Cinema and modernity 9780813538150, 9780813538167

Table of contents :
Frontmatter
Acknowledgments (page ix)
Introduction (MURRAY POMERANCE, page 3)
Dark Utopia
"The Shock of the New": Electrification, Illumination, Urbanization, and the Cinema (LUCY FISCHER, page 19)
The Endless Embrace of Hell: Hopelessness and Betrayal in Film Noir (WHEELER WINSTON DIXON, page 38)
Mass Murder, Modernity, and the Alienated Gaze (STEVEN ALAN CARR, page 57)
Modernity and the Crisis in Truth: Alfred Hitchcock and Fritz Lang (WALTER METZ, page 74)
Capital Advances
Performing Modernity and Gender in the 1930s (GWENDOLYN AUDREY FOSTER, page 93)
The Capital Shape of Science Fiction Heroes to Come (REBECCA BELL-METEREAU, page 110)
False Criticism: Cinema, Bourgeois Society, and the Conservative Complaint (CHRISTOPHER SHARRETT, page 130)
Strange Personality
Miles Davis and the Soundtrack of Modernity (KRIN GABBARD, page 155)
Experiment in Terror: Dystopian Modernism, the Police Procedural, and the Space of Anxiety (WILLIAM LUHR AND PETER LEHMAN, page 175)
Fuller, Foucault, and Forgetting: The Eye of Power in Shock Corridor (DAVID STERRITT, page 194)
Nothing Sacred: Modernity and Performance in Catch Me If You Can (MURRAY POMERANCE, page 211)
On the Move
Legacies of Weimar Cinema (PATRICE PETRO, page 235)
Getting Lost on the Waterways of L'Atalante (TOM CONLEY, page 253)
Fast Talk: Preston Sturges and the Speed of Language (JOE McELHANEY, page 273)
Modern Thoughts
Modernity and Cinema: A Culture of Shocks and Flows (TOM GUNNING, page 297)
Film, Modernity, Cavell (WILLIAM ROTHMAN, page 316)
Index (page 355)

Citation preview

CINEMA AND MODERNITY

2h DEERE SSSI EESTI NSD SOc ce TUS eta ec ate cated ated eda eaterecaparetengeiegnncetegnnetenceoetanettats

Cen ce cc accrrcccrc cece Dee te NTE Ee TEC ILM last tee nagar eeengetetnata anesetrsnan getty sabes hesmianispatarceagassnecanenmerssccasasehg greece cr CO2e eh 2 ET IT ES ea ay copeeedantoene eae apetenegeeecteantnanaticepeeeness

SUGRIGPTOnTMES RSE STON Sst PISS Naa ORS SOT SES TOS IIIS SEROTEC So IE SRS OSES SSNS OSES ORS So NESSES SER ERE CHD OO OR Eee RN SOREN SESS SES eR

11 OESTRONE SESH ICT nntitay appt tera anette sateensnaanstenngn eemannatpenrniy sleet sen I SU US SN Re Ch ASU aes ee ene ceneapeehcupetteg cite begin jathoaete ya piemencantra ugrteasaenegh ta ecriettesetaneeetatenetnesteee

1S SIDE I IU Ue, Ch pe ea CIE Reon neine testtcaaeena ig eitite motaonuatnenu steps Cutie a SS eS SOT IS git eee SBR RS TICE Sc EST Sn a Ua centiagteegtieetaetae,

pg EL OSES ISU TOT Se ccc nee eigenen eT ISIS EDULE IEEE) Tah SUDO EuT EES ESS an ae eae a acca aetna fata t sy hte ee settee te atagtatat apes saeleglealageforeteetesngsnenegurenagetegen sees seatioehln tesa tenses sta oneneerenacenehegathcecegan seat UD IITA ISS 0 ACEO LH anc seeeiatieteneneietetanereeneees et

we nie DEEP OES SES OS TST, LEER OSETIA UE OSU TIO RE eget anaunseeuetegnchetannsceneg gga statin Sig SMCS ENR aL arene

THEE IISISD RSIS ISAC ISIS ae cree cones reaeearpereeeeley IN) DUET MIST NS SOU US Ec rela Lee aa ee eeetebeisoed aM estes peevberepensennbelesante ete pesinens iaesetelegepioey neneetety eletgnetene sate egatayence encanta iaate entree esate en an ce UNS Aen SCE eee LOTT en otter

“ “thon Ban

RUTGERS | 7 UNIVERSITY

PRESS New Brunswick,

| NEw JERSEY,

AND LONDON | |

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Cinema and modernity / edited by Murray Pomerance.

p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN-13: 978-0-8135-—3815—-0 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-—0-—8135-—3816-7 (pbk. : alk. paper)

1. Motion pictures. 2. Motion pictures—Social aspects. I. Pomerance, Murray, 1946— PN1994.C4885 2006

791.43 -—dc22 2005020076 A British Cataloging-in-Publication record for this book is available from the British Library.

This collection copyright © 2006 by Rutgers, The State University

Individual chapters copyright © 2006 in the names of their authors All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. Please contact Rutgers University Press, 100 Joyce Kilmer Avenue, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8099. The only exception to this prohibition is “fair use” as defined by U.S. copyright law.

Book design by Adam B. Bohannon

Manufactured in the United States of America

For Abraham Kaplan 1918-1993 who taught me to think of beauty and showed me anyone

Acknowledgments _ ix

Introduction 3 MURRAY POMERANCE

Dark Utapia “The Shock of the New”: Electrification, Illumination,

Urbanization, and the Cinema 19 LUCY FISCHER

The Endless Embrace of Hell:

Hopelessness and Betrayal in Fim Noir 38 WHEELER WINSTON DIXON

Mass Murder, Modernity, and the Alienated Gaze 57 STEVEN ALAN CARR

Modernity and the Crisis in Truth: Alfred Hitchcock and Fritz Lang 74 WALTER METZ

Capital Advances Performing Modernity

and Gender in the 1930s 93 GWENDOLYN AUDREY FOSTER

The Capital Shape of Science Fiction Heroes to Come 110 REBECCA BELL-METEREAU

False Criticism: Cinema, Bourgeois Society,

and the Conservative Complaint 130 CHRISTOPHER SHARRETT

Strange Persanality Miles Davis

and the Soundtrack of Modernity 155 KRIN GABBARD

t ° a W i , .. er ee ee

ee se . Co nN 1 CC S m _o ee S t *Or d° r>) e . e & eee = Scene R ere & aSeueeeen > Seer senrenenene uAVID See: Perens D> ] ( 2s eet Seer ) nN . ce oes EE eae O r e Se SUSE eee . . Sere Peres e inW'1 °n SOS een ce ee See9 eee §SAERISERERSS orrid —Se

inTi Lerror: Experiment tn eo

e | , iSe i= ystoplan Moderni }

ee SE See teueumnene Ponenenaananhe serie

Baomcnaais Paoraecnenas Bechara Se PEBacon Ss See Se

> bd eee Eee eaoo Ce an Eerie ee ;M® °4)OR‘1)m&Y is es l C SRS esfspee ae . "e™ = =—SE e ee ee elm ; = ee P1 — i. .I )emeen Ye O st ee > mm — 1e

Pei Sees eae SeonSERS Eis Se ‘welsletatets SSR a Beran ore Nee

SEreece create oe scien ee Pee eee .

T 4 ng iennienenatans: ENS Seteumonmccne See erOSceceeeans Sede rSRA Bocce Ry SeaSceece nN |Soeuneeenaen: SEE: See ation See r€ ;Bos ee es erteenennies Soames sae eee See Soseecen

in S

N O tl °

ee ; © Mi pL one ee. Sees ee eee ee ee se eons a At 4 Pt “agahaeaarara rns es eee arremneneae

ee — Sees eRe

Een sn9

eee = eeeee° ;-See eee os- 3Lee isan a

RS SS

O ~ ee aaalK: Saas tn Eee ee aee ee Co ° eee BRS ees 1 Py ey Rese ema es oe ee UuO t U Eee Bees pee ed ene ee G See SEES eee .bYmeee ee en ee > veeee rr fYees °

ar (

esreesseseratoney ea eleteleasigaetetetteiete ‘ eeeeteee Stites SRK eleteteteteatetts

ee omens Serene

setetetenetegenenses sieitatettetatetetteee sreceraterctarsreyschamsees steteterecetoneedteestons rotetetotatetetetetatetaret: EASE setetetetatatatetrcetesene sotatateratenettetates ss setatetetecetebetatatesee atchotatetetateretate melaretaretens!

f Fe ta al if. pe eee Sees Seo Preston S essence Sees axtu r e S eT ee O —rr— a — # & feBS ¥ Boe Fr N i. ae caer a

See estate ste Reesersnoens See

Ue aoe eee See

Settee decane eeceeecegs sssoccentrvescanes setae: atetatetate:

Sees ean Ss Seen So

“ ee ee

gaemient ee so Eee oe eeamae Seobenms secesinetentttenytes ites aren tatetatas ESS rete

eee aedBese ee See ee Sewanee

e ee

See Se an Se Sees Sears T tewe) M OW Ed ee Eee ij RE Pe S ) 9 ns EOS Sees «

Boreonanon See Sees e Seoeeeeeeas Recaananey eae Seuuseoweaeae oteeeneanen Rosenanonn Be

EES setae Bane ER meio Seen eons Shean

ite eee hoto Cred it — Ind ex3 guages See Co i |es OrKsS =r Chl ° Borseana as ee

e r Nn Film, Modernity, C iiiA

PN

l a sg ncaeastapasncasenasi

sets BER eR Soe se rereraeetereereeeetreeeet ete, meee Enea 3 saheuennncannnn

Se SS ran ee oat

=°° -- =. ee

M

"

ee

es SE

a Nn

See

ous setae Eee Seay nest See ee not Becca ——————

— =. oeis. ey Sao Ree SP Be

SE Se

ee ieeroenceunena

See

Reena

Seeeee Seas Baa Bx gma ee Ea Peener ee

ee ee eeees- ee See ee aks secretes secteiesteaes .

eee ee

Bacon Pec ome See eee Pee Sees See See See eeeeee See SS SEE 2PSone Se Barseearann vee SEES eee

= |— Ss ff So eee ee ee Ee ey Serene eg eeeee Seeeee ee

BLANK PAGE

For assistance, road directions, and generosity of many — kinds on the long route to this publication, I am grateful = to Scott Bukatman, Bruce Elder, Lester Friedman, Eve i

Goldin, Krin Gabbard, Barry Keith Grant, Nathan =< Holmes, Matt Justice, David Kerr, Ann Martin, Susan