The film movement of German Expressionism made quite a few advancements in the film industry in which we can still see today. German Expressionism introduces a new style of film to the world. It created the mood of a dark and eerie movie. This lead to the two main genres of German Expressionism, which were horror films and film noir. German Expressionism gave way to the rise of German filmmakers in Hollywood. The things that these filmmakers focused on were using art in their films to take the place of lighting and shadows. German Expressionism was the first major non-realism type of film. German Expressionism was the movement that sparked the series of monster movies by Universal Studios. German Expressionism focused more on the tiny details that others thought to be less important such as set designs, lighting techniques, and trick camera work. German Expressionism looked at the things that would affect the film as a whole rather than just certain parts of it. German Expressionism was also the first to se symbolic acting.
The major films of this movement included: The Student of Prague, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, The Golem, Destiny, Nosferatu, Phantom, Schatten, The Last Laugh, Metropolis, and M. The first film of this era was The Haunted Screen. This film had a lot to do with what was currently happening in Germany. Since this film was made around the same time as World War II, it has to do with Hitler and the Third Reich. I personally think that Nosferatu is the greatest film of the era. Not so much in quality, but in popularity, hype, filmmaking, and artistic view. From the clips I have seen, the angles and shot are just incredible.
The directors of this era included: Fritz Lang, Billy Wilder. Carol Reed, Karl Freund, Otto Preminger, Orson Wells, Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Curtiz, F.W. Murnau, and Paul Wegener. Although Alfred Hitchcock was not necessarily a director of the German Expressionism era but he got his ideas of filming and his genre of filming from the ideas of German Expressionism. These directors were Germans who, during World War II went to Hollywood. People feared them because of what was happening in Europe with Hitler. Studios in Hollywood hired them as directors and filmmakers and that is what started the German Expressionism movement.
I believe that there were three defining films of the German Expressionism era. They were Nosferatu, Sunshine, and Metropolis. Nosferatu was a defining film because it combined surreal angular shots and elaborate lighting with normal, realistic settings. Metropolis was because it uses techniques that exaggerate reality and provide visual clues for the audience as to the psychology of the characters. Sunrise was because it used enormous sets to create a hyper-real fairy tale world setting for its characters. These films really helped to pave the road for German Expressionism and made it a huge success.
No comments:
Post a Comment