Paper 3 ctcs 190 PDF

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In depth formal analysis of key scene or pair of scenes in film: performance Your own ideas, use terminology/concepts of dr.casper or bordwell and thompson in film art: an introduction 4-5 pages (1200-1500) devise thesis and argue for it (argue how relevant formal element (performance) affects or expresses content (themes, ideas) of film in your chosen scene) Keep plot discussion minimum, the paper is about style n form, why does the method of formal presentation allow the idea to register than if it was presented in a diff way (1 or contrasting scenes) do some research if unfamiliar with actors persona or films social context, writing about performance avoid describing character and motivation as if they were real people

For this assignment, you will study the evolution of a genre. Working with two thematically linked films in your genre from different periods, and outside research from at least three sources to help you identify the genre’s history, myths, conventions, and iconography, you will develop a thesis about the genre and how it works across time and in an ever-changing culture. Your paper should consider how genre creates meaning in these two films and how this reflects a larger argument about the genre’s relation to the culture in which it is produced (both the U.S. social culture and the Hollywood industry). This is, first and foremost, a paper about genre. Your films are illustrative examples of the genre within a historical/cultural context that will help you understand how and why it has changed over time. They will also help limit your focus, as not every  generic myth, convention, or icon will be relevant to your films and your thesis. You are not simply discussing your films’ similarities and differences. Your argument and analysis must demonstrate a historical understanding of the genre and how your films work within the genre. You should examine the generic myths, conventions, and iconography at work in the films, as well as the ways in which the style (or formal elements) influence how audiences understand and interpret these various generic elements. For example: How is the convention of the lone gunslinger different in a classical versus a modernist Western? How is this difference indicative of the broader changes in the genre between the two periods? Choose one of the genres on the following page along with a pair of films on which to write a 6-8 page paper (~1800–2400 words), using both original analysis and outside research. As with Paper Two, you will be expected to develop your own thesis and then argue that thesis with a coherent and organized discussion of the topic. Your thesis must make a claim about how and why your genre has changed over time and engage with the class concepts on Genre and the Classical, Postclassical, and Modernist periods (whichever apply to your films). Be sure to use the terminology and concepts provided by Dr. Casper in lecture and/or those in the course readings on these issues.

Genre how does it work across time in our changing culture? How does it reflect in relation to the US social culture and Hollywood culture? History: Myths: Conventions: iconography: Thesis: 2917 2974 2953 2853 2757 2604 2539 2555 2342 If u have enough space to add this: talk about how the 1954 version delt more with hollywood n broadway musicals vs rock version of 1976 1. Barbra Streisand

Maria Roa Dr. Drew Casper/TA Corina Copp CTCS 190 October 22, 2019 A Star is Born: A Study Into the Musical Drama Genre to Highlight the Rising Hollywood Female Star Bright lights shine towards the stage and the world goes silent. All the singing, dancing, and grand spectacles have led to this moment: the grand reveal of a new star. That's typically how musicals tend to end, or at least in the A Star is Born  rendenentions. However, what I didn’t mention was the long tortuous journey plot filled with heartbreak, addictions, depression, and death most commonly found in drama films. How can a dramatic movie so gritty and dark exist between typical, happy musical sequences? The juxtaposed, yet successful subgenre is that of musical drama.

Films reflect their time period as cinema is deeply intertwined with America’s identity. Musicals are no exception. Our past and history inspire musicals, and musicals inspire our future hopes and dreams. Similarly, Hollywood musicals can reflect an actor’s past and talents through a film’s production or theme. Some actors even inserting themselves directly in the film’s inception and production process. Though the hybridization of musical-drama genre given the context of Hollywood culture in their periods, leading actresses Barbra Streisand and Judy Garland’s star personas in their A Star is Born adaptations reflect their own personal struggles with stardom while breaking Hollywood’s gender roles and typical musical conventions to reflect the age of the reigning female Hollywood star. Before we delve into the subgenre-hybridization and evolution of the musical drama, we’ll need to understand how it stemmed from the original musical genre and its’ own history, myths, conventions, and iconography. Musicals, created out of Hollywood’s technological advances in the late 1920’s, were one of America’s original and ever-developing contributions to the arts. Films at the time were entirely silent, except for the accompanying musical compositions that helped set the film’s tone. This all changed with the introduction of the sound system. The “talkies” originated from the feature length film, The Jazz Singer  (1927), which was also the first musical. The Jazz Singer w  as mostly silent except for key musical cues in which Al Jolson’s character would break into song (Hischak 14). Since then, musicals have become America’s staple, often intertwining the joyous musical theater with cinema’s affordability and accessibility. There are 3 elements to a genre: myths (mythology, or story), conventions, and iconography. For musicals, myths’ ranged between backstage musicals and more literal musicals. Literal musicals often created subgenres and genre hybrids to tell the narrative while adding the integral and iconic Musicals’ singing and dancing. Eventually, over time musicals developed to other subgenres, like americana, Broadway adaptations, and rockumentaries which retained unique musical elements. Backstage musicals focused on the performance and creation of “the show” as plots often revolved around the making of movies, shows, or musicals. Backstage musicals grew from Hollywood’s worries that musicals would translate well into cinema without an explainable source of the music and thus often were placed in settings where dancing and singing were expected (31). The backstage also served as one of the musical’s iconographic symbols as these musicals were commonly placed in actual behind-the-scenes set. Iconographic, or repeated visual and aural elements, allowed audiences to connect objects like ropes, curtains, dressing rooms, singing, dancing, stars, and lighting with musicals. Conventionally, these musicals were made with big budgets with an emphasis in set design, sound design, choreography, and integrated numbers to express a character’s emotion through song and dance. Towards the end of the 1950's, these backstage musicals made a resurgence with the technology of color but instead of the glittery entourage the stories focused on being more realistic and reflective of Hollywood’s culture. During the post-classical era of cinema, musicals were facing a resurgence. The post-classical era, from 1946 to 1962, focused on filmic experimentation after World War II. Consumers and filmmakers grew sophisticated after a boom in property led to growing leisure time, which led to a surge in movies with audiences getting more comfortable (Casper). Yet, in the 1950s, while fears started to rise with Vietnam and communism, Hollywood was worried

about the rise of the television market. While some “large and colorful” musicals competed with television, some musicals grew away from the comedy and the escapist tone (Hischak 244). This was the era of the musical melodramas. These musicals focused on a darker tone, and the musical’s myths, conventions and iconography were adjusted for the drama inclusion. Common myths focused on realistic or fictional depictions of celebrities and their battles with “alcoholism, drugs, depression, or physical handicaps,'' which were “applauded for their honesty” at an era where celebrities lives were public (234, 235). This is extremely true to A Star is Born ( 1954), as the plot intentionally reflected Judy Garland’s own struggle with mental illness, addiction, and fame. A Star is Born , directed by George Cukor in 1954, was a musical drama film starring Judy Garland as Esther Blodgett, an aspiring singer-actress, and James Mason as Norman Maine, an alcoholic losing his fame. Norman stumbles upon Esther’s talent and convinces her to go to Hollywood, while mentoring and marrying her in the process. After she gets casted and overwhelmed with success and fame, Norman struggles with his own work and spirals into depression and alcoholism. Once the prideful Norman is faced with the idea that he is sabotaging his wife’s career, he takes a swim to the ocean and drowns. The film ends with Esther introducing herself as Mrs. Maine and prepares to sing in her husband’s honor. Musical drama conventions had not shifted from its larger musical genre category in the post-classical era, as these myths were still presented as grand, expensive spectacles paired with singing and dancing sequences. A Star is Born  mirrored the classical backstage musical conventions as big-budget musical sequences often took place either at clubs, stage, studios, recording booths, or areas with speakers. However, the way it was presented tonally was much different as it also had moments of noir-style lighting, melancholic singing, and more subtle choreography that categorized it as a musical drama. In the iconic “first formal introduction” scene, Norman silently watches Esther perform “The Man That Got Away” in a dimly lit club. Although it was presented in the typical backstage musical club setting, it was not a grand spectacle with bright lights, back-up dancers, or flashy costumes. Rather, it was Judy Garland in a conservative dress melancholy singing about losing her love. In fact, it's very different to how women typically perform at a club. Esther and her band perform alone without an audience, and with her covered figure and subtle dance-like movements, her femininity is not emphasized. She should lack star power, but her vocals and posture empower her to exemplify her star status. This entices the audience, and Norman, to focus on her signing rather than her appearance allowing her moments of fame on her terms. This contrasts from how female star performances are usually portrayed in post-classical times, like Debbie Reynlods in Singin’ in the Rain  (1952), as gender and a woman’s identity rely on a woman’s sexuality and appearance. In a role reversal, Norman gets feminised as he becomes entranced to Esther’s singing. The star driven musicals, heightened through musical drama, structurally broke the narrative in order to stress femininity and give power to the female star by masculinizing her the same way dramas masculinized men. Charlton stated that “melodrama(s) typically enforce conformity and assimilation”, yet in A Star is Born the gender roles were reversed to challenge how we view these rising stars, especially the female stars. This scene is also reflective of the film’s ending, as it seems depressed and hopeless. However, it’s also reflective of Garland’s own mental health issues. At this time, audiences were

aware of her mental health, and in fact the film was inspired by Garland’s own life and talents. The film was produced by Garland and her husband, Sidney Luft, who felt Garland had a lot in common with both Norman and Esther while Moss Hart, the screenwriter, consciously implemented stories and incidents from Garland’s life into the script (Charlton 2012, cited Haver 2002, 45). This allowed for Garland to create a persona to subvert the role. The film was Garland’s last major movie musical, and it crosses emotional grounds that foreshadowed Garland’s own fading career and struggles in the industry, even undergoing substance abuse and repeatedly missed days during the shooting of this film. Cukor’s A Star is Born illustrated that musicals can be successful in depicting tragic characters, and Judy Garland’s own struggles and talent inspired a young Barbra Streisand through her “emotional style and bright, forward timbre” (Pohly 12). Similar to Garland’s vaudeville origins referenced in the 1954’s Esther’s history, Barbra started out her career singing in night clubs similar to the 1972 retelling of A Star is Born . Although the era of female stars were slowly declining, Streisand progressed in popularity from her Broadway roots to film with her acting debut in Funny Girl  (1968). But, she felt trapped from the persona she created in her career and yearned to make more contemporary films with deeper meanings (Stevens 3). Then, with Hollywood’s breakdown of the studio system, she was allowed to bounce around studios to focus on her passion projects. Barbra had always been an empowering woman who wanted to create a contemporary musical drama film to unveil the unglamorous reality of rockstars while providing commentary on the show business at the time. Eventually, she and her husband at the time produced the film through their production company, First Artists. Although there had already been two depictions of A Star is Born ( three if you count What Price Hollywood? (1932) ) , Streisand related to both Esther and Norman’s character and felt she could introduce the new generation to a powerful retelling with similar themes, especially during the late political, modernist era on her own terms. Unlike in the postclassical era, where Garland had only starred in the film, Stresaind directly inserted herself in multiple positions to oversee in the film. Barbra Streisand served as an uncredited writer, executive producer, designed the musical, and the main star. This reflects the empowering feminist movement as women started to assert their independence in direct roles. The modernist era of film were an explosive time for experimentation, often relying on to the past to comment, react, and revolutionize. Films during this era were self conscious and engaging with society, culture, and within itself through thematic and formal means. This was no exception to the musicals, as the musical drama remained strong (although overall musicals declined). Hollywood was going through an era of nostalgia, as baby boomers seeked out past interests. Streisand seeked out A Star is Born  to comment on the music industry while creating a strong, natural female star. Pierson’s A Star is Born  engaged with the current feminist movement, and changes in the industry’s potrayl towards women through Streisand’s vulgarity, humor, and self-deprecation. Her unique, independent personality in the traditional appeal of a classic star created a powerhouse that helped create a taste for strong, independent women that felt liberated from previous limitations (Stevens 5). By taking musical drama tropes, such as the underdogs and established stars, A Star is Born  challenges these gendered tropes to create a drama-filled musical filed with heartbreak, darkness, and death.

Frank Pierson’s A Star is Born  (1976) was a contemporary backstager like past renditions, but unlike earlier myths the modernist backstage were more “brutally realistic, showing the dark and lonely side of celebrity… none end(ing) with the big show”, often ending in heartbreak, abandonment, or death (Hischak 33). A Star is Born  (1976) stars Barbra Streisand as Esther Hoffman and Kris Kristofferson as John Howard in the third retelling of the story, albeit with a rock twist. The film celebrates Barbra’s persona by playing with gender through its conventions and iconography in Esther’s journey. John Howard as an alcoholic rockstar that stumbles upon the snarky, but sweet Esther at a nightclub. Using his fame status, he helps jumpstart her own singing career that quickly overtakes his own. He gets jealous of her fame, ends up cheating on her, and drunkenly drives until he dies in a crash. At the end, she’s introduced as “Esther Hoffman-Howard” and sings his song as a loving tribute. Throughout the film, gender roles are reversed as Barbra is the successful, bright, and logical star with charisma juxtaposed with her masucline, mocking humor. Although typical modernist musical drama conventions portrayed women as fragile, feminine, and aspiring stars, Barbra rebels against tradition and portrays herself as quirky, sarcastic, yet sweet. Initially, she's portrayed as the damsel in distress wanting to make it big, but she’s very independent about through her struggles as a career woman and wife of a tragic, cheating husband which breaks typical musical tropes. To delve into the film’s connection to the modernist musical drama genre, we’ll focus on the iconic scene in which Esther sings a tribute for her husband. Similar to other backstage musicals, it takes place on a stage with an audience and iconic stage props. It followed typical musical drama conventions by using the iconographic dim, dark contrasting lighting. However, it strayed away from musical drama conventions by placing a stagnant camera for 7 minutes that was solely a close-up on Barbra’s face. It didn't focus on her dancing or the great musical number,but rather allowed audiences to focus on her emotions and vocal power. The noir style of musical dramas transitioned into the typical musical style as she began to sing her husband’s character song. The combined iconography of the musical drama and typical backstage musicals was prominent in the transition from a noir styled lighting and soft, depressive singing to an iconic musical’s flashy, colorful lighting with a full range of vocals. These conventions, although atypical of previous musical and musical drama conventions, were representative of the rebellious and female empowering ideals of the modernist era. A common criticism of the film’s feminist message is that Esther still remains tied to her husband, even after death she introduces herself as his wife. It seems like shes a successful career woman who is forever tainted and tied to her husband’s tragic death, but in reality it seems intentional on her  grounds. She chooses to introduce herself as his wife and honor him. Yet, even then she hyphens her name to “Esther Hoffman-Howard” to represent that she’s still her own person. Stresiand represented Esther as a woman who knows what she wants, which includes loving her husband. As a strong woman, Esther chooses to marry and love him on her grounds, even after his career declines, she represents the modernist feminsit movement through her independency. The hybridization of the musical drama, allowed a combination of myths between the musicals and dramas that exemplified both genres rather than adding elements to illustrate complex gender roles in A Star is Born . The change in how women were treated and acted reflect the increase in feminism as it progressed from the post-classical to modernist era. The

recent 2018 version with Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper demonstrate that postmodern musical dramas have not changed from the backstage conventions, but rather lean towards more of the dramatic conventions and modern times that reflect the postmodern culture (ie, Jack Maine’s death being a suicide). A Star is Born  repeatedly retells the story about the rise of a star, and her romantic-mentor relationship with an addicted, struggling has-been. The film is incredibly progressive for its respective time period, and uses the entertaining musical platform to dramatically deliver a message of the entertainment industry and the female star to audiences worldwide.

self-destruction the films a melodramatic tone while keeping up with the glamorous musical numbers. 1970s stars gained more power in the industry- Barbara Streisand- extremely popular sta...