The Death of Classical Cinema: Hitchcock, Lang, Minnelli (Suny Series, Horizons of Cinema)

A study of three classical filmmakers and the films they made at the cusp of the modernist movement in cinema. The Death Of Classical Cinema Uncovers The Extremely Rich Yet Insufficiently Explored Dialogue Between Classical And Modernist Cinema, Examining The Work Of Three Classical Filmmakers - Alfred Hitchcock, Fritz Lang, And Vincente Minnelli - And The Films They Made During The Decline Of The Traditional Hollywood Studio System. Faced With The Significant Challenges Posed By Alternative Art Cinema And Modernist Filmmaking Practices In The Early 1960s, These Directors Responded With Films That Were Self-conscious Attempts At Keeping Pace With The Developments In Film Modernism. These Films - Lang's The Thousand Eyes Of Dr. Mabuse, Hitchcock's Marnie, And Minnelli's Two Weeks In Another Town - Were Widely Regarded As Failures At The Time And Bolstered Critics' Claims Concerning The Irrelevance Of Their Directors In Relation To Contemporary Filmmaking. However, Author Joe Mcelhaney Sheds New Light On These Films By Situating Them In Relation To Such Acclaimed Modernist Works Of The Period As Godard's Contempt, Fellini's La Dolce Vita, Antonioni's Red Desert, And Resnai's Last Year Of Marienbad. He Finds That These Modernist Films, Rather Than Being Diametrically Opposed In Form To The Work Of Hitchcock, Lang, And Minnelli, Are In Fact Profoundly Linked To Them.--jacket. Writing The History Of Classical Cinema -- Dr. Mabuse, The Cliché: The Thousand Eyes Of Dr. Mabuse -- Fascination And Rape: Marnie -- Staging The Death Of The Director: Two Weeks In Another Town -- Or The Death Of Cinema Is No Solution. Joe Mcelhaney. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 213-248) And Index. The Death of Classical Cinema uncovers the extremely rich yet insufficiently explored dialogue between classical and modernist cinema, examining the work of three classical filmmakers—Alfred Hitchcock, Fritz Lang, and Vincente Minnelli—and the films they made during the decline of the traditional Hollywood studio system. Faced with the significant challenges posed by alternative art cinema and modernist filmmaking practices in the early 1960s, these directors responded with films that were self-conscious attempts at keeping pace with the developments in film modernism. These films—Lang's The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse, Hitchcock's Marnie, and Minnelli's Two Weeks in Another Town—were widely regarded as failures at the time and bolstered critics'claims concerning the irrelevance of their directors in relation to contemporary filmmaking. However, author Joe McElhaney sheds new light on these films by situating them in relation to such acclaimed modernist works of the period as Godard's Contempt, Fellini's La dolce vita, Antonioni's Red Desert, and Resnais's Last Year at Marienbad. He finds that these modernist films, rather than being diametrically opposed in form to the work of Hitchcock, Lang, and Minnelli, are in fact profoundly linked to them. The Death of Classical Cinema uncovers the extremely rich yet insufficiently explored dialogue between classical and modernist cinema, examining the work of three classical filmmakers-Alfred Hitchcock, Fritz Lang, and Vincente Minnelli-and the films they made during the decline of the traditional Hollywood studio system. Faced with the significant challenges posed by alternative art cinema and modernist filmmaking practices in the early 1960s, these directors responded with films that were self-conscious attempts at keeping pace with the developments in film modernism. These films-Lang's The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse, Hitchcock's Marnie, and Minnelli's Two Weeks in Another Town-were widely regarded as failures at the time and bolstered critics' claims concerning the irrelevance of their directors in relation to contemporary filmmaking. However, author Joe McElhaney sheds new light on these films by situating them in relation to such acclaimed modernist works of the period as Godard's Contempt, Fellini's La dolce vita, Antonioni's Red Desert, and Resnais's Last Year at Marienbad. He finds that these modernist films, rather than being diametrically opposed in form to the work of Hitchcock, Lang, and Minnelli, are in fact profoundly linked to them The Death of Classical Cinema......Page 4 Contents......Page 8 Illustrations......Page 10 Acknowledgments......Page 14 Introduction: Writing the History of Classical Cinema......Page 16 1. Dr. Mabuse, The Cliché: The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse......Page 42 2. Fascination and Rape: Marnie......Page 100 3. Staging the Death of the Director: Two Weeks in Another Town......Page 156 Conclusion: Or The Death of Cinema Is No Solution......Page 216 Notes......Page 228 B......Page 264 D......Page 265 H......Page 266 M......Page 267 P......Page 268 T......Page 269 Z......Page 270 State University of New York Press ISBN-13:,9780791468876