Warren Beatty (Clyde Barrow) produced and acted in Bonnie and Clyde. He selected the writers (Robert Benton and David Newman) and the director (Arthur Penn) and also selected most of the cast. He also oversaw the script and spearheaded the delivery of the film.

Faye Dunaway (Bonnie Parker) was perfect for the spirit of the thirties and the spirit of the sixties. Penn had seen her scenes from ‘The Happening’ before its release and decided to let her read for the role of Bonnie Parker.

Michael J. Pollard (C.W. Moss) is best known for his role in Bonnie and Clyde, he was relatively unknown before this film.

Gene Hackman (Buck Barrow) had most of his stardom come in for him in the 1970s, in which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in The French Connection (William Friedkin, 1971).

Realism in Casablanca is shown through the romance aspect of the film, and the theme of war shown throughout. The conflicted love affair between Rick and Ilsa portrays realistic aspects that create effect to the characters of the film, while the war theme creates a real meaning that impacts the narrative of the film.

Tone in the film is portrayed in a dramatic and romantic way. It shows the sad effects of war, while also being a form of escapism from war shown through the romance between Rick and Ilsa.

The visual style of ‘Film Noir’, can be seen through the dark look and shadows used in the film at Rick’s Café, typical of the film noir style. The use of urban settings, unconventional camera angles and low-key lighting also help define Casablanca’s ‘noir’ style.

How are different groups represented in Casablanca and what ideological standpoints may these representations reveal about these groups?

Women

Women in Casablanca are typically represented as the less superior characters who hold less power because of the superiority of the men. Ilsa does not present the image of intellectual potency as she is incapable of making her own decisions and she does not wield any sort of power.

Men

Men in Casablanca are seen as the hero’s and have protectiveness over the females in the film. Rick is seen as the one with most power, as firstly he owns the bar, but also he has the power to save Ilsa and her husband.

Authority Figures

In Casablanca, the authority figures are majorly respected. However at the end, Rick gets the Captain to help him out by putting a gun to him, and he does help him out using his authorative power, showing how easily led his power actually is.

tonal editing method – this focuses on the lighting, shadows, and colours of the edited scenes to provide an overall ‘mood’

This example is from ‘Joker’ (Todd Phillips, 2019) because it’s a good example of the tonal editing method. In this scene, Arthur is distressed and this is emphasised by the sombre blue colour from the fridge and outside lighting that echoes throughout his apartment. It creates the effect of the overall sad mood.

the intellectual method – this is making a comparison to something that is unrelated to create effect by combining shots on the basis of a conceptual connection between them. It’s when you edit two shots together to connect them to an intellectual concept.

This example is from ‘Strike’ (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925). This is an example of the intellectual method because these two shots are completely unrelated as one is human one is animal.

metric editing – this is based on the length of a shot and it creates the tempo of the film

This montage in ‘Requiem For A Dream’ (Darren Aronofsky, 2000) https://youtu.be/mkYNhZvlHv0 shows the organised yet chaotic impact of the metric/intellectual montage. Each shot is given nine frames and a distinct sound effect. The montage demonstrates drug taking’s disorientating effect.

Name at least 3 other films identified by critics as classic Constructivist films

Strike (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925)

Kino-Eye (Dziga Vertov, 1924)

The Tailor from Torzhok (Yakov Protazanov, 1925)

How does the Gerasimov institute operate now?

The Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography, meaning All-Russian State University of Cinematography named after S. A. Gerasimov, aka VGIK, is a film school in Moscow, Russia. VGIK, along with the Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and The American Film Institute, competes for the title of being the oldest film school in the world. From 1934 to 1991 the film school was known as the All-Union State Institute of Cinematography. Since 1986 the school has been named after the film director and actor Sergei Gerasimov.

Describe some of the stylistic conventions associated with the expressionist art movement. Post some additional examples of Constructivist art.

In expressionist art, colour in particular can be highly intense and non-naturalistic, brushwork is typically free and paint application tends to be generous and highly textured. Other forms that distinguish Expressionism (an international movement in art, architecture, literature, and performance that flourished between 1905 and 1920, especially in Germany and Austria) were extreme angles, flattened forms, garish colours, and distorted views. Expressionist art tends to be emotional and sometimes mystical.

‘The Scream’ – Edvard Munch – 1893

‘The Blue Rider’ – Wassily Kandinsky – 1903

‘Blue Horses’ – Franz Marc – 1911

Name at least two directors and two films connected with each movement

German Expressionism

Directors – Robert Wiene (1873 – 1938), Fritz Lang (1890 – 1976)

Films – Destiny (1921 – Fritz Lang), The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920 – Robert Wiene)

Russian Constructivism

Directors – Lev Kuleshov (1899 – 1970), Dziga Vertov (1896 – 1954)

Films – Kino-Eye (1924 – Dziga Vertov), By the Law (1926 – Lev Kuleshov)

Explain the socio economic and political contexts which influenced each movement

Expressionism provided artists with the tools they needed to speak up about social issues and along with their distorted images, helped evoke emotions and ideas within others. They viewed the Industrial Revolution as alienating and dehumanizing. They also disliked 19th-century impressionism. A genre that focused on colour and “pretty” works of art with no depth.

Constructivism in Film examines the radical experiments of early Soviet filmmakers, with special emphasis on the relationship of Constructivist film to contemporary literature, painting, architecture and design. The constructivists believed art should directly reflect the modern industrial world.

Explain how the political, social and economic upheaval created by the aftermath of both the Russian Revolution and WW1 affected the production and content of classic Soviet Constructivist Cinema.

The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social change in the Russian Empire starting in 1917. It overthrew the imperial government and placed the Bolsheviks in power and saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government following two successive revolutions and a civil war. Increasing governmental corruption, the reactionary policies of Tsar Nicholas II, and catastrophic Russian losses in World War I contributed to widespread dissatisfaction and economic hardship.

Who directed Birth of a Nation (1915) and why does the film continue to divide opinions among film critics, practitioners and theorists?

Birth of a Nation is a historical drama about the American Civil War and the rise of Ku Klux Klan. It depicts the tragedies of the Civil War beyond the battlefield. However, it’s effects on race relations were devastating, and reverberations are still felt to this day. The Birth of a Nation is three hours of racist propaganda – starting with the Civil War and ending with the Ku Klux Klan riding in to save the South from black rule during the Reconstruction era. The three-hour silent film The Birth of a Nation did “incalculable harm” to Black Americans by creating a justification for prejudice, racism, and discrimination for decades to follow.