by Raphael Shargel

Why does the cinema have the power to move the heart, stimulate the mind, and dazzle the imagination? How did the art of film develop from its origins to the present day? This course covers the history and aesthetics of the movies. It traces the experiments and innovations that gave rise to the modern cinema, developing a vocabulary that helps explain the variety of choices filmmakers make when they construct shots and edit them together. In each lecture, Professor Raphael Shargel introduces a period of film history, talks about its importance, covers aspects of cinematic technique, and illustrates his points by analyzing specific movies from the era under discussion. The course thus has both breadth and depth, covering the major movements in film history while at the same time focusing on key pictures worthy of study and enjoyment.

Lecture 1 The Origins of Cinema and the Grammar of Film

Lecture 2 Film Imagery and the Theory of Montage

Lecture 3 Storytelling in the 1930s and Stagecoach

Lecture 4 Citizen Kane: An American Masterpiece

Lecture 5 World War II and the Cinema of Community: Casablanca; Now, Voyager; and It’s a Wonderful Life

Lecture 6 Noir and Neorealism: Bicycle Thieves and On the Waterfront

Lecture 7 Love and the Mirror of Death: Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo

Lecture 8 Widescreen: The World Writ Large and Intimate: The Apartment

Lecture 9 The New Wave in France: The 400 Blows and Week-end

Lecture 10 The American New Wave I: Politics and Family: The Godfather

Lecture 11 The American New Wave II: The Social Canvas: Nashville

Lecture 12 The Rule of the Blockbuster
: Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark

Lecture 13 Gender, Race, and the Varieties of Cinematic Experience: Vagabond, Do the Right Thing, and Lone Star

Lecture 14 The Contemporary Maverick: Goodfellas, Million Dollar Baby, Persepolis