Hollywood blockbusters & midnight movies

Question 1

major social upheavals of the 50s/60s affected cinema, especially…

Answer 1

countercultural/less commercial cinema

Question 2

the term cult film can refer to 4 things:

Answer 2

1. the film itself
2. consumption & reception
3. political economy
4. cultural status

Question 3

in terms of the film itself, cult film may include (2):

Answer 3

1. stylistic innovations
2. moral “badness”

Question 4

cult films are often critical of [1], but also [2]

Answer 4

1. the time/place in which they were made
2. complicit in other ways

Question 5

roger corman is an example of [1] and was known as [2]

Answer 5

1. a cult filmmaker
2. the b-movie king

Question 6

underground cinema has a more [1] than cult film, although the two [2]

Answer 6

1. artsy connotation
2. overlap

Question 7

underground filmmakers were diverse but linked by…

Answer 7

production & exhibition practices

Question 8

underground filmmakers often used what type of film?

Answer 8

16mm, was considered amateur

Question 9

in 1958, Mekas founded…

Answer 9

Film Culture, a major american film magazine

Question 10

mekas also co-founded (2):

Answer 10

1. a filmamaker’s cop-operative distributer
2. the anthology film archieves

Question 11

define superimposition:

Answer 11

placing one thing over another so both are visible

Question 12

in 1961, mekas started…

Answer 12

setting up midnight movies screenings in NYC that played underground films

Question 13

the broader concept of midnight movies emerged from:

Answer 13

1950s TV

Question 14

what is a head movie?

Answer 14

a movie intended for a drug trip

Question 15

define the Hollywood renaissence

Answer 15

the more realist, auteur driven studio films from the late 60s/early 70s

Question 16

the hollywood renaissence is sometimes called the

Answer 16

american new wave

Question 17

While american underground films were playing only in major urban centers, hollywood renaissance films were clearly…

Answer 17

commercial and much more widely released

Question 18

dede allen was an [1] who was integral to Bonnie & Clyde’s [2]

Answer 18

1. editor
2. departure from american mainstream movies

Question 19

dede allen has has an exceptional sense of [1] and is known for [2]

Answer 19

1. pacing
2. montage

Question 20

what are the 6 features of the hollywood renaissence?

Answer 20

1. sexually/violently graphic
2. tragic endings
3. critical of authority/middle class conventions
4. anti-heros
5. experimental filmmaking techniques
6. auteur driven

Question 21

Structure of the film industry that evolved in the 70s is important because:

Answer 21

it’s basically the structure we have today in terms of cinema exhibition

Question 22

Beginning in 1948, studios…

Answer 22

began to be dissolved for legal reasons

Question 23

after 1948, studios primarily became…

Answer 23

distributers

Question 24

one effect of studios becoming dsitributers was a rise in…

Answer 24

runway production

Question 25

define runway production:

Answer 25

outsroucing of production to the UK, where the language is the same but there were tax incentitives to make films

Question 26

the ratings system was introduced in [1] and allowed studios to market/sistrbute [2]

Answer 26

1. 1968
2. more adult-oreiented films, differating film from tv

Question 27

more severe part of the cinema recession was between:

Answer 27

1969-1971

Question 28

eblockbusters started building on the pattern of what film?

Answer 28

the Godfather

Question 29

the blockbuster format has 5 parts:

Answer 29

1. massive advertising campaigns
2. saturation booking
3. pre-sold properties
4. ancillary markets
5. high concept approach

Question 30

between 1969 and 1980, the US film industry…

Answer 30

changed more than in any other decade

Question 31

what were the 4 major changes in teh US film industry between 1969-1980?

Answer 31

1. content became much more risque
2. profits rose to hundreds of millions
3. production dropped
4. production costs rose

Question 32

define saturation booking:

Answer 32

blockbusters were distributed across the country at the same time, saturating the cinemas

Question 33

define a high concept approach:

Answer 33

an easily marketable image, story, or idea

Question 34

Jaws makes cinema a [1] rather than a [2]

Answer 34

1. sensory event
2. psychological exploration

Question 35

Jaws basically used an [1], but turned this into a [2]

Answer 35

1. explotation film distribution approach
2. mark of prestige

Question 36

Star Wars’ real contribution to film industry models was…

Answer 36

lucas foregoing some of his writer’s and director’s fees and keeping rights to merchandise and sequels