The power of film. Part 1, Popular and memorable.

Format:

Video

Contributor:

Gabbert, Laura, director.

Suber, Howard, 1937- host.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Motion pictures--Production and direction.

Motion pictures.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (1 video file (00:40:04)) : sound, color

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] : Good Docs, 2024.

Language Note:

Closed-captions in English.

Summary:

The Power of Film is a 6-part series about the inner workings of America's most popular and memorable films. It's hosted by legendary UCLA Film School Professor Emeritus Howard Suber, Ph.D., whose insights are interwoven with dramatic clips from an incredible array of powerful and beloved movies from the last century through today. For over fifty years, Professor Suber taught directors, screenwriters, producers, and scholars the defining principles and hidden patterns of great films. The Power of Film distills these teachings into six episodes with clarity, humor, and an understanding of the history of storytelling from Aristotle to Shakespeare to Coppola and beyond. Neither a technical analysis nor a review, this series reveals the psychological underpinnings of why certain films affect viewers so deeply and can impact viewers for generations beyond their release. Using dramatic film scenes, Suber uncovers mysteries, dispels myths, and explains powerful themes that have impacted us for millennia. Though The Power of Film is about movies, it's really about ourselves. By examining the psyche of the audience, Suber ultimately inspires us — as the heroes of our own stories — to realize that we can seize our own destinies, "that we CAN change our world." A large proportion of the most commercially successful American films are quickly forgotten. A tiny fraction, however, are truly memorable, lasting from one generation to another. In this introductory episode, using iconic scenes from many of these classic films, Professor Howard Suber explores films that were both popular in their day and remain memorable. Suber reveals the overarching patterns in these lasting films and in storytelling throughout the ages. He discusses why "Oedipus Rex," "Hamlet," "Death of a Salesman," and "The Godfather" all have the title character as their titles, and why so many enduring American films such as "The Exorcist," "Boyz n the Hood," "Bambi," and "Star Wars" focus on the universal themes of family, loss, memory, and power. Contrary to conventional wisdom, most American films do not have "happy endings." A great many end with the departure or death of the main character, or a victory that is Pyrrhic. Finally, Professor Suber analyzes the way different types of power (institutional power, will power, the power of respect) operates in films such "Thelma and Louise," "Shawshank Redemption," and "Schindler's List."

Participant:

Director, Laura Gabbert ; Host, Professor Howard Suber.

Notes:

Description based on XML content.

ISBN:

9781036248291

OCLC:

1584442800

Publisher Number:

301827