Hollywood Cinema. 2nd Ed
2004; University of Illinois Press; Volume: 56; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
1934-6018
Autores Tópico(s)Art History and Market Analysis
ResumoHOLLYWOOD CINEMA. 2ND ED. Richard Maltby. Oxford: Blackwell, 2003, 696 pp. Hollywood Cinema, by Richard Maltby is three books in one. And it would be best of all possible worlds if, like a Stephen King serial novel, Maltby's book were available in installments. The most useful and insightful volumes, in that case, would surely be one that provides an overview of film history and one that addresses criticism and theory. Maltby stakes out his ground clearly, claiming a preference for viewing film production and history through lens of economic theory; he ably sticks to his guns. This is a great aid to understanding his arguments. When considering film history, author, refreshingly, does not offer another version of star system. The subtext of his argument is that traditional histories, which argue that industry has been moved forward under direction of either tyrant or star (often in same skin), are flawed. Rather, taking economics as driving force of film history, author makes his case that film quickly became partner of big business, especially during Great Depression, when banks called in their loans and so became co-owners of studios. Once that partnership occurred, film industry became less product of glove manufacturers and sidewalk peddlers, which Maltby maintains was always a fiction supported by industry for entertainment purposes, and more product of financial and corporate power brokers. While this is an unconventional approach to film history, it makes for an altogether fresh view, even if it is less entertaining, for obvious reasons, than a mainstream approach that amounts simply to piling up more amusing stories about Carl Laemmle and Samuel Goldwyn. However, Maltby points out that it was still quite early in Hollywood's development that much of tangible value of motion picture industry lay in its ownership and control of real estate. It wasn't for nothing that film industry thrived in warm embrace of California land rush of early twentieth century. From his unique and insightful economic perch, Maltby approaches another familiar touchstone, huge turning point in film history when Supreme Court intervened in monopoly studios maintained overproduction, distribution, and theater ownership. It wasn't merely end of an era, according to Maltby, it was beginning of modern one. Maltby argues that it was this decision, in 1948, which paved way for a modern corporate approach to filmmaking and gave birth, ultimately and paradoxically, to what is now loosely called, the independent film. Of course, with smaller companies continually being swallowed whole by larger ones (Miramax and Disney, Artisan and Lion's Gate, to name two such acquisitions), concept of a true independent is constantly changing, and so one cannot easily dismiss a theorist who wants to use dominant culture theory to explain film industry. While Maltby's critique of filmmaking as a capitalistic enterprise is a welcome change for filmmakers, it might surprise him to know that his book could well find a great welcome in studios' corporate suites. For Maltby's extensive use of economic charts and breakdowns-of audiences, releases by genre, box office income, etc.-are undoubtedly stuff upon which many a production decision is made. One cannot assume that an economic critique will be misunderstood in Hollywood, but it might be dismissed. As Maltby would point out, it serves gatekeepers' interests to maintain illusion of man behind curtain, illusion that industry is run by rotund men smoking large cigars and making decisions from gut, rather than acknowledge sleek economic precision with which productions are given creative green light. Another of Maltby's strengths is his explanation of genre. Occasionally, he approaches a film and offers a straightforward critique of his own, explaining how film fits within its genre and how it has moved art of storytelling along. …
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