POSTMODERN FILM
Open Rubric
“Postmodernism has enriched film theory and its analysis by calling attenti0n to a stylistic shift toward a media conscious cinema” (Gonarkar 2012)
Postmodenism can be characterised by various aspects
including:
Pastiche
Nostalgia
Disjointed narratives
Emotional detachment
Self-referentialism
Time bending
Altered realities
‘Quoting’ from different film genres and film
movements/periods as well as from other visual media and actual historical periods
Time, history, high/low culture and the difference between them are mixed together
Tongue-in-cheek/ironic reworkings of existing texts
Parodies of popular culture
Can also include aspects of self-referentialism – which means something that refers to itself.
Mixing of popular culture and serious culture from
various time periods.
DISJOINTED NARRATIVE
Narrative not necessarily in chronological order – in other
words, the film can start with the ‘end’ of the story and end with the beginning.
There can be jumps in the chronology of events in the narrative ALTERED REALITIES
Drugs, mental illness and technology provide a dark,
unstable or psychedelic world
The human condition is often explored.
Dualism in characters
HIGHLIGTING TECHNIQUE
A focus on recognizable filmmaking techniques that
highlights the construction of images. This reinforces the knowledge in viewers that they are watching a film.
TIME BENDING
Time travel provides another way to shape reality in
postmodern film and can be linked to the characteristic of disjointed narrative
EMOTIONAL DETACHMENT
Not being in touch with emotions / seemingly
‘emotionless’ characters
Emotional detachment often brought along by technology, violence, drugs and the media
REALITY?
Postmodern films often ask questions about what is real.
The questions is often not answered by the end of the film
– which lead to open-ended narratives.
SOCIAL COMMENT
Very often there will be some form of social
“Postmodernism has enriched film theory and its analysis by calling attenti0n to a stylistic shift toward a media conscious cinema” (Gonarkar 2012)
Postmodenism can be characterised by various aspects
including:
Pastiche
Nostalgia
Disjointed narratives
Emotional detachment
Self-referentialism
Time bending
Altered realities
‘Quoting’ from different film genres and film
movements/periods as well as from other visual media and actual historical periods
Time, history, high/low culture and the difference between them are mixed together
Tongue-in-cheek/ironic reworkings of existing texts
Parodies of popular culture
Can also include aspects of self-referentialism – which means something that refers to itself.
Mixing of popular culture and serious culture from
various time periods.
DISJOINTED NARRATIVE
Narrative not necessarily in chronological order – in other
words, the film can start with the ‘end’ of the story and end with the beginning.
There can be jumps in the chronology of events in the narrative ALTERED REALITIES
Drugs, mental illness and technology provide a dark,
unstable or psychedelic world
The human condition is often explored.
Dualism in characters
HIGHLIGTING TECHNIQUE
A focus on recognizable filmmaking techniques that
highlights the construction of images. This reinforces the knowledge in viewers that they are watching a film.
TIME BENDING
Time travel provides another way to shape reality in
postmodern film and can be linked to the characteristic of disjointed narrative
EMOTIONAL DETACHMENT
Not being in touch with emotions / seemingly
‘emotionless’ characters
Emotional detachment often brought along by technology, violence, drugs and the media
REALITY?
Postmodern films often ask questions about what is real.
The questions is often not answered by the end of the film
– which lead to open-ended narratives.
SOCIAL COMMENT
Very often there will be some form of social