CONTENTS A. PRELIMINARY 1 WHY FILM THEORY? 3 i The impulse to theorize film 3 ii From film in general to particular films7 iii Various types of discourse on film 9 iv Interpretation 11 2 THE SUBJECT OF FILM THEORY 16 i Classical film theories before the mid-sixties16 ii Film and filmsig iii The subject matter of these lectures20 iv The subject of film theory21 B.BASIC ELEMENTS OF FILM THEORY 3 FILM LANGUAGE 29 i Film language is not like verbal language29 ii Film is a means of expression and also a language 31 iii Film lacks three characteristics of verbal language 32 iv Signification in film: three steps 33 v Codes 33 vi Codes specific to the cinema jjj 4FILM RHYTHM 39 i Rhythm 3g ii Music41 iii Pure cinema43 iv Film rhythm45 5 FILM DRAMATURGY 48 i Bazin's historical approach48 ii Cinema and theatre: Andre Bazin49 iii Cinema and theatre: Jean Mitry53 6 FILM NARRATIVITY 59 i Cinema and novels: Jean Mitry A history of narrative codes61 C. THE THEORETICAL UPHEAVAL 7IDEALISM IN THE CINEMA: BAZIN 73 i Introduction: two problems73 ii Andre Bazin75 iv Influences on Bazin78 v The working of idealist thought80 8 TOWARDS A MATERIALIST FILM: EISENSTEIN 83 i Bazin and Eisenstein83 ii Eisenstein's early and late films84 iii Basic vocabulary 89 iv New content, new form89 v Strike, Potemkin, October89 vi The working of materialist thought 90 9 THE IGNORED SYNTHESIS: MITRY 98 i The man Jean Mitry 98 ii Why was Mitry's work ignored and what was Mitry trying to do ?100 iii Mitry rejected materialism and idealism and was rejected by both104 iv The flaw in Mitry's Esthetiquezoj 10 CINE-SEMIOTICS: METZ I 112 i Structuralism in France in the 19605112 ii Cine-semiotics vs film theory113 iii The 'General Table of the Large Syntagmatic Category'117 iv Metz and Phenomenology119 v Metz and Mitry121 11 CINE-STRUCTURALISM 123 i The structuralist activity123 ii North by Northwest: the airplane chase sequence126 iii Philosophical and psychological discussion of the sequence130 12 THE IMAGINARY SIGNIFIER: METZ II 135 i The Imaginary136 ii The Signifier138 iii The Subject: the spectator as perceiving141 iv Processes of the mind and strategies of communication 13 DEGONSTRUGTION : 'BROKEN BLOSSOMS' 151 i Deconstruction757 ii A beautiful film152, iii Structure153 iv Narrative strategy155 v The Yellow Man158 vi The moral159 vii Sexual interrelations of the three main protagonists160 viii Sublimation162 ix The contradiction163 D. OLD QUESTIONS RAISED A NEW 14 GENRE 169 i Theorization of film genres169 ii The theory177 15 AUTHORSHIP 180 i The death of the author: Barthes180 ii The role of the reader: Eco184 iii Authorship and cinemaigo 16 NARRATIVITY: A STORY ABOUT STORIES 195 i Importance and pervasiveness of stories195 ii Various approaches to the study of stories196 17ADAPTATION 209 i BAdaptation and authorship210 ii Adaptation is a fact of cinema's history and is perhaps a necessity 213 iii Formal aspects of adaptation214 iv Ideological and political implications of adaptation218 Notes and References 221 Index 237