New Hollywood Cinema
-collapse of the Hollywood studio system: studios were bought out by
larger media companies that seek only profit amidst a recession
-rise of independent producers(smaller companies)
-Hays code lifted in 1968(censorship production code established in
1930). More sex and violence allowed onscreen
-MPAA establishes a new rating system in 1968: G(general audience),
M(Mature content), R(restricted audience, 17 and up)
New Hollywood
influenced by the freedom and energy of the French New Wave and the
style of art cinema
-generation of young film directors("film brats") that
either went to film school or were cinephiles(lovers of cinema)
-made films full of allusions or tributes to other films
-period pieces(films set in the past)
-genre revisiting(neo noir western, gangster, horror, sci-fi,
adventure, crime films)
-introducing new actors not conventionally handsome by Hollywood standards
Themes
-nostalgia
-counterculture
-loss of faith in infrastructure, government, general corruption
-anti heroes(goals aren't as clear or they aren't fulfilled)
-focus on character psychology: alienation, existential crisis, loneliness
-dissolution of the traditional family structure
-sex and love don't always lead to marriage and kids
-characters in the 20-30 age group, typically male, searching for
purpose and place in society
Styles
-no singular cohesive style; no radical attempt to reinvent storytelling
-shot in color(unless B&W by choice)
-increasing use of slow motion, zoom(telephoto lens)
-flashbacks, flash forwards, dream or drug trip sequences rendered
through techniques borrowed from the avant garde
-popular music and soundtracks
-voiceover narration(grants access to the characters thoughts)
Directors/Films
Peter Bogonovich: The Last Picture(1971)
Terrence Malick: Badlands(1973)
Robert Altman: The Long Goodbye(1973)
William Friedkin: The Exorcist(1973)
Martin Scorcese: Taxi Driver(1976)
Francis Ford Coppola: The Godfather(1972)
Steven Spielberg: Jaws(1975)
George Lucas: American Graffiti(1973)
Reception and Influence
-New Hollywood paved the way for the rise of the blockbusters(1980s).
Many earned in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
-studios began earning profits again but were no longer willing to
experiment and risk losing money
-freedom of filmmakers becomes restricted
-rise of big budget productions with aim to make big profits.
Development of saturation, advertising, and merchandising
-most of the directors from this period are still working and have
earned enough to finance their own films and build production
companies of their own
Woody Allen
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Annie Hall
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