Coursework 1 - The 5 Most Defining Moments In Cinema Pre 1930

1. A Trip To The Moon 

Georges Méliès ‘A Trip To The Moon’ was released in 1902. It exists to this day as one of the most influential films of its time. Georges Méliès gift as a filmmaker lied in his ability to explore the realm of fantasy in his movies, and show people a world outside of their own lives that they could have never imagined.  It literally was the first science fiction movie that the world had ever seen, demonstrating the full extent of its originality through its experimental use of animation and special effects. Without this fictional element of fantasy in motion picture, we would all be sat in the cinema watching the story of our own lives go past us; and the enchantment of cinema would be lost without visionary artists like Georges Méliès, who in many ways, has paved the path for contemporary film and shaped the way we view cinema entirely.

2.  Battleship Potemkin

‘Battleship Potemkin’ is a Silent motion picture released in 1925, directed by Sergei Einstein. Initially the film was made to be used as the most influential propaganda film of all time. Einstein also experimented on various audiences with the effect of film editing, cutting the clips together in specific ways to produce the greatest possible emotional reaction.

The Odessa steps scene is perhaps the most memorable scene in the motion picture, striking for its violence and truly captivating cinematography. Einstein’s editing techniques mixed with his ability to evoke emotion and engage a mass audience proved extremely effective. He basically invented the language of advertisement, in terms of semiotics and the juxtaposition of imagery. Not only this, but he also coined the ‘30 degree rule’ that has become commonplace in film making today.

3. Arrival Of A Train 

The Film ‘Arrival Of A Train’ is credited for being the first film to be shown in a cinema. Made in 1895 the short black and white film directed by the Lumiere Brothers today holds its place in history as one of the most iconic moments in cinema. The myth would have us believe when the film was first shown the audience were so overwhelmed by the moving image of a life size train coming towards the them, that they would scream and run to the back of the room over fear that the image would burst through piercing the screen.

The Lumiere Brothers attempt to scare the public was deliberate, they knowingly positioned the kinetograph as close to the train as possible to evoke a sense of fear and awe, the likes of which the world had never seen. Simultaneously, this gave birth to the idea of fantasy through the illusion of cinema and carved the path of the motion picture.



4. The Jazz Singer 

 The American musical ‘The Jazz Singer’ was released in 1927 and is arguably one of the most - if not the most - defining films in the early stages of cinema history. Directed by Alan Crosland, it was the first feature length motion picture to have synchronized dialogue sequences, marking the birth of sound in motion pictures and simultaneously heralding the decline of the silent movie.‘The Jazz Singer’ is considered a  cinematic landmark. "It convinced spectators that recorded sound could be more than a short film novelty or a feature accompaniment, that they wanted film to talk." It sparked a change in Hollywood that would later catalyze its rise into what we call today the golden age of cinema. After its release the motion picture was never the same, actors were now hired for their vocal abilities and the iconic musical numbers that featured in the film changed the surface of modern cinema at the time.



5. The Birth Of A Nation 

D. W. Griffiths ‘The birth Of A Nation’ is one of the most controversial films of its time. The silent 1915 drama was controversial for its racist implications throughout its content. In the same year of its release it was used as a recruiting tool for the KKK. Clearly this wasn’t just a political or social stance from Griffiths perspective, as even during the making of the motion picture, the African American men who appeared on screen were merely white men who had painted themselves black. Yet, if we put aside its dark and unethical content for a moment. We begin to look at the movie as a piece of art that can be considered a revolution in the medium of film. Credited for its technical achievements in its use of specific camera angles, composition and continuity editing, it gave birth to the standard use of  a more coherent narrative structure in film. Critics such as Roger Ebert, have said: "The Birth of a Nation is not a bad film because it argues for evil. Like Riefenstahl’s, Triumph of the Will, it is a great film that argues for evil.”

 References:

Elbert, R., 2003. The Birth Of A Nation (1915). [online]. Available from: http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20030330/REVIEWS08/303300301/1023. [Accessed 04 March 2013].

Sklar, R., 1993. Film: an international history of the medium. London: Thames and Hudson.