tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5759844.post3134231626785597240..comments2024-03-21T14:59:20.729-04:00Comments on NT Blog: The Fallacy of the Director as AuthorMark Goodacrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05115370166754797529noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5759844.post-25174533727246553072007-05-14T14:36:00.000-04:002007-05-14T14:36:00.000-04:00I wonder how long it will be before someone sugges...I wonder how long it will be before someone suggests we talk about Gospel "directors" rather than either "authors" or "editors". They are working with a story that they are not fully free to interpret as they see fit, and characters that presumably because they have a "life of their own" will not always do precisely what the "director" wants them to. Hmm...James F. McGrathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02561146722461747647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5759844.post-24002224640646246892007-05-14T09:29:00.000-04:002007-05-14T09:29:00.000-04:00The Auteur Theory is often considered a bit old ha...The Auteur Theory is often considered a bit old hat nowadays, with a move away from Truffaut et al. towards more of a recognition of film as a collaborative effort. <BR/><BR/>I think there's something in this, but the problem, to me, is that both theories try to apply a blanket approach, whereas as "ev" says above, different directors have radically different approaches. Some, such as perhaps Mike Leigh, have a very collaborative approach, at the same time it's hard to imagine someone like DeMille doing anything but get his own way. So I think you have to consider things on a case by case basis.<BR/><BR/>The other thing is that it really depends what you want to <I>do with</I> talking about the director. If you're trying to blame someone for something, then it is usually fair enough to blame them and/or the producer. In the case of Gibson's film the anti-Semitism may not have originated with him, but as both director and the ultimate financer, it's certainly his fault that those aspects of the film are present in the final product. If there's bad line in the screenplay, whilst you can (and generally should also) blame the screenwriter, the director/ producer (depending on the personnel) are also culpable.<BR/><BR/>On the other hand if you're trying to credit someone for something it's much more tricky. It may be an actor performs in a certain way, a cinematographer chooses a certain filter etc., off their own bat, but it might be that someone like, say, Hitchcock has been very particular as to how they want them to perform in that scene. So it's trickier in trying to praise than blame, and in both cases the more you know about how that person works, and how that project was conducted, the better.<BR/><BR/>Matt Page<BR/>Bible Films BlogMatt Pagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05113670876288157267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5759844.post-68829568801168478282007-05-13T20:44:00.000-04:002007-05-13T20:44:00.000-04:00I think I would tend to agree with Tyler's sentime...I think I would tend to agree with Tyler's sentiments in his post. However, it is interesting that at the Academy Awards, the Best Picture's film producers accept the award, which might include the director if she/he is also producer. But of course, there is a separate award for "Best Director."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5759844.post-27466710687800370352007-05-12T19:45:00.000-04:002007-05-12T19:45:00.000-04:00And yet Passion of the Christ is precisely, imo, a...And yet Passion of the Christ is precisely, imo, a prime example of a film where it's the direction, not the screenplay, that accounted for the anti-Judaism that individuals like myself perceived was present. If you'll go back 3 years into your vault, you'll see that I argued how the scenes with Simon of Cyrene were framed by Gibson to consistently denigrate Jewish observance. If I had simply read the dialogue of Simon's scenes, I probably would've given these an easy pass. The director's decisions made all the differenceAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5759844.post-45072084332813908282007-05-11T17:10:00.000-04:002007-05-11T17:10:00.000-04:00Hey Mark,I'm not sure that this is necessarily a f...Hey Mark,<BR/><BR/>I'm not sure that this is necessarily a fallacy, especially since auteur theory has a long pedegree in film criticism since Truffaut. While I agree that it can't be applied to every director or every film, there are some where I would think it is appropriate. Think of the films of Kubrick, Woody Allen, Hitchcock, or even the Coen brothers. I would think that Mel Gibson could fit into this category.Tyler F. Williamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06006169499862034391noreply@blogger.com