A-grade essay exploring auteur theory and production context. Includes teacher feedback, key terms and mark scheme

Compare how far the two films you have studied reflect the times they were made

‘Vertigo’ (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958) and ‘Blade Runner’ (Ridley Scott, 1982, BR) can both be seen to clearly reflect the times they were made, being released during major turning points in Hollywood cinema. Vertigo was released as Classical Hollywood changed to New Hollywood, communicating the uprising of the Civil Rights Movement^[1]as well as Hitchcock’s aversion to the ‘visual staleness’ of film. Differently, BR came out as New Hollywood was coming to an end and alludes to the post-Vietnam consumerist boom along with the introduction of high concept entertainment. However, it can be argued that auteurism is equally as important as the respective historical contexts of the films.

Hitchcock has been cited as the archetypical auteur^[2], the opening sequence of Vertigo establishing his agency through suspenseful score, experimental camera movement and technical competence. These elements work together to create his trademark, extended throughout his following films such as ‘Psycho’ (1960). The first credit is to Paramount Pictures which immediately links to vertical integration and the studio system of Classical Hollywood. Studios typically had control over a large portion of the film process, although Hitchcock was known to only keep a contract for a short period of time so as to retain a sense of ownership over his own movies. This marks him as an auteur interested in evolutionary cinema. Additionally, the score by Bernard Hermann perfectly encapsulates the predominant theme of obsession in the thriller, the ascending and descending scales on a loop manipulating our emotions to already be on edge. This mirrors the spiral structure of the narrative and the 50s fascination with psychology^[3]. Considering this, the social zeitgeist of the time appears to have some influence over Hitchcock’s product, and yet we can also observe that he uses this to shape his vision; in turn increasing his auteur status.

Similarly, Ridley Scott is well known for his glossy, atmospheric style that portrays him as an auteur. The opening of BR pays homage to The Ladd Company, but subverts its authority in alignment with New Hollywood censorship rejection. This is provided the futuristic computer graphics designed by Marsha Nakashima that fit the world of the film, reflecting an obsession with commodities post-war. After the 70s, there was a shift from more expressive modes of filmmaking as seen in Vertigo to more concentrated ideals like in BR, matching the popularity of advertisement. This indicates Scott’s auteurism and also the impact of social-political context. Deckard’s introduction furthers this where he is dwarfed in the frame by neon billboards and blimps. The rising fear of immigration is also presented by the assortment of cultures surrounding him – the noodle bar he is eating at demonstrating his acceptance of a diversified America. Moreover, genre hybridization plays a role in the institution of Scott as an auteur. In ‘Alien’ (1979), he utilizes an amalgamation of both neo-noir and sci-fi tropes, similar to how in BR Deckard’s brown trench coat relegates him to a detective position like in ‘Laura’ (Preminger, 1944) while the high-tech setting is like that in ‘Metropolis’ (Fritz Lang, 1927). The motif of sprawling cityscapes repeated in his films, a dystopian LA here and the Roman Empire in ‘Gladiator’ (2000), advances his instalment as an auteur.

Both films also feasibly reflect the social context of gender roles during the times they were made. Robert Burks, the cinematographer of Vertigo, shows the side of a woman’s face in a black and white close up at the start of the film, before the camera pans from R to L and pushes in to the lips. The allusion to sex circumvents Hays Code, a set of guidelines films had to adhere to during the Classical Hollywood period, which furthers how Hitchcock was innovative while also being influenced by movements like French New Wave^[4] that revolted against taboo sexuality. And yet, the fragmentation of the woman depicted can also be interpreted as adherence to convention, wherein the male gaze is emphasised that sticks to the dominant lens of cinema at the time and the nuclear family ideal post-WW2. Midge presents a doting housewife character in her mothering of Scottie, however she also expresses a desire for independence after the war, living alone in a large apartment with an abundance of syncretic materials around her such as the bamboo blinds. Hitchcock has been criticized for his potentially anti-feminist approach to filmmaking, such as by Kim Novak who plays Madeleine. She complained of his nonchalance to her discomfort when she articulated her concerns over the costumes, like the heavy grey suit she wears when Scottie is following her. But he also seems to show an appreciation for the changing times and dreams of women, Midge having her own aspiring business designing lingerie. This insinuates Hitchcock is a result of his time as well as his own distinct director with a specific ideology.

In comparison, both the violent acts against women in the films and the scenes where studio sets are used work together to reflect the context of the times they were made^[5]. In the scene where we first meet Midge, a studio set is distinguishable through the photographic background exhibiting Union Street in San Francisco. Studio sets were common in Classical Hollywood as this gave the production company more control and followed on from war-time restrictions. Similarly, in the sequence when Deckard goes to Tyrell Corp, a studio set highlights a constructed realism that couldn’t be achieved by filming on location (since it doesn’t exist) and relays the awe-inspiring notion of future architecture crafted by Lawrence G Paul. The design also references establishment gothic, invoking pastiche to bygone ages like 12^th century France and enhancing the postmodern attitude of the film. The editing of this scene replicates the style of Classical Hollywood, beginning with an establishing shot to orient the spectator before cutting to a close up of Deckard’s amazed reaction. This suggests that both directors intend to experiment with the film-making process in new, visionary fashions, while still referencing the 50s and 80s given the production context.

Besides this, the characters of Judy in Vertigo and Rachel in BR are both subject to violence from the male leads despite being shown as independent by living alone or defending Deckard by shooting Leon. This is obvious in the scenes where Scottie forcefully shakes Madeleine by the shoulders and shames her for lying, and Deckard orders Rachel to kiss him until she is crying and gives in. Scott has not been noted as particularly anti-feminist, directing ‘Thelma and Louise’ (1991) that follows two middle aged women looking to escape their stay-at-home lives. This directly gives women the power in the same way the Mildred Pierce-like shoulder pads of Rachel could be understood by post-feminists as the submission of a deadly femme fatale that is in the driver’s seat. Both Novak and Sean Young (who plays Rachel) have recalled their disagreement with the scenes in which they were actually made terrified of their male co-stars, reflecting the times the films were made in terms of the violent outlook towards women and also the promotion of the directors as auteurs that tend to focus on an androcentric viewpoint^[6].

Ultimately, both Vertigo and BR reflect the social, political and institutional contexts of the time periods in which they were made, to the extent that each director can also be seen as an auteur with a realised intention.

32/40 (A)

A01: 17/20, band 5 response

A02:15/20, band 4

Teacher feedback

My teacher questioned the relevance of the civil rights movement here. May have been better to speak about emerging second wave feminism as this is a topic I actually discuss in my essay ↩️
The use of topic sentences could have given my piece more structural clarity ↩️
‘The 50s fascination with psychology’ is quite a generalisation. Need to expand ↩️
German Expressionism and Soviet Montage arguably had more influence on the director ↩️
Two very different things to be talking about in the same paragraph. How do they work together? ↩️
This is less strong as it is a very sweeping statement. Again, try not to generalise ↩️

Key terms

Classical Hollywood – era of film that dominated in America from the 1910s through to the 60s, characterized by continuity editing, clear cause and effect storytelling and the control of studio systems over the final products ↩️
New Hollywood – 60s-80s, marked by auteur driven filmmaking, antiheroes and rebellion from previous cinematic norms ↩️
The civil rights movement – a social and political movement in the US lasting from the early 50s to the late 60s, aiming to end racial discrimination ↩️
Visual staleness – Hitchcock believed that film had become ‘visually stale’ in that sound was being over relied on since its introduction ↩️
Post Vietnam boom – corporate expansion, most famously in Wall Street, led to financial growth after the initial devastation to the US economy after the war (1955-1975). This added to a rising interest in consumerism during the 80s ↩️
High concept entertainment – stories like Back to the Future were built around a simple but thrilling premise, usually targeted towards men stereotypically drawn to action movies ↩️
Auteurism – A theory that the director has the most authority over a film’s creation, often having signature styles and recurring themes in their work like Hitchcock’s blondes ↩️
Experimental camera movement – the process of breaking cinematography norms to evoke emotion or abstraction ↩️
Technical competence – Ability of filmmaker to use cinematography, editing, sound design and production design at an advanced level ↩️
Vertical integration – where a film company controls the majority of the filmmaking process ↩️
Studio system – a business model in which Hollywood operated like a movie factory, and the studios within it owned production facilities, distribution rights and theatre chains ↩️
Evolutionary cinema – Seeing cinema as an evolving art form, e.g. from silent movies to talkies and technicolour. Hitchcock followed this because he coined ‘pure cinema’ which emphasised the cinema should show not tell, revolutionizing the way films were made ↩️

Social zeitgeist – the dominant cultural climate of a particular era in history ↩️
New Hollywood censorship rejection – post the collapse of Hays Code, a set of moral guidelines studios had to follow such as censorship of sexual content and profanity, New Hollywood sought to deliberately embrace the controversial themes they once weren’t able to ↩️
Obsession with commodities post war – due to the economic boom and technological advancements, Western society became driven by consumerism ↩️
Expressive modes of filmmaking – where emotion, subjectivity and visual creativity is favoured over realism ↩️
Concentrated ideals – films that convey a condensed idea such as individualism vs collectivism ↩️
The rising fear of immigration – immigration patterns started to shift dramatically in the 80s, with non-white individuals beginning to outnumber white Americans. This led to a lot of racial tension and fear of the unknown ↩️
Neo noir – a modern version of the classical film noir style, including features like high contrast lighting (like in the scene at the Police Department in BR) and moral ambiguity ↩️
French New Wave – a movement emerging in 1950s France, utilizing experimental techniques like jump cuts and parallel editing to reject tradition ↩️
The nuclear family ideal – a social model gaining prominence after WW2 that aimed to centralize a heterosexual marriage with biological children and a stay at home Mother ↩️
A desire for independence after the war – during WW2, millions of women entered the workforce in order to support their households while their husbands were soldiers, giving them a taste of financial independence. As a result, many wanted to maintain this independence when the men came home, sparking second wave feminism ↩️

Syncretic materials – Materials that have been sourced from a different country or culture, signifying Midge’s ambition to travel and be socially independent ↩️
Studio sets – sets were meticulously crafted in the Golden Age of cinema to build the world of the film ↩️
War time restrictions – During the war, studios were restricted to using sets rather than filming on location given the government regulations in place ↩️
Establishment gothic – a period in architectural history introduced by 12th century France and characterized by pointed arches, stained glass windows and decorative tracery ↩️
Pastiche – imitation art e.g. Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Pulp Fiction’; paying homage to an earlier time ↩️
Postmodern – a direct rejection of modernism: challenges objective reality and asserts that universal truths don’t exist; eclectic styles ↩️
Establishing shot – a type of shot typically used at the beginning of a sequence to set up the place, time and mood ↩️

Mildred Pierce – a character popularized by the 1945 noir classic of the same name. Not quite a femme fatale but has many of the same traits ↩️
Post-feminists – a group of women who believe the goals of previous waves of feminism have mostly been achieved and women today can be empowered through capitalism ↩️
Femme fatale – an archetype originating in film noir, characterized by a seductive woman who uses her charm to ensnare men in ruin ↩️
Androcentric – the concept that male experiences are universal, ignoring the female experience ↩️

s19-8671-01.pdf – link to 2019 past paper on Eduqas website

Contents – link to 2019 mark scheme