Final.

1.     Universal, Warner Bros, and MGM were the three major film studios during the first half of the 1900s. Universal Pictures was known for its monsters, creating many popular horror films such as The Bride of Frankenstein and The Mummy. Warner Brothers was home to the gangster films, showing the darker side of society and contrasting the glamour of MGM with its many musicals.

2.     The studio system allowed for films to be produced efficiently and quick. They hired actors and crew on contract so that they would have the talent available to create their movies. The disadvantage to this system was the lack of freedom for the hired talent, who could not choose the work they did, leading to resentment and disintegration of the studio system.

3.     One reason for the decline of the studio system was the loss of important talent within the studios as actors and directors began working on independent projects outside of the studios. Another reason was the shift in the American people’s preferences for entertainment. Many Americans could not afford to frequent the movie houses and the increasing popularity of television added to the inattendance.  A final reason was the lawsuit against the film studios by the Antitrust division of the Department of Justice. This required the studios to separate themselves to prevent monopolization.

4.     The Star System’s rise came directly from the Studio System. American people became used to seeing their favorite contracted actors on screen and soon went to the movies primarily for the actor rather than the story. The studios encouraged this as it simplified the process of finding viewers. They did not have to sell the story as long as their stars were in the production. The same logic hold true today, where star studded films are often of mediocre story quality but generate a huge revenue due to the actors in them.

5.     The Auteur Theory is when a director essentially leaves his trademark on a film. It is when a film shows the directors personal creativity by stylistic choices that often remain similar through most, if not all, of a director’s films. A famous example of this is Alfred Hitchcock’s movies, all of which are suspenseful and use light and shadow in such a way that it is instantly recognizable as a Hitchcock film. Other examples of this are Orson Welles, with his wonderful symbolism and dramatic cinematography, and Quentin Terentino, who’s use of campy gore and lots of blood makes his films very recognizable.

6.     Horror films are known for their suspense and the use of music, editing, and surprise to elicit nervousness and fear in their viewers. They nearly always include some element of the grotesque, whether it be in the physical shape of the ‘monster’ or the deeds or personality of it. Also, there is rarely much character development, and almost never by the antagonist who, though being a primary character, can never be a main character as we are not supposed to understand it. If we understood it, it wouldn’t be as frightening. Horror films frequently leave things to the imagination.

7.     The change to talking pictures was likely hardest on the actors, who had to adjust to a new style of performance. Many silent era actors and actresses were put out of work as they could not adjust to it. The new style required them to be convincing not only in movement, but in voice as well, which many had difficulty in achieving. The use of sound also made international film sales more difficult as the speech cards were removed and thus made translation to other languages even more difficult.