Table Of ContentTHE WAYS OF
FILM STUDIES
Film Theory & the Interpretation of Films
GASTO~BERGE
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with an essay on Freud by
DR. SOMNAT II ZUTSID
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgements
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IX
INTRODUCTION: FILM STUDIFS
CHAPTER ONE Bioscope India
3
1. What is cinema?
2. What do film or cinema studies deal with?
3. What is a film?
CHAPTER 1WO Cinema, an academic subject? 11
1. How the cinema became an academic subject.
2. . ..e ven a philosophical and theological subject
PART I: FILM THEORY
CHAPTER THREE A Linguistic Approach to Film 21
l.Ten film theorists:
Dickson Milnsterberg
Eisenstein Bazin
Morin Mitry
Metz (a) Godard
Metz (b) J.Feminists
2. Ten source authors:
• de Saussure Jakobson
JL evi-Strauss Lacan
Freud Foucault
Derrida Barthes
Eco Wilden
55
CHAPTER FOUR A Systemic Communicational
Approach to Film
1. Communication
(a.) communication, expression, art
(b.) a systems view of communication
(c.) a reticular model of film in society
(d.) mind and language
(e.) current communication theories
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VI THE WAYS Of FH.M STUDIES
2. The media environment ·
(a.) the communication media and the individual
(b.) mass communication and the community
3. The Press, radio, cinema and television in India
(a.) your personal use of the mass media
(b.) Government monopoly
(c.) the UNESCO minimum standards of ma&s
communication media
(d.) the essential contribution.of the mass
media to development
4. Problems of short film-making in India
(a.) theoretical points of view that inspire film-makers
(b.) suggestions to film-makers
(c.) socially usefulfilms
.
93
CHAPTER FIVE A Psychoanalytic Approach to Film
1. A fear of a loss of pleasure
2. Applications of psychoanalysis to film
3. The main tenets of Freudian psychoanalitic
theory (Dr Somnath Zutshi)
4. Mindwork exemplified: an analysis of an auto
biographical text·of Eisenstein, "Mi Tou."
5. Mindwork and film: an analysis of an auto
biographical text of Eisenstein, "Otto H. and the
Artichokes."
6. Conclusion
. .
.
PART 11: TIIE IN'l'ENPRET ATION OF FILMS
121
CHAPTER SIX An interpretation of the film:
INCIDENT AT OWL CREEK
1. The short story from which the film is adapted:
AN OCCURENCE AT OWL CREEK BRIDGE
2. Shot by shot description of the film
3. Interpretation
(a.) structure
(b.) psychoanalytic approach
(c.) position of the subject of OWL CREEK
(d.) technical analysis
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CONTENTS vii
CHAPTER SEVEN Elements for an Indian Film Theory 181
1. Need for an Indian film theory
2. The family in Indian films
3. Theological and ethical perspectives on Indian films
CONCLUSION: IMAGE MAKING
203
CHAPI'ER EIGHT Indian Icons
1. Images are made
2. The question is, "in whose profit?"
3. Let us now praise famous India
(i.) Calcutta, mon amour
(ii.) Bombay, I love you too
4. Selling images
5. Madonnas of the slums
'127
Bibliography
235
Index
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The text that follows has not been published elsewhere,
except for three sections which were my contributions to various
seminars and which have been included here with some
modifications. These are:
"A Theological Pers~ve on Indian Film," Ecumenical
Christian Centre, Bangalore, 15 November 1983 (Chapter 7,
section 3);
'1ndian Film: A Cinema of the Family for the Family." Family
of Asia and Australia- International Research Workshop: the
Family in a Technological Society, Madras, December, 1984
(Chapter 7, Section 2);
''Proble~nd Prospects of short Film Making in 3rd World
Countries," International Short Film Festival, Dhaka, 15
November 1988 (Chapter 4, Section 4).
The following photos have been published:
Plates 7 & 8 in Quarterly Journal of the Centre for the Performing
Arts Vol XI, No 2, June 1980. pp. 22, 23 and in Concern in
"Bangladesh, Chitrabani, 1983;
Plates 10 in Le Brigand, Montreal, Nov-Dec 1983 No 383 p. 18;
Plate 11, in Le Brigand, Montreal; Nov-Dec 1981, No 373, p.6
Plate 12, 13 in Concern in "Bangladesh, Chitrabani, 1983.
I gratefully thank the organizations who sponsored the writing
of these papers. ·
I thank the following publishers for permission to reproduce
materials in this book:
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THEWAYSOFFILMSTUDIBS
X
LFS FILMS DU CENTA URE, photogrammes from the film
INCIDENT AT OWL CREEK
BRITISH FILM INS'ITI'UTE for a passage reprinted from
'Woman's Place: the absent family of film noir' by Sylvia Harvey
(BPI Publishing, 1978; revised ed. 1980; reprinted 1981, 1984, 1987,
1989)
THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRFSS for material
published in Andre Bazin, WHAT IS CINEMA? 2 VOLUMFS.
Edited/translated by Hugh Gray. Copyright (c) 1%7The Regents
of the University of California · ·
MARTIN SECKER & WARBURG LTD for passages by Umberto
Eco from FAITH IN FAKES ·
LFS EDITIONS DE MINUIT for a passage by Edgar Morin in
LE CINEMA OU L'HOMME IMAGINAIRE
THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS for a pas5"ge by
Susan Bordo from ''The Cartesian M~culinization of Thought'' in
SIGNS c1986 THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO .
SCREEN THE JOHN LOGIE BAIRD CENTRE UNIVERSITY
OF GLASGOW for a passage by Phil Mottram from ''Technical
Analysis of Films in the Classroom' _i~ SCREEN EDUC::ATION
YEARBOOK 1968
SCREEN THE JOHN LOGIE BAIRD CENTRE.U NIVERSITY
OF GLASGOW for a passage by Christian Metz translated by Ben
Brewster in SCREEN, Vol 16, No 2, Summer 1975.'
In spite of my writing to several publishers I have not been
able to reach the actual copyright owner and thus of securing
permission in the case of passages· by Jacques Derrida, Fritjof
Capra, Roman Jakobson; Michel Foucault, Roland Barthes, Ferdinand
de Saussure. I would be thankful for any information regarding
copyright of these passages.
Sincere thanks to: Juliet Roberts, Secretary, SIGHT & SOUND,
British Ftlm Instih;lte, and Rene Beauclair, Director of Documentation
Centre of Cinematheque Quebecoise de Montreal, Canada, for
providing valuable material on the film AN INCIDENT AT OWL
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Xl
CREEK, Dr Michael Traber, World Association for Christian
Communication, and Dr Robert A White, Centre for the Study of
Communication and Culture, London, for their encouragement;
Dr Somnath Zutshi for his contribution on.Freud; Samik Banerjee
for pointing out to me relevant passages in'\he Mahabharata; Prof.
Dhruba Gupta, Prof. Nabinananda Sen, anct-Or Somnath Zutshi
for discussing my interpretation of INCIDENT AT OWL CREEK
and for making valuable suggestions; Mr Arun Pramanick, Regional
Office of National Film Archive of India, Calcutta, for making
available a 16mm print of INCIDENT AT OWL CREEK; Thomas
Carlo, Biren Das Sharma, Joy Sebastian, Bimal Samaddar, Dilip
Arinda, Shambunath Shaw, Sunetra Ghatak Chatterjee, George
D'Rozario, and other colleagues of Chitrabani for unwavering
assistance; Fr P C Mathew, Provincial Superior of the Calcutta
Jesuits for granting me time and financial support to write this
book; the Jesuit Community of St Xavier's College, Calcutta,
where I took refuge during the four months of writing this book;
Fr Robert Wirth and Fr George Ponodath who graciously relieved
me of some of my r~ponsibilities during the same time; Rank
Compunet for assistance in printing the script.
I alone must be credited for any shortcomings of the book.
GR
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