this specific instance. The language is a little legal at times, but the article is very comprehensive and informative.
Call#: Van Pelt Library Rosengarten Reserve Z642 .V35 2001
Vaidhyanathan closes the book with a look at digital copyright issues and international law. This section deals with computer software as well as Napster and P2P file sharing. It also deals with international protections and standardization issues.
The book provides a good explanation of the history of copyright and literary copyright law and development. However, its focus on the film industry shows how the law developed and was used and tested, the chapters pertaining to this aspect of copyright did not go into the law and ideas of copyright in the same detail of literary copyright. The section on the music industry was also extremely limited and tangential at times. Its focus was mainly on Hip-Hop and the tension between the genre and the law and how they functioned together. This section did not go very deep into the basics of musical copyright and seemed to get too far away from copyright in some of its arguments about Hip Hop. Although they are valid arguments in a broader scope, they do not seem fitting to the book as a whole.
Greenspan then turns to the compiled score for Alexander’s Ragtime Band. This film is significant because it details the development of the popular song and is also a biography of Berlin, in a sense. The film’s score only had three pieces composed for it, the rest of the twenty-three pieces were compiled from previous works. Greenspan uses this film to show how popular songs were placed in film at that time and also shows its significance in the history of film and Berlin’s career.
Greenspan concludes her article with an explanation of how Berlin went to Hollywood and adapted himself for scoring films. He not only developed his style for film music but put songs in films in a way that was original and innovative.
This article gives an interesting look at the early film score and how the popular song fit into it. Irving Berlin is an Icon and he demonstrates the connection between the music and film worlds. He shows how the two adapt and fuse together.
Arnold, next, examines the audience’s response to early Indian film music and its meaning. She claims that the music was successful by evidence of record sales, radio song requests and articles in film magazines. She then explains the connection between the film and the music, and the importance of creating music that is meaningful within the film but simple enough that the audience can relate to it. Arnold continues with a look at the way music was made and connected to the audience post-1960. She claims that India’s film music is both a part of mass consumption and mass appeal. This is evident not only through the sales but what Arnold calls “the active participation in Hindi film song performance.” She further explains the great appeal of the Hindi film song to the people.
Arnold concludes with a look at the connections and importance of the relationships between the film industry, the television media and the government-run radio to the film song.
This article provides an interesting look into the function of film music in the Hindi world. It allows one to compare the work and the development of the film song in India to Hollywood.


