Film
and cinema developed extensively from 1913 to 1963, both technically and
plot-wise. The Roman epic was a popular theme that cycled through during this
time. With each progression, the cinematic portrayal of the Romans was altered,
gradually growing in realism and complexity. It is this advancement that will
be examined in this paper, moving chronologically through Cabiria (1913), Ben-Hur
(1927), Ben-Hur (1959), and Cleopatra (1963). As time progressed, so
did the portrayal of the Romans in film, becoming more complex, balanced, and
realistic. This was accomplished through improvement of technology, a growing
complexity of plotline and characters, and a move toward more realistic acting.
Cabiria was made just as film was
beginning, and this is reflected in its complexity. The Romans are portrayed as
very flat, heroic characters, such as Fulvius, who selflessly endangers himself
to save a young girl along with his loyal slave. In Ben-Hur (1927), the pendulum swings in the other direction- the
Romans are simply represented as villainous oppressors. They seem almost
inhuman in some cases, with Messala being representative of this. Because film
was still so basic at the time and sound was yet to be added, the plotline and
characters had to remain fairly unsophisticated in order for audience
comprehension.
Ben-Hur (1959) is the first of these four films to portray
the Romans in a more human-like manner. Messala is still clearly antagonistic, but
he is not one-dimensional and the audience is able to understand his
motivation. This progression continues in Cleopatra.
Though the Romans are shown to be above others and the acting may not be quite
as realistic as that in the later Ben-Hur,
we see them for the first time as fractured within, rather than as a strong, cohesive,
and united force. The addition of sound to pictures was a key part in developing
film. This allowed for plotlines and characters to become more complex and
acting to become less exaggerated and more lifelike. These changes in the film
world allowed for a more realistic, complex, and human depiction of the Romans
to manifest.
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Hi Bridgette--Nice job! I agree that the addition of sound and dialogue allowed for more complex story lines. It also allowed for Romans to become individualized and more complex as characters. Antony, Caesar, and Messala (1959) all had developed and complex story lines. In Messala's case, he still wants the same thing as his 1925 counterpart (trying to revenge Ben-Hur even as he is lying on his death bed), but his character has a more elaborated background and added complexity with the technological advance of sound.
ReplyDeleteYour thesis is very strong and well-stated. I thought your introduction was a little repetitive in stating your thesis. The supporting evidence is strong and well-organized. I think the essay could be more congruent if there was some points that connected the different points of evidence. Overall, well-written and strong essay.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the addition of sound and thus real dialogue (not just the occasional intertitle) makes it easier to communicate the complexity of a movie character. At the same time, I think that it is possible to convey a lot of complexity with pantomime and solely visual means as well. We shouldn't too easily give in to the temptation to think just because something is earlier and conveyed with simpler and limited means it is therefore simple and limited.
ReplyDeleteWhen you think about Ben Hur in the colonnade in Rome, for example, both his hand-wringing, his crucified-looking pose, his facial expressions, and the fact that he is placed alone in a luxurious, but cold and deserted environment do, I think, effectively convey his conflicted emotions: for him, Rome is a golden cage that he'll never be able to enjoy unless he figures out what happened to his family back in Jerusalem.
Similarly, the scene where Miriam and Tirzah, after more than 3 years in a Roman dungeon, almost reunite with Ben Hur, but then decide not to embrace him because they are now dying of leprosy and fear to infect him, that scene seems quite eloquent and powerful to me, even though the acting is very pantomimic and exaggerated rather than naturalistic and understated.
If you want to convince me of your thesis that sound allowed actors to present characters that have more depth and are less one-dimensional, the best way would be to compare similar scenes in silent versus sound movies (lets say, the two scenes where Ben Hur and Arrius meet for the first time in the battle ship or the two in which Messala and Ben Hur meet for the first time as adults, or maybe the encounters between Sofonisba and Massinissa after the conquest of Sirta vs. the encounter between Caesar and Cleopatra in the bath) and show what sound has added to these comparable scenes in terms of complexity and depth.
Other comparable type scenes: Sofonisba's suicide vs. that of Cleopatra; Sofonisba's vs. Cleopatra's questioning of the oracle; maybe triumphal entries into cities?
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