Run Lola Run and The Best of the History of Film

This week we focused on New German Cinema, lasting from the late 1960’s into the 1980’s. Beginning with the Oberhausen manifesto in 1962 when 26 young filmmakers got together and stated they were tired of “papa’s cinema”. It was a call to arms to establish a “new german feature film”. Common themes in this movement were criticizing the bourgeoisie, attempting to reconcile a brutal past, marginalized groups, alienated youth, the limits of a liberal democracy, and journalistic integrity. Many, if not all, of these themes are still relevant today, more than 50 years after the signing of the Oberhausen manifesto. Three very popular genres in Germany in the 1950’s and 1960’s were krimis, sauerkraut westerns, and the sex comedy. The first krimi of this era, produced by Preben Philipsen, was  Der Frosch mit der Maske which was based on The Fellowship of the Frog. this film was very successful and began a trend of crime films known generally as the krimi, an abbreviation for the German term “Kriminalfilm” or “Kriminalroman”. Some examples of a krimi are: The Terrible People (1960), An Alibi for Death (1963), and Angels of Terror (1971). Sauerkraut westerns were basically movies with a low budget about the old west that were filmed, produced, and created by germans. These types of films made Germany relevant in this period of filmmaking. Some key directors of this era were Werner Herzog, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, and Wim Wenders. Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972), The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979), and Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979) are some key films from this era. Rainer Werner Fassbinder influenced Richard Linklater and Quentin Tarantino. Richard Linklater was involved in movies such as Boyhood (2014), and Dazed and Confused (1993). Quentin Tarantino directed some very famous movies such as Pulp Fiction (1994) and, my personal favorites of his, the Kill Bill duo (2003 and 2004).

This weeks screening of Run Lola Run was very intriguing. The reading said that there is something for everyone: romantics, rave enthusiasts, chaos theorists, adrenaline freaks, film critics, and scholars. I definitely have a wide variety of  interests and this movie certainly kept me engaged the whole time. This film is definitely meant to be not only for Germany, but also for international consumption. I was honestly quite confused when Lola got shot in the first round of trying to save Manni. I really loved the slight differences that occurred each time to produce a different outcome until Lola finally got it right. The fast pace of the editing was definitely a representation of the fast pace of the new Berlin. Lola represents not only visual pleasure and fantasy but she is athletic, powerful and determined. Lola’s greatest strength in the film is her determination. She is able to will away death (Manni’s and her own) and she managed to get the money needed to save Manni each time. One very interesting thing the reading brought up was the gender roles in the film. Manni is in the same spot for basically the whole movie, infantilizing him and making him basically helpless throughout the entire film. Lola is running around and trying to get the money to  save Manni the whole time while he is stuck in the phone booth, switching the gender roles.

This course has covered everything from the invention of the moving picture with Thomas Edison and the Lumiere bros. all the way to the 1990’s with Run Lola Run. I really loved learning about Charlie Chaplin. I really wish we would have watched more of the 1992 movie about him. I definitely related to him in the way that he took his pain and suffering and turned it into something funny and accessible.

The first full length film we watched in class was Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927). This film really stuck with me because of the plot twists and sweet moments in it. The whole time, I thought the man was going to kill his wife and run away with the woman. I absolutely loved when he decides not to kill her and takes her on a nice day in the city.

The Bride of Frankenstein (1935) was a surprisingly relatable film. I completely agree with the fact that this film was deemed the “crown jewel of universal”. I was truly touched when the monster made friends with the old blind man in the forest. I was however disappointed that you don’t really meet the bride until the very end of the movie.

In my opinion, Grand Hotel (1932) was the epitome of 1930’s glamor. Both Joan Crawford and Gretta Garbo were fabulous and gorgeous throughout the entire film, although i do agree with professor Schlegel that Gretta Garbo completely stole the show. I also feel that this film definitely romanticised Berlin for me. The overall vibe of this film was elegant and, as stated in the title, grand.

The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) was an eye opening viewing for me. This film is an honest look at what soldiers deal with when returning from war. Although the whole class didn’t have to watch this film, I think everyone definitely should. Granted this movie is about soldiers returning home from war, I think there is something that everyone can relate to in this film. Whether it’s being afraid someone won’t love you for your flaws, or being anxious to return home after a long time, there’s something just about everyone can relate to.

By far one of my favorite things we covered in this class is the phenomenon of cult and midnight movies. The major economic distress in the late 1960’s paired with a shift of taste in the american population brought midnight movies to the spotlight. Midnight movies started as late night showings of older movies such as Reefer Madness (1936), Freaks (1932), and Night of the Living Dead (1968). This evolved into movies such as The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), El Topo (1970), and Pink Flamingos (1972). A large part of these midnight and cult movies was participatory culture. The best example of this participatory culture is The Rocky Horror Picture Show. There was a call and response when seeing this movie in theaters that resembled a church setting, hence the term cult. I think this is why I love cult movies, specifically The Rocky Horror Picture Show, there is a sense of belonging, even in a theater of complete strangers. Having been in a production of Rocky horror, it really is a bonding experience with cast members and the audience.

Overall, I absolutely loved this class and all of the material covered in it. This class exposed me to things i probably would have never sought out on my own.

Midnight Movies and the Rocky Horror Picture Show

This week, we talked about cult movies, midnight movies, and watched one of my favorite movies ever, Rocky Horror Picture Show. There are several things that contributed to the rise of midnight movies. One thing was major economic distress in the late 1960’s. The infrastructure of the film industry was fragile. TV and independents were also competing for viewers. In the late 1960’s, people’s tastes were also changing. Because of the more risque films of the late 1960’s, viewers wanted more from the 1970’s. Another reason midnight movies became so popular is film brats. Film brats are people who were raised on film criticism. They grew up film literate because of movie theaters. They watched european and hollywood films which resulted in a different aesthetic of movie making. Scorsese, Spielberg, and Ron Howard are a few film brats. Art cinema brought about the anti hero which is very popular in midnight movies. An anti hero is basically a main character that lacks classic heroic attributes such as idealism, courage, and morality. Anti heroes start to be found in media such as: MASH, Midnight Cowboy, and Bonnie and Clyde. One early cult movie we talked about is Jaws (1975). Jaws was one of the first films to be vertically integrated. This means there were video games, soundtracks, books, VHS tapes, and comic books as well as many other types of merchandise released for the franchise. Jaws was very much a return to 1950’s spectacle films. The Poseidon Adventures (1972) was a film with several new aspects that were important to the 1970’s. First, it had the anti hero. Hackman’s preacher was all about taking matters in to your own hands. He had gotten kicked out of the church for the most part because of his preaching style. This film had major plot twists, mainly, primary characters dying. This now let supporting actors carry the film. The character actor becomes the leading man in The Poseidon Adventures because main characters are killed off. This film also demonstrates the anti authority vibe of the 1970’s.Midnight movies started with midnight showings of older movies such as Reefer Madness, Freaks, and Night of the Living Dead. Midnight movies helped define cult movies. A huge part of cult movies is audience participation. A prime example of a cult movie with audience participation is Rocky Horror Picture Show. Two of the leads, Brad and Janet, are portrayed as wholesome… at first. Every time Brad’s name is mentioned, the audience says asshole, and for Janet it’s slut. When Brad and Janet’s car breaks down, they find themselves at the castle run by Dr. Frankenfurter. They quickly get “welcomed” to the culture of these strange people. The story is very symbolic of the late 60’s and 70’s in the way that two of the main characters start off pure and wholesome and slowly turn against previous ideals.

The French New Wave and Bonnie and Clyde

In the 1950s and 1960s, the french new wave was breaking almost every convention of film making known to man. When american filmmakers saw these edgy french films, they just had to make their own. This led to the “Hollywood Renaissance”. The 1967 removal of the Hays Code brought in the MPAA rating system; this allowed filmmakers to make films sexier and more violent than ever before, as long as they had a certain rating. These films were largely anti establishment and aimed to break the barriers of race, religion, and sexuality.
This weeks screening of Bonnie and Clyde was a very interesting one. I always knew that Bonnie and Clyde were famous lovers and criminals, but I never knew to what extent. This movie made robbing banks and living on the run from the law look fun. I never thought I would watch something that made me want to go out and commit crimes, but I was wrong. This movie was filled with fun and laughs but also with truth and adventure. The scenes where they’re being chased by law enforcement are probably my favorites because of the fun they seem to have and the jaunty banjo music in the background. Another of my favorite scenes was when they picked up Eugene and Velma. I was so stunned to see Gene Wilder chasing the Barrow gang. I really wish that they would have kept them longer. I would have loved to see how they reacted to a bank robbery or a shootout with the cops.

Exploitation, AIP, and New Technology

The 1950s was a time for new ways of making movies. American International (AIP) really changed the movie making game. AIP used a short allowance of time and money to get creative with ideas, props, and using actors that weren’t well known. Since these movies were not very well made, the theaters offered these films to the public as double features. AIP gained popularity largely because most of their movies were directed towards teenagers. Parents were outraged by these films because they promoted teen rebellion. These movies were largely without parents or rules. A few of these movies are Beach Blanket Bingo, and Wild Angels. One of the stars of Beach Blanket Bingo, Annette Funicello, was originally involved with Disney and Walt got angry when Annette worked on this movie because her belly button was showing. He said that she was his “little girl” although she was over 18.

All these draws to the theaters were necessary because of a technology new in the 1950s, television. Television brought films and news right into people’s homes so they stopped going to the movies. This brought exploitation film double features to the spotlight. People were fascinated with the new movies with blood, guts, violence, and sex. The new exploitation movies brought many people back to the theaters. The movies about sex drew many men to the theaters, even the respectable ones. Until this point, the movies were way behind printed media regarding sex, so everyone was interested in what these exploitation films had to offer in the way of sex.

The 39 Steps and The Best Years of Our Lives

Watching and researching The Best Years of Our Lives was honestly a really valuable experience for me. It gave me a look into the lives of vets and their families as well as social and film aspects of the time. One very important thing I saw in the movie was Fred’s dream. Today, PTSD is addressed, treated and talked about, but in the film, it was just something that happens and isn’t talked about. The only thing that was done was placing them in smaller combat groups so their social interactions would be limited. Millions of soldiers were discharged from WWII for psychiatric reasons and medical personnel were baffled. The vets felt like strangers to their town and families when they came home. They had to re meet their wives and children. This is evident in the scene when Al goes home and tells his wife he didn’t even recognize his own children. Homer’s hooks especially interested me. He could do just about everything with his hooks that anyone else could do with their hands. The 40’s boomed with new medical technologies because of all the injuries from WWII. I was also quite surprised at how long the film was for the time. Saying that, it went by rather quickly because it was interesting from start to finish.

Alfred Hitchcock was praised for his directing of the scariest movies of his time. Some of his most famous are: Psycho, The Birds, and Rear Window. The 39 Steps was one underappreciated movie that Hitchcock directed. This movie had it all; it was sexy, dark, and funny. At first, I thought Hannay was going to end up with the spy woman, until she got killed. It became very clear he was going to end up with the woman on the train as soon as we saw her. I thought she was gone forever once he got off the train, but much to my surprise, she  showed up while Hannay was on stage pretending to be someone important. Overall, I thought the film was romantic, suspenseful, and intriguing: very on brand for Hitchcock.

The Bride of Frankenstein and Soviet Contributions

Before the screening, I thought this week’s film, The Bride of Frankenstein, was going to just be your stereotypical cheesy horror movie. I was so wrong. At first I thought it was hilarious because of the woman’s over exaggerated screams and flamboyant reactions. Even when the man and the wife who had lost their daughter in the beginning were both drowned by the monster, I still felt like the film was cheesy and stereotypical. It was only when the monster found the old man who played music that my feelings and predictions of the film changed. The monster seemed more real once he found the music. He seemed to soften and become a whole “person” with this old man. The old man noticed him listening and invited him in. This scene was honestly so touching. We find out that the old man is blind and because of this, he is kind to the monster. Then, its right back to the comedy when the man teaches the monster to speak. “Food” “drink” “smoke” “fire” “good” “bad”. This was probably my favorite scene, or one of my favorites, in the whole movie. This brief kind scene was interrupted by the two men who were lost. One of my favorite scenes turns in to one of my least favorite scenes in the movie. The men see the monster and go after him, attack him, and in the process the old blind man’s house gets destroyed and set on fire. The worst part is when the two men take the blind man away and we never know what happens to him. After watching the film, I understand why they call it “the crown jewel of universal”.

The Soviets contributed a great deal in terms of editing films. Some would argue that Eisenstein contributed the most in the way of editing. He made juxtaposing popular and it gave films new meaning without using words to describe the situation.Eisenstein wasn’t worried about how the cutting of the film would look, but he was concerned about doing purposeful cuts to vital information. Scenes were spread out, an example being the baby carriage falling in the Odessa Steps Sequence from Battleship Potemkin. This scene is packed full of suspense because it takes several shots to get to the resolution and see that the man has either hit the baby, or the woman but you don’t know which because of the editing. The Soviets also trained artist-engineers to produce work to show the importance of new technology. They were concerned with producing work as propaganda for the new communist state. The All Union State Institute of Cinematography trained actors and technicians in Agitki. Agitki is political propaganda newsreels that were edited especially to spread propaganda and agitate the people.

“They acknowledged the powers of planes, automobiles, and locomotives, of dynamic machines, to transform time and space.” This quote interested me because, even then, they relied on technology to make movies and special effects. Even if a film is trying to be futuristic, the technology definitely dates the film.

Sunrise – FW Murnau and Early Film

Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans by FW Murnau was ahead of its time both in editing and in storytelling.  This movie had excellent transitions, such as in the opening scene with the train, going from a drawing to the movie. One might argue that the plot in Sunrise is better than some modern films.





The many plot twists in the film keeps the viewer hooked and on the edge of their seat the entire time. In the beginning, everyone knows that The Man is seeing The Woman From The City in secret. She tries to convince him to come away with her to the city. The Man is worried about his wife and The Woman From The City says he should kill her and sell his farm. He struggles with his decision. I see this as the competition between farms and factories in the industrial revolution. Obviously, The Woman From The City represents the beauty, grace and, charm of city life, and his wife represents the comfort, safety, and work of rural living.





I was quite shocked when The Man didn’t end up killing his wife. I questioned how the movie would go on while the wife was still alive. “How could he start his new life with The Woman From The City with his wife still alive?” I asked myself. Murnau did not disappoint with his response. I was absolutely bewildered at how easily his wife forgave him. The Man had attempted to kill her not even an hour before, and then he realizes how wrong he was while sitting in on a stranger’s wedding with her.












The incident at the barber shop with the man on the bench hitting on The Man’s wife makes me think about the ad that had come up in the newspaper about buying farms and farmland. I believe the man on the bench represents factories and industry wanting to buy farmland, and the wife, as stated before represents farm life. This man on the bench is a metaphor for factories taking over farmland. At this point, you know that the man is truly sorry about almost killing his life and wanting to stay on the farm because he makes it very clear to the man on the bench that she is his wife and not to mess with her.







The rest of the day in the city is quite light and comical. My favorite part is the pig chase. It is absolutely hilarious when the pig starts drinking the wine that has been spilled on the ground and starts slipping and falling. This scene also shows that the man was meant to live on a farm. He catches the pig with ease while everyone else was afraid of it.





















At the end of the night, all is well and it’s time for them to sail home. The Wife falls asleep in his lap on the boat. Soon after, a storm starts to make the waters choppy and unstable. The Man remembers the rushes he had stashed in the boat to save himself and ties them to her. The boat overturns and The Man safely finds his way to shore, but the wife is nowhere to be found. He gets everyone he can find to go out on the water and look for her. He is frantic.  The Woman From The City watches from a tree limb. The Wife is seen floating unconcious, but nobody knows where she is. They find the rushes but not The Wife, so they assume she’s dead. The Woman From The City believed that he had gone through with their plan, but he was actually devistated and thought his wife was dead. The Woman From The City goes to The Man’s house to collect him to run away together, but he reacts violently, strangling her, until he hears The Maid calling that she has been found and he lets her go.





This movie is a superb representation of film and storytelling in its time.





There are several scenes that have excellent editing that I have inclueded images of below.