Point 1 – Genre

Christian Metz, a French film theorist, theorised that genres go through a cycle of four stages as they develop – the experimental stage – where the codes and conventions of a genre are founded – the classic stage – where these set conventions become iconic and staples of the genre – the parody stage – where the films become self-aware and begin to mock these tropes – and the deconstruction stage – where the rules of the genre are broken more carelessly, and sometimes where “hybrid genres” are formed as a result. (On screen quote) “The laws of genre are derived from earlier examples of that genre” Christian Metz, Film Language: A Semiotics of the Cinema [1974]).

Both The Shining and The Lighthouse could be considered to be within a ‘classic stage’ of psychological horror’s development, as they follow a very standard plotline of the genre – people go to an isolated space, someone slowly loses their sanity in this space due to external or internal factors, before attempting – sometimes succeeding – to kill one or more people.

Despite this basic breakdown of the two films, they are still vastly different when it comes to their visuals and approaches to cinematography, which completely revises the way in which the audience perceives and feels about each film as it plays out.

Psychological horror thrives on the human emotion of empathy, which it utilises to stir up feelings of anxiety and fear within a viewer as opposed to the regular use of jump scares, gore and disturbing visual imagery seen in classic horror. While a lot of psychological horror films make use of disturbing imagery, it’s often done in such a way that twists and focuses on the human form – such as Eggers’ grotesque use of nudity filming acts society declares as shameful, and the deranged mannerisms often used by Kubrick’s characters.

Summarise what Astruc meant by the term "Auteur" and give some examples of the films cited by the movement as being created by Auteur directors.

Alexandre Astruc, wanted to find directors that shared their own perspective through use of lighting, camerawork, staging, editing, and the story. He called this concept of individualism “auteurism,” deriving largely from Astruc’s explanation of the concept of caméra-stylo (“camera-pen”), where the director, is more to be considered the “author” of the movie.

Taxi Driver – 1976

Travis, an ex-marine and Vietnam veteran, works as a taxi driver in New York City. One day, he decides to save an underage prostitute from her pimp in an effort to clean the city of its corruption.

Breaking the Waves – 1996

In a small and religious coastal town, a simple, devoutly religious Scottish woman, Bess McNeill (Emily Watson), finds a partner in an oil rig worker from Norway, Jan Nyman (Stellan Skarsgard). However, the relationship grows strained when Nyman breaks his neck in a horrific work accident on the rig and becomes paralyzed. Unable to perform sexually and suffering mentally from the accident as well, Jan convinces Bess to have sex with other men, which she comes to believe is God’s work.

Submarine – 2010

Oliver (Craig Roberts) is a Welsh teen who has some things on his mind. First is losing his virginity before his 16th birthday. He sets out to woo his feisty classmate Jordana (Yasmin Paige). Then Oliver focuses on holding his family together. His father (Noah Taylor), a depressed marine biologist, seems unequal to the task of preventing Oliver’s mother (Sally Hawkins) from succumbing to the dubious charms of a spiritual guru (Paddy Considine) from down the road.

Identify at least two other classic French New Wave films

Hiroshima, mon Amour – 1959

The deep conversation between a Japanese architect (Eiji Okada) and a French actress (Emmanuelle Riva) forms the basis of this celebrated French film, considered one of the vanguard productions of the French New Wave. Set in Hiroshima after the end of World War II, the couple — lovers turned friends — recount, over many hours, previous romances and life experiences. The two intertwine their stories about the past with pondering the devastation wrought by the atomic bomb dropped on the city.

The 400 Blows – 1959

For young Parisian boy Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), life is one difficult situation after another. Surrounded by inconsiderate adults, including his neglectful parents (Claire Maurier, Albert Remy), Antoine spends his days with his best friend, Rene (Patrick Auffray), trying to plan for a better life. When one of their schemes goes awry, Antoine ends up in trouble with the law, leading to even more conflicts with unsympathetic authority figures.

Named after S. A. Gerasimov, the film school began in 1919 and is the first and oldest film school in the world. During the period of the Soviet Union, it was a requirement of the state to attend VGIK in order to be allowed to direct a film. The institute has an impressive alumni, with renowned filmmakers such as Sergei Eisenstein, Andrei Tarkovsky and Alexander Sokurov all studying there.

Its work in the early years was restrained by the shortage of film stock, forcing classes to be taught around the art of montage; the institute would import random film rolls for the students of the school to cut and edit back together, forming new meanings through montage. Nowadays, the campus is still functioning, teaching classes in directing, screenwriting and cinematography. However, its renowned reputation has kept up with itself, with an acceptance rate of below 10%.