I. Film represents a unique experience found nowhere else.
A. Images demand the medium of film and its own analysis.
B. Sometimes only scenes are required to capture a filmÆs
C. Images objectify moments captured in time.
D. Film art is the totality of a film, the collection of
its scenes or parts into a unified whole.
A. Casablanca is classic film art due to its mythic
subtext, sense of history, a timeless plot and
B. Casablanca is a film adaptation more successful than its original source.
C. CasablancaÆs popularity stems from its mythic
foundation, one that promises hope through change and
D. We individually identify with the main characters of
E. Casablanca is a slice of history, a slice of Europe,
but mostly a slice of America in its symbols and
F. At one point in Casablanca, history and myth separate
and history becomes lost in the myth generated by the
G. The film is also a political criticism of isolationism
and neutrality in the face of a threat to civilization.
Chapter 9, Film Analysis, reveals how the medium of film is one that is unique and ôàcannot be found elsewhere,ö (Film, YEAR, p. 297). Film is the only medium that can turn emotions and ideas into images that are visual and lasting. Because of this, particular moments or scenes in films often come to ôàcapture the essence of film,ö quite often because images, sounds and other aspects of film are able to provide ôàeloquence without words,ö (Film, YEAR, p. 298).
If film is able to use images in ways that poets use words, then they also incorporate many elements of visual arts like expressionism or surrealism in the presentation of such images. Favorite scenes or images from film often freeze emotion in time, objectifying emotions or ideas in ways that enable us to vicariously participate in them. Film provides
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