World Cinema - Part 1: Crash Course Film History #14

Summary

This video offers an engaging overview of influential film movements across Asia, highlighting the impact of political change on cinema. It explores Japan's postwar film industry with directors like Yasujiro Ozu and Akira Kurosawa, known for their unique storytelling styles. The rise of Chinese cinema under Communist rule, the resurgence of filmmakers like Zhang Yimou, and Hong Kong's action-packed kung fu films are also discussed. The video concludes with India's massive film industry, particularly Bollywood, and the artistry of filmmakers like Satyajit Ray.

Takeaways

• 🌏 The global film industry is vast, with significant contributions from various regions beyond Hollywood.
• 🎥 Japanese cinema was heavily influenced by political changes, including strict controls during the 1930s and post-war artistic freedom.
• 👴 Yasujiro Ozu is recognized as a master of classical Japanese cinema, known for his focus on family dynamics and unique cinematography.
• 🐲 Post-war Japanese films like Godzilla dealt with the atomic bomb's aftermath, showcasing the country's special effects prowess.
• 🎬 Akira Kurosawa became an international sensation with Rashomon, influencing filmmakers worldwide with his innovative storytelling.
• 🏮 Chinese cinema was shaped by political upheavals, including the Cultural Revolution, which temporarily halted film production.
• 🏆 Zhang Yimou is a notable Chinese director, known for his visually striking films and contributions to the Beijing Olympics.
• 🤺 Hong Kong's film industry is known for its martial arts films, with influential figures like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan.
• 🏆 Wong Kar-wai, a Hong Kong director, is celebrated for his post-modern films that explore themes of love and introspection.
• 🇮🇳 India has the world's largest film industry, producing a diverse range of films, including Bollywood musicals and regional cinema.
• 🎞 Satyajit Ray is considered a master of Indian cinema, with his 'Apu Trilogy' reflecting a more contemplative and character-driven style.

Q & A

What was the role of the Japanese Ministry of Propaganda during the 1930s?

During the 1930s, the Japanese Ministry of Propaganda exerted strict controls over domestic film production, censoring content that did not uphold the values of the Imperial government and promoting movies that celebrated the Japanese military.

How did the attack on Pearl Harbor influence Japanese film production?

Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Ministry of Propaganda took over the country’s ten largest film studios, consolidating them into two main production companies to produce pro-war movies.

Who is Yasujiro Ozu and what is he known for?

Yasujiro Ozu is widely acknowledged as one of the masters of classical Japanese cinema, known for his quiet, humanistic films about family relationships and intergenerational conflicts, with a unique aesthetic style featuring long, wide shots and innovative use of offscreen space.

What is the significance of Akira Kurosawa's film 'Rashomon'?

Akira Kurosawa's 'Rashomon' is significant for its revolutionary narrative structure, presenting the story of a murder from four unreliable narrators, suggesting that truth and reality are subjective.

How did the American Occupation forces influence Japanese cinema post-World War II?

The American Occupation forces led by General Douglas MacArthur oversaw the 'democratization' of Japan, introducing new censorship rules that forbade glorification of imperialism, feudalism, and militarism, and encouraged films celebrating democratic values and personal freedoms.

What was the impact of the Cultural Revolution on China's film industry?

The Cultural Revolution led to a halt in film production in China from 1967 to 1970, as professionals were 're-educated' and only amateur filmmakers were allowed to make movies during this period.

Who is Zhang Yimou and what are some of his notable films?

Zhang Yimou is a notable director from mainland China, known for his striking visuals and painterly style. Some of his notable films include 'Red Sorghum', 'Hero', 'House of Flying Daggers', and 'The Great Wall'.

How did the film industry in Hong Kong evolve and what are some of its notable figures?

Hong Kong's film industry is known for its kung fu and swordplay films, with figures like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan popularizing martial arts cinema. Directors like John Woo and Wong Kar-wai also made significant contributions with their unique styles.

What is unique about India's film industry and what is it known for?

India's film industry is the largest in the world, producing eight to nine hundred movies a year. It is known for its lavish musicals and mythological romances, often following strict formulas and featuring a star system similar to the American studio era of the 1930s.

Who is Satyajit Ray and what is his contribution to Indian cinema?

Satyajit Ray is a master of Indian cinema, known for his contemplative style and focus on character emotions and everyday life. His 'Apu Trilogy', consisting of 'The Song of the Road', 'The Unvanquished', and 'The World of Apu', cemented his international reputation.

Outlines

00:00

🌏 Global Impact of Asian Cinema

This paragraph discusses the global reach of cinema, highlighting the significant influence of Asian film movements on world cinema. It notes the historical dominance of Hollywood and the emergence of influential film movements worldwide. The focus then narrows to key Asian movements and filmmakers, particularly those influenced by political changes. Japanese cinema during the 1930s under strict government control is discussed, including the Ministry of Propaganda's censorship and promotion of pro-war films. Post-war developments are also covered, including the artistic freedom that led to the rise of filmmakers like Yasujiro Ozu, known for his contemplative films on family and social critique, and his innovative cinematic techniques. The paragraph also touches on the post-war changes in Japan's film industry, the influence of the American Occupation, and the rise of Akira Kurosawa, whose film 'Rashomon' became an international sensation for its unique narrative structure and philosophical themes.

05:02

🎭 Evolution of Chinese and Indian Cinema

The second paragraph delves into the evolution of cinema in China and India. It starts with the history of China's film industry, which was influenced by political changes, including the control exerted by Mao Zedong's Communist Party post-1949. The paragraph discusses the construction of film studios, production of pro-Communist films, and the impact of the Cultural Revolution on the industry. It also mentions the resurgence of Chinese cinema with directors like Zhang Yimou, known for his visual storytelling and international collaborations. The paragraph then shifts to Hong Kong's film industry, famous for its martial arts films and directors like John Woo and Wong Kar-wai. Finally, it explores India's film industry, the world's largest by production volume, with a focus on Bollywood, regional cinema, and the unique styles that define Indian films. The paragraph concludes by discussing the international recognition of Indian cinema through the works of Satyajit Ray, whose 'Apu Trilogy' brought a contemplative and realistic approach to Indian filmmaking.

Keywords

💡Hollywood

Hollywood is a district in Los Angeles, California, that is synonymous with the American film industry. Historically, it dominated the global film market for several decades, shaping the way movies were produced and consumed worldwide. In the video, Hollywood's influence is contrasted with the rise of other film movements and industries, particularly in Asia, that developed distinct styles and narratives outside of Hollywood's traditional scope.

💡Japanese Ministry of Propaganda

During the 1930s, the Japanese Ministry of Propaganda exerted strict control over domestic film production, censoring content and promoting films that aligned with the Imperial government's values. This period is highlighted in the video as a time when filmmakers were compelled to create pro-war movies, which paradoxically led to the development of advanced special effects techniques that would be influential post-war.

💡Yasujiro Ozu

Yasujiro Ozu is recognized as a master of classical Japanese cinema, known for his quiet, humanistic films that explore family relationships and intergenerational conflicts. His style, characterized by long, wide shots and innovative use of offscreen space, reflects traditional Japanese customs and beliefs. The video discusses Ozu's work as an example of how Japanese cinema developed a unique aesthetic distinct from Hollywood's influence.

💡Special Effects

Special effects in the context of the video refer to the techniques used by wartime Japanese filmmakers to create realistic battle scenes due to the scarcity of actual footage. This expertise later contributed to the post-war Japanese film industry's ability to produce visually stunning films. The video mentions how these skills were honed during the war and became a significant asset in the creation of films like Godzilla.

💡Akira Kurosawa

Akira Kurosawa is one of the most influential filmmakers in cinema history, known for his innovative storytelling and dynamic camera work. His film 'Rashomon' is highlighted in the video for its revolutionary narrative structure, which presents the same event from multiple, unreliable perspectives, challenging the notion of objective truth. Kurosawa's work had a profound impact on global cinema, inspiring filmmakers around the world.

💡Cultural Revolution

The Cultural Revolution was a socio-political movement in China from 1966 to 1976, which led to the suppression of many cultural and economic institutions, including the film industry. The video explains how this period resulted in the halt of film production and the 're-education' of professionals like filmmakers. It also discusses the resurgence of the Chinese film industry post-revolution, with directors like Zhang Yimou emerging as notable figures.

💡Zhang Yimou

Zhang Yimou is a prominent Chinese filmmaker known for his visually striking and painterly style. His film 'Red Sorghum' won the top prize at the Berlin Film Festival, and he later directed internationally recognized martial arts films like 'Hero' and 'House of Flying Daggers'. The video positions Zhang as a key figure in the modern Chinese film industry, showcasing its ability to produce high-quality films that resonate with global audiences.

💡Hong Kong Cinema

Hong Kong cinema is renowned for its kung fu and swordplay films, which were elevated to an art form in the 1960s and '70s through precise choreography and rapid editing. The video discusses how figures like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan popularized this genre, and how directors like John Woo and Wong Kar-wai have made significant contributions to global cinema with their unique styles and storytelling.

💡Bollywood

Bollywood refers to the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai, India, which is known for its musicals and mythological romances. The video explains that despite producing a quarter of India's films, Bollywood is just one part of a diverse film industry that produces movies in multiple languages. It also mentions the star system in Bollywood, which is reminiscent of the American studio era, and the importance of spectacle and music in its films.

💡Satyajit Ray

Satyajit Ray is considered the master of Indian cinema, known for his contemplative and low-key style, which contrasts with the spectacle of Bollywood. His 'Apu Trilogy' is highlighted in the video for its focus on character emotions and everyday life, earning him international acclaim. Ray's work is an example of the artistic depth and diversity within the Indian film industry, which goes beyond the popular image of Bollywood.

Highlights

Hollywood dominated the global film market for the first six to seven decades.

Influential film movements arose worldwide, impacting world cinema.

Japanese government controlled film production during the 1930s through propaganda.

Japanese filmmakers excelled in special effects due to wartime restrictions on battle footage.

Yasujiro Ozu is a master of classical Japanese cinema, focusing on family and intergenerational conflicts.

Ozu's aesthetic includes long, wide shots reflecting traditional Japanese rituals.

Ozu innovated the use of offscreen space in his films.

Postwar changes in Japan led to films dealing with the aftermath of atomic bombings.

Ishiro Honda's 'Godzilla' is a parable for the consequences of atomic explosions.

American Occupation forces after WWII introduced new censorship for Japanese films.

Akira Kurosawa became an international star with his film 'Rashomon', exploring subjective truth.

Kurosawa's films influenced foreign cinema, including 'Star Wars'.

Chinese film industry grew until the Japanese invasion in 1937 and then the Cultural Revolution.

Zhang Yimou is a notable Chinese director known for his visual style and international collaborations.

Hong Kong is known for its kung fu and swordplay films, with figures like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan.

Wong Kar-wai's films from Hong Kong examine unrequited love and character interiority.

India has the largest film industry, producing 800-900 movies annually.

Indian cinema is known for its lavish musicals and mythological romances.

Satyajit Ray is a master of Indian cinema, known for his contemplative style and the 'Apu Trilogy'.

Transcripts

News flash: the world’s a big place. WHAT!?!?!

Huh!

And humans have been making films in almost every corner of it for more than a hundred years.

While Hollywood dominated the global film market in its first six or seven decades,

lots of profoundly influential film movements arose all over the world.

Now, there’s way too much to cover in just two videos.

But, hopefully, these overviews will inspire you to explore more on your own.

To start, let’s look at a few key movements and filmmakers throughout Asia that were born

out of intense political change and had a lasting impact on world cinema.

[Intro Music Plays]

During the 1930s, the Japanese government

placed stringent controls over domestic film production through its Ministry of Propaganda.

They censored content that didn’t uphold the values of the Imperial government, and

promoted movies that celebrated the Japanese military.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Ministry of Propaganda borrowed a page from the Nazi

playbook and actually took over the country’s ten largest film studios.

Then, they consolidated these studios into two main production companies and forced them

to make pro-war movies.

Now, real battle footage from the Pacific was hard to come by, so these wartime Japanese

filmmakers got really good at creating special effects.

And that experience would come in handy after the war, when they were given more artistic freedom.

Yasujiro Ozu is widely acknowledged as one of the masters of classical Japanese

cinema, a period that stretched from 1926 to the 1950s.

Ozu began his career making quiet, humanistic films about family relationships and intergenerational conflicts.

He grew up admiring American studio films, especially those by Ernst Lubitsch and D.W. Griffith.

Ozu’s first film to achieve wide acclaim was a comedy called I Was Born, But….

The film follows a pair of brothers who lose faith in their father when they discover he’s

not standing up to his boss.

A lot of Ozu movies embed this kind of gentle social critique into their very personal stories.

Aesthetically, Ozu is known for his long, wide shots that allow entire scenes to play

out, sometimes very slowly.

This is often considered to be a reflection of the power of ritual in traditional Japanese life.

He also innovated the use of offscreen space, having characters exit the frame for surprisingly

long periods of time, and letting the camera linger on the now-empty space.

These moments echo certain Zen aesthetics about emptiness and patience.

And they root Ozu’s films in ancient Japanese customs and beliefs, even though his stories

take place in what was then the present day.

After the war, Ozu went on to make three masterpieces: Late Spring, Early Summer, and his most famous

film, Tokyo Story.

Now, the end of the war brought profound changes to the Japanese film industry.

Much of the country was scarred, both physically and psychologically, having suffered a massive

firebombing campaign and atomic explosions at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

One kind of postwar Japanese cinema dealt with the aftermath of these atomic bombs in

very direct, explicit ways.

It’s impossible to watch Ishiro Honda’s 1954 film Godzilla and not see the parable

underneath the sci-fi monster movie.

...and also not try to mimic Godzilla's noise.

Craig: ahhhh... ahhhh Nick: You're not doing a very good job.

No, I'm not doing a very good job.

The creature is unleashed by careless atomic

explosions, and the human characters spend the movie wrestling with the potentially apocalyptic

consequences of scientific research.

Godzilla and its sequels also show off the sophistication of the Japanese special effects

industry, as all that work during the war was now beginning to pay off.

After the war, General Douglas MacArthur led the American Occupation forces which oversaw

the “democratization” of Japan from 1945 to 1952.

And this brought a new kind of censorship to Japanese films.

They were forbidden from glorifying imperialism, feudalism, and militarism.

The Occupation forces rounded up and destroyed hundreds of films that were deemed anti-democratic.

Under the Occupation, the state-run film companies were broken up to foster competition, and

filmmakers were encouraged to make movies that celebrated democratic values

and personal freedoms.

One filmmaker who flourished in this postwar period was Akira Kurosawa, who would go on

to become one of the most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema.

For real. He's a big deal.

Kurosawa became an international star with his 1951 revolutionary film Rashomon.

It tells the story of the murder of a samurai warrior through the eyes of four unreliable

narrators.

We see the events of the film four times, each time from a different point of view.

And the film never tells us which version of events actually happened.

Kurosawa seems to imply that truth and reality are subjective, in both cinema and life, and

that our only hope is to be as good to one another as we possibly can.

YA, NICK!

Unlike Ozu, Kurosawa kept his camera moving,

a style he would bring to many of his later samurai films.

And he was often borrowing stories from other cultures.

His samurai movie Yojimbo was based on an American detective novel by Dashiell Hammett.

Throne of Blood was a Japanese re-telling of Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

And he used King Lear as the basis for his samurai epic Ran.

In turn, Kurosawa inspired many foreign films based on his work.

George Lucas famously lifted elements of Kurosawa’s The Hidden Fortress for the first

Star Wars film.

And Kurosawa’s masterpiece Seven Samurai has been remade twice in the United States

as The Magnificent Seven.

I guess that makes it the "Magnificent Fourteen." *giggle*

From anime to horror and period dramas to Kaiju films, stories from the Japanese movie

industry continue to resonate around the globe.

Now, in mainland China, the film industry also underwent some significant changes because

of political pressures.

The first domestic films emerged in 1905.

And within five years, a stable industry began to form, starting in Shanghai and spreading

to other coastal cities.

Sound was introduced in 1929 and China’s film industry continued to grow, until the

Japanese invaded in 1937, occupied Shanghai, and shut down domestic production until the

end of the war.

When Mao Zedong’s Communist Party took over the country in 1949, they placed control of

film production under the Minister of Culture.

During the 1950s, the Chinese government built a dozen major film studios throughout the

country and produced a lot of pro-Communist films.

In the early 1960s, the government censors relaxed enough to allow film adaptations of

several operas and novels.

Before this, works like Su Li’s Third Sister Liu and Early Spring in February by Xie Tieli

would have been considered too bourgeois to produce.

Then in 1966 came the Cultural Revolution, a violent, decade-long purge of most cultural

and economic institutions in China.

Professionals of all kinds, including filmmakers, were driven from their jobs and homes by the

Chinese government, and sent off to be “re-educated” in the countryside.

As a result, film production came to a halt in 1967 and wouldn’t resume for another

three years.

And even then, only amateur filmmakers were allowed to make movies at first.

Eventually, through fits and starts, professional filmmakers emerged from their re-education

camps or graduated from new film schools and began making movies again.

One of the most notable directors from mainland China is Zhang Yimou.

His first film, the sumptuously shot Red Sorghum, won the top prize at the Berlin Film Festival in 1987.

Known for his striking visuals and painterly style, Zhang made several notable martial

arts films in the early 2000s – movies like Hero and House of Flying Daggers – before

overseeing the Opening Ceremonies for the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

Zhang has even worked with American movie stars.

Matt Damon and Willem Dafoe play lead roles in his 2017 film The Great Wall.

This collaboration may be the first of many, since well-financed Chinese production companies

have begun to partner with American studios to make films for audiences in both countries

and beyond.

Outside of mainland China, Hong Kong has a long tradition of kung fu and swordplay films.

I just kung fu'd the eagle.

Its film industry elevated these violent genres to art in the 1960s and ‘70s, through precisely

choreographed action and rapid editing.

Figures like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan popularized this authentic martial arts cinema outside

Hong Kong.

And directors like John Woo even went on to make blockbusters within the American studio

system – films like Face/Off and Mission: Impossible II.

Wong Kar-wai is another superstar director from the Hong Kong film industry.

His elliptical, post-modern films often examine unrequited love and the deep interior lives

of their characters.

From the dreamlike lyricism of In the Mood for Love, to the martial arts grandeur of

The Grand Master, his films have had a profound influence on filmmakers throughout the world.

As big as China and Hong Kong loom on the world stage, the largest film industry in

the world is located in India.

All told, the country produces eight- to nine-hundred movies a year,

roughly a quarter of the world’s films.

So India had a growing film industry under British Colonial Rule in the early part of

the 20th century, prior to winning their independence.

They ran into trouble, though, when sound film arrived.

Because India makes films in more than sixteen languages!

When you hear the term Bollywood, for instance, that refers to film production centered in

Bombay.

These Hindi-language films make up 25 percent of Indian cinema.

Bengali-language film production occurs mostly in Calcutta, while facilities in Madras produce

Tamil-, Kannada-, and Telugu- language films.

Despite the language differences, what unifies most Indian films is their style.

Most Indian cinema consists of lavish musicals or mythological romances, all following relatively

strict formulas.

For the musicals, the saying goes, all you need is “a star, six songs, and three dances.”

The Indian star system actually resembles the American studio era of the 1930s.

Actors are chosen and groomed by the film studios, and plugged into movies built around

their personas.

Now, the most profitable movie ever produced in India is Ramesh Sippy’s 1975 film Sholay.

It’s an action-adventure film heavily influenced by Hollywood westerns, but also has its share

of over-the-top song-and-dance numbers.

The film was so popular when it was released that it ran continuously in movie theaters

for five years! I can't even hold a job for five years.

Meanwhile, the universally-acknowledged master

of Indian cinema was Satyajit Ray, whose style was different than most Indian films.

After studying as a painter, Ray found his filmmaking inspiration in Italian Neo-Realism,

especially Vittorio De Sica’s classic The Bicycle Thieves, the intimate story of a father

and son struggling to survive poverty in post-war Italy.

In 1955, Ray made his first film, The Song of the Road, which tells the story of a young

Bengali boy coming of age.

Unlike the spectacle of most Indian cinema, Ray’s film focuses on the emotions of its

fully-realized characters, and intimate moments of everyday life.

The film became a surprise international hit and won the Jury Prize at the 1956 Cannes

Film Festival.

In his next two films, 1957’s The Unvanquished and 1959’s The World of Apu, Ray continued

to follow the main character from his first film as he matured into adolescence.

These three films together are known as the “Apu Trilogy” and cemented Ray’s international

reputation and low-key, contemplative style.

Indian cinema is more than just fun Bollywood spectacle.

It’s a multifaceted film industry that, along with all these Asian film cultures,

has profoundly shaped modern filmmaking today and for generations to come.

Today, we talked about post-war Japanese cinema from Kurosawa’s samurai to Hondo’s Godzilla.

We scratched the surface of Chinese cinema, from mainland epics to the martial arts film

traditions of Hong Kong.

And we looked at India, home to the largest film industry in the world.

Next time, we’ll tackle indigenous cinema from Africa and Latin America, to maverick

filmmakers in the Middle East.

Crash Course Film History is produced in association with PBS Digital Studios.

You can head over to their channel to check out a playlist of their latest amazing shows,

like Eons, Coma Niddy, and PBS Space Time.

This episode of Crash Course was filmed in the Doctor Cheryl C. Kinney Crash Course Studio

with the help of these ministers of propaganda and our amazing graphics team is Thought Cafe.