Benjamin's Personal Response
German Expressionism was basically a cultural movement between World War I and World War II that had a large impact on the film industry at the time. The term "expressionism" relates to the artist expressing themselves, and also ties the movement into other "expressionist" movements from the past. The art of this period, namely the films, express the economic decline and chaos in German society following the war. This movement affected all cultural and artistic aspects of German society, but it is most well know for the films that defined the industry to this day --- the Expressionist Films began the genres of Science Fiction, Film Noir, and Horror.The expressionist movement embodied the very same characteristics that we have seen in the stories we have read in class. The plot lines are convoluted, the characters are untrustworthy, and there is a prevalent dark theme. Since Film Noir is basically a direct descendant of German Expressionism, and the books we have read (as with the film Laura) have Film Noir counterparts and themes, knowing about the expressionist movement give better context for appreciating and analyzing the works. That being said, German Expressionism is more than just a genre of film, it is a cultural mindset, as implied by the "expression" in its name.
German Expressionism made its way into America when the Nazi rise to power forced many of the film tycoons to leave the country. Many big players in the German Film Industry (and Expressionist Movement) found themselves making movies in Hollywood. In my opinion, this is the reason Expressionism left its mark on history more so than any other movements of the era. By migrating to the United States, the Expressionists influenced many artists and directors to follow in their path, ultimately kicking off the Horror, Science Fiction, and Film Noir genres. Because these major film themes dominated the America film industry and drew directly from their German Expressionist origins, an appreciation for Expressionist works remained alive and well.
Without the German Expressionist movement, it is very likely that the film industry today would be nothing like it is. In addition, the hard-boiled novels that are deeply rooted in ideas defined by German Expressionism might never have taken on the form they did if the expressionists did not prime the cultural appreciation for these types of entertainment. German Expressionism is one of the single most influential movements in film and entertainment in general. Without it, Sci-Fi, Horror, Film Noir, and the mindset they represent would never have made it in popular culture.
Quyen's Personal Response
German Expressionism describes an art movement that reflected a collective anguish toward the current "structure" of society and rejection of the realist philosophy of what is "real." Discarding the objective style of Realism, expressionist arts are characterized by vivid colors, exaggerated lines, and distorted shapes. For example, imagine an apple sitting on a table. A realist artist comes by and paints the apple just as if one was to take a photograph. An expressionist artist comes by and, depending on his mood, may paint the apple neon green, infested with worms, and floating in space. Or we might even get a banana.
Expressionists were essentially the photoshop enthusiasts of the early 20th century. Of course, every alternation is symbolic and contributes to the emotions an artist wants to or feels that the object should convey. Most of the mood depicted in German expressionist art, however, is dark and often chaotic, reflecting the postwar conditions. This violent outlook is often associated with subjects dealing with the urban, industrialized areas. Cities were the very breeding grounds of sin, evil, and death.
The trends of German Expressionism also translated into the film industry. Low budgets drove filmmakers to borrow from the power of expressionist symbolism. Just as an artist manipulates shapes, colors, and lines, a filmmaker would manipulate lighting and camera angles to create different moods. It is obvious that this style, and recurring use of "the underworld" as the setting, hallmarks the influence of German Expression in the American film industry.However, there seems to be another underlying theme between the German and German-influenced films: the discreditability of "formal" authority.
The traditional authority character is always presented as powerless, useless, and sometimes, the antagonist figure. In The Maltese Falcon, Sam Spade is constantly either mocking the police or beating them, both physically and intellectually. The supposed figure of "justice by law, the district attorney:
is like most district attorneys. He's more interested in how his record will look...To be sure of convicting one man he'll left half a dozen equally guilty accomplices go free.
Even Spade, who might be seen as the "true" authority figure, is corrupt (multiple affairs, "heartless"), and ironically, never plays by the rules. This reflects the "1910 Generation" distrust and rebellion against the existing system as Wolfgang Rothe describes.
Christopher's Personal Response
When I first heard of German Expressionism or expressionism alone, I imagined a style dealing primarily with artists and sculptors expressing their ideas and feelings through drawings, paintings, and statues. After I delved more deeply into the topic, I discovered that there were many more unseen elements and details that stretch into the fields of architecture, poetry, and even film. After studying film noir by watching Laura and reading The Maltese Falcon, it is obvious and insightful how the director’s styles and actor’s performances were equally as dark and eerie as their German counterparts. I enjoyed researching the ingredients that make German expressionism as diverse and controversial as well as the history and examples of its path towards Hollywood and America’s cinematic world.
Even if you don’t particularly enjoy movies, everyone has one or two movies that they find satisfying, and I am no exception. I find films new and classical, joyous or dark a thrill to watch and get into. In addition to the actual film, I appreciate the actors, actresses, and directors that go into making a movie such a 2-D (or in modern day 3-D) adventure. In my reading, I read about early and modern movies such as Independence Day and In the Line of Fire that had been directed by German directors whom had migrated west for better opportunities. I found that along with the evil stories of criminals and misdeeds came diverse styles and techniques that contribute to the darkness and ominous nature of the films. With lurking in the shadows and intriguing femme fatales, the German expressionists brought a revolution and the beginning of film noir. Once the genre of film noir was firmly established, the movie industry sky rocketed and shows no sign of stopping as characteristics of film noir are still present as the technology of special effects continues to expand.
Seeing the first hand effects of German expressionism in America is fascinating, but where my interest was intrigued was how the styles of expressionism in Berlin were created and brought over to Hollywood. Just after World War I, a period of time which I find quite interesting in our global history, an era called the “Golden Years” of Germany came the Weimar age of Cinema. Due to the recent warfare, the nation of Germany was portrayed as violent, dark, and corrupt. These traits were direct influences to this age of film in Berlin. Certain individuals did not feel that these films were beneficial to the country’s image and spoke against the directors and actors who were a part of them. After many years of criticism and the beginning of the Nazi political party, the directors migrated to America for better opportunities and a chance to expand their ideas to the rest of the world. I found this highly intriguing and brave of the German people to come and develop the world of film to its modern day levels.
I am pleased to have been given this topic to begin my studies of the world of film noir and its origins. The style of film noir is dark and innovative and its history is just as stimulating and fulfilling as any story of triumph can be. I wish there had been more literature on how specific elements of expressionism were converted to their American parallel such as motifs like cigarettes and femme fatales as well as why German films focused on the crime world while American cinema switched to the styles of using a P.I. as the main focus. However, I believe that film would be nowhere near as developed or edgy if the German directors and writers had not first brought their styles and ideas to America.
Read Full...
