Wednesdays 10:00 to 2:00,
Cambridge, Main Floor Lecture Hall
Course
Description:This
course explores the relationship between Architecture and the development
of early and modern films. Students will look at the source and portrayal
of architectural expression in film: precedents for imagery, its relationship
to the development of early modern architecture, and its vision of the
urban future. Contemporary and futuristic architecture will also be
examined in recent films to study its expression of the vision of the
future of urban built form.
Theme
1: Early Film and Its Use of Architecture as Significant Set
September 22: first half of class
The
Cabinet of Doctor Caligari (1920) (72 minutes)
The film that forged
the dark, ominous cinematic movement known as German Expressionism - and
influenced vanguard filmmakers for generations. Werner Krauss stars as
a deranged hypnotist who spreads death through the countryside from a
ramshackle traveling carnival. In making the film Robert Wiene and designers
combined techniques of painting, theatre and film to conjure a nightmare
world of splintered reality ... boldly creating a visual representation
of insanity .. taking the art of cinema a lengthy stride into unexplored
stylistic and psychological terrain, hinting at the terrifying power the
medium might possess.
In 16th century Prague,
Rabbi Loew creates a terrifying giant golem from clay to protect his people
from their persecutors. Employing sorcery, he brings the artificial man
to life, endowing him with human emotions. Famulus, Loew’s evil
assistant, manages to take control of the Golem, commanding it to perform
sordid criminal acts culminating in the kidnapping of the Rabbi’s
beautiful daughter, Miriam. The monster, outraged by his vile misuse,
rebels and a deadly rampage ensues. With high, angular sets by famed architect
Hans Poelzig and full of wonderful imagery captured by the camera of Karl
Freund, this silent classic captivates the eye. Masterfully combining
terror and pathos, Wegener’s stiff-limbed portrayal of the golem
clearly influenced Boris Karloff’s performance in Frankenstein.
This 1920 version of The Golem is considered definitive among the film’s
many productions and is an unforgettable horror masterpiece.
Theme
2: Developing the Film and Urban Image of the Metropolis
Thursday,September
23 from 7 to 10 pm, main lecture hall, Cambridge
Fritz
Lang’s Metropolis (1926) (115 minutes)
Fritz Lang's most
famous silent film uses science fiction and spectacular special effects
to tell a story of biting social criticism. In a futuristic time and place,
an above ground city of lightness, culture and respectability is kept
going only by the enslaved proletariat laboring beneath in the underground
city: a nightmarish, cruel and dark place. An innovative and influential
film in its day and now considered one of the hippest films of the sci-fi
genre.
I have this film in
its "common" release as well as the rerelease in 2002 of the
restored version. discussion
questions(discussion
questions will combine the first 3 films)
Very rare 1930 science
fiction film about futuristic 1980 New York where airplanes have replaced
cars and features a combination of booze jokes, sci-fi, lewd sex, vaudeville
jokes. Babies are gotten through vending machines, and a trip to Mars
proves Martians to be twins, (Each set has a good over-sexed one, and
an evil homicidal one.) Pepper this oddity with bad puns, miniature effects,
and musical numbers and you got a bizarre wacky film! It stars El Brendel,
Maureen O'Sullivan & John Garrick.
This is the VHS version.
Very strange movie but with some quite interesting presentations of futuristic
architecture as well as lifestyle. discussion
questions
"Metropolis
is the new milestone in anime. It has beauty, power, mystery and above
all... heat. Images from this film will stay with you forever."
James Cameron
In the industrial
tri-level world of Metropolis, Duke Red is a powerful leader with plans
to unveil a highly advanced robot named Tima. But Duke Red's violent son
Rock distrusts robots, and intends to find and destroy Tima. Lost in the
confusing labyrinth of Metropolis, Tima is beginning a friendship with
the young nephew of a Japanese detective. But when Duke Red separates
the two innocents, Tima's life - and the fate of the universe - is dangerously
at stake. discussion
questions
In a futuristic Megacity,
a pair of Policemen take part in a raid on a religious cult’s temple.
While searching through the rubble they find a starved and weak young
girl, with angelic wings. Though they revive her, she is carted off by
a biohazard unit, and put under examination. After much deliberation,
they realize that she has simply gone from one prison into another. Together
they hatch a plan to free the girl, and show her the blue sky she belongs
in. You would think that by that synopsis, and the stunning pics, that
this was a one-shot hour-long feature film. And if you did so, you would
be mistaken. Done back in 1995, and paired up in theatres with Mimi
wo Sumeseba, this animated short was the music video presented for
the popular Japanese music duo, Chage & Aska. Running only six minutes,
forty seconds long, and featuring not a word of dialogue, this animated
short manages to tell a touching and amusing story, with only music and
imagery to guide it along. The animation is crisp, as all Ghibli fare,
but the music is every bit as fantastic as the visuals; Chage & Aska
are no J-POP idols of the week, they’ve been around for a good long
while, and as such know how to SING. I rate this right beside Mononoke
Hime for best of all time simply because of what it achieves, with
so little to work with.
Theme
3: Contemporary Variations in the presentation of the "modern"
city in an historical setting
October 13
The
Belly of an Architect (1987) (119 minutes)
Stourley Kracklite,
played by Brian Dennehy, is a man with a prodigious ego, lust for life
and may seem initially to be less than a sympathetic protagonist. He is
an architect, an artist with a vision and a mission.From the beginning,
his passion for his intellectual mentor,a fictional 18th century French
architect, Etienne-Louis Boullee, and the scientist Sir Isaac Newton,
provokes thinly veiled ridicule and skepticism from his Italian colleagues.
Even when faced with a young and ruthless nemesis, Kracklite remains indomitable.
His belly, the center of gravity, becomes a metaphor for his frailty,
his humility and his humanity. discussion
questions
Jacques Tati, the
choreographer of the charming, comical ballet that is Playtime, casts
the endearingly clumsy Monsieur Hulot as the principal character wandering
through modernist Paris. Amid the babble of English, French and German
tourists, Hulot tries to reconcile the old-fashioned ways with the confusion
of the encroaching age of technology.
Interesting view of
1960's (Modern) Paris. Intriguing filming, sets and a highlight of the "sounds" of modernity. discussion
questions
Modern noir meets
high opera in the French suspense flick Diva. Delivery boy Jules has an
opera obsession. He spends his small disposable income on sophisticated
sound equipment and manages to bootleg a live performance of his favorite
diva, Cynthia Hawkins (played by real-life opera singer Wilhelmina Wiggins
Fernandez). But Jules is spotted making the recording by shady investors
who want the tape. As if that weren't enough, a second cassette, filled
with enough evidence to topple an international drug and prostitution
ring, makes its way into Jules's mailbag. Writer-director Jean-Jacques
Beineix does a terrific job of adapting Delacorta's pulpy novel for the
screen, keeping all the excitement while adding a layer of depth. A movie
to make even a dedicated opera hater appreciate a perfectly sung aria,
Diva has enormous loft apartments, thugs galore, gorgeous visuals, and
a corker of a chase scene. discussion
questions
Theme
4: The development of the dystopic view of the urban future in architecture
and film
November 3
Alphaville
(1965) (99 minutes)
A cockeyed fusion
of science fiction, pulp characters, and surrealist poetry, Godard's irreverent
journey to the mysterious Alphaville remains one of the least conventional
films of all time. Eddie Constantine stars as intergalactic hero Lemmy
Caution, on a mission to kill the inventor of fascist computer Alpha 60.
discussion
questions
November 10
+ discussion questions from Diva, Playtime and Alphaville
Blade
Runner (1982) (117 minutes)
Rick Deckard (Harrison
Ford) prowls the steel and microchip jungle of 21st century Los Angeles.
He's a "blade runner" stalking genetically made criminal replicants.
His assignment: kill them. Their crime: wanting to be human. The story
of Blade Runner is familiar to countless fans.
The version we will
be viewing is the out of print original cut letterboxed
version (only available on VHS) that includes the voiceover narration
by Harrison Ford and some footage that was cut from the DVD release. (I
have both editions available for the class).
discussion
questions
Terry
Gilliam’s Brazil (1985) (2 hours 30 minutes)
Brazil is a surrealistic
nightmare vision of a "perfect" future where technology reigns
supreme. Everyone is monitored by a secret government agency that forbids
love to interfere with efficiency. Johathan Pryce and Robert De Niro star
with Michael Palin in this chilling black comedy directed by former Monty
Python member Terry Gilliam. When a daydreaming bureaucrat becomes unwittingly
involved with an underground superhero and a beautiful mystery woman,
he becomes the tragic victim of his own romantic illusions. discussion
questions
Bruce Willis, Milla
Jovovich and Gary Oldman star in acclaimed director Luc Besson's outrageous
sci-fi adventure. An extravagantly styled tale of good against evil set
in an unbelievable twenty-third century world. discussion
questions
The
last class of the term will showcase your film productions. These are to
be ready (dvd or tape) for presentation in this class. Please be prepared.
Pedagogic Objectives: The course is intended to develop a critical perspective of the use of architecture
in film. Students will learn to examine both the medium of film and the form
and style of architecture as they relates to the development of both film media
and culture. Students will engage in research to understand the choices and
expression of architecture used in film, as well as the relationship between
the idea of the future and its relationship to both built and natural environments.
Completion
Requirements: The course will be run in a seminar format. Each week we will view a film, discuss
its relevance to architecture, culture, environments, and the perception of
all three. Some of the discussions will take place in a “for credit” mode. Attendance is mandatory. Two missed classes will constitute failure of
the course.
Undergraduate
Requirements:
Weekly
Comments 20%: Each week I will distribute a series of "questions" regarding the
film viewed. The answers will be submitted and discussed at the beginning of
the next class.
Assignment
#1: The Review 30% A web style review of the terms' films based on the use of architecture in the
film. With the exception of the first week, students will be divided into groups
in such a way as all of the films are addressed. The review will be due for
formal in class presentation the week following the viewing. It will be discussed
by the class. The reviews will be posted on the tboake UWSA website.
Link to introduction to Dreamweaver
Tutorial link
Assignment
#2: (B.Arch.)The Video 50% The major work will be the creation of a Music/Architecture 'video' taking a
piece of music of choice and create a visual/animated/video piece that relates
selected architecture to the music. The project exposes students to a scaled
down version of the process of selecting/designing the architectural set for
film. The requirements and media will be left quite open. You may work in teams
of up to 2 students or alone. You may select your own piece of music (minimum
3 minutes in length, maximum 10 minutes). You are to create a “video” that uses architecture and architectural images in such a way as to support
the music, and vice versa.
Graduate
Requirements:
Weekly
Comments 20%: Each week I will distribute a series of "questions" regarding the
film viewed. The answers will be submitted and discussed at the beginning of
the next class. The topics of the weekly questions given
to the class at large will be designed to feed into the research essay requirement.
Assignment
#1: The Video 40% The major work will be the creation of a Music/Architecture 'video' taking a
piece of music of choice and create a visual/animated/video piece that relates
selected architecture to the music. The project exposes students to a scaled
down version of the process of selecting/designing the architectural set for
film. The requirements and media will be left quite open. You may work in teams
of up to 2 students or alone. You may select your own piece of music (minimum
3 minutes in length, maximum 10 minutes). You are to create a “video” that uses architecture and architectural images in such a way as to support
the music, and vice versa.
Assignment
#3: Research Essay 40% M.Arch. Students will be responsible for a 5,000 word research paper. The research
papers will address a series of topics that will attempt to identify and connect
different themes in the development of the use of architecture and urbanism
in modern film. Such topics will include: representation of the metropolis,
environmental change, transportation, methods of presenting architecture (sets,
backdrops, live shoots, digital media), cinematic devices, shooting angles and
positions, light and darkness, etc. The research paper is to be submitted in
full essay format, illustrated, with proper footnoting and a bibliography of
references.
References:
Required: Deitrich Neumann, editor. Film Architecture from Metropolis to Blade
Runner. Prestel, 1999.
Mark Lamster, editor. Architecture
and Film. Princeton Architectural Press, 2000.
Recommended: Donald Albrecht. Designing Dreams: Modern Architecture in the Movies.
Hennessey + Ingalls, Santa Monica, 2000.
Maggie Toy, editor. A.D. Architectural
Design Profile no. 112. Architecture and Film. Academy Group Ltd. 1994.
Francois Penz, editor. Cinema & Architecture: Melies, Mallet-Stevens, Multimedia. British Film
Institute, 1997.
Thomas Hine. Movie Houses.
Architectural Record. 04.02.
Terry Smith, editor. Impossible
Presence: Surface and Screen in the Photographic Era. University of
Chicago Press, 2001.
Avoidance of Academic
Offenses
Students are expected to know what constitutes
academic integrity, to avoid committing academic offenses, and to take responsibility
for their actions. Students who are unsure whether an action constitutes
an offense, or who need help in learning how to avoid offenses (e.g., plagiarism,
cheating) or about rules for group work / collaboration should seek guidance
from the course professor, TA, academic advisor, or the Undergraduate Associate
Dean. For information on categories of offenses and types of penalties,
students should refer to Policy #71, Student Academic Discipline, http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infosec/Policies/policy71.htm
Students who believe that they have been wrongfully or unjustly penalized
have the right to grieve; refer to Policy #70, Student Grievance, http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infosec/Policies/policy70.htm
