The Cinema of Attractions and Early Film History

Introduction

The emergence of cinema as a medium at the fin de siècle was the result of technological innovations stemming from the Industrial Revolution, but it also responded to a growing demand from entertainment consumers who were eager for more exciting alternatives. Developing quickly from its early silent forms — with accompanying piano and on-screen narration — to increasingly sophisticated "talkies" that changed the way people thought about the world, cinema provided this alternative for millions during the early years of the twentieth century. It engaged audiences in ways that previous theatrical productions had been incapable of achieving. To identify how early cinema developed during its formative years, this paper reviews the relevant literature concerning the development of early cinema, including its technology, industry, and cultural context. An examination of the concept of the "cinema of attractions" in relation to early cinema audiences is followed by a summary of the research and key findings in the conclusion.

Early Entertainment and the Cinema of Attractions

The early history of cinema took place during a period in which a wide range of popular entertainments were emerging. Barlow, for instance, cites the development of "puppetry, miniature theatre, and experimental film in earlier kinds of popular entertainment like the cinema of attractions, nineteenth-century toy theatre, magic lantern shows, and cabinets of curiosities" as examples of late nineteenth-century entertainment (2007, p. 22). Due to technological innovations and cinema's demonstrated ability to attract large numbers of eager customers, it is not surprising that cinema became the most popular of these offerings at the time.

The popularity of early cinema was specifically predicated on the willingness of audiences to suspend their sense of reality and accept the version being presented on the screen, at least for the duration of the production. According to Braudy and Cohen (2004), the development of early cinema included what Tom Gunning termed the "cinema of attractions," characterized by "an aware audience for whom film was an extension of illusionistic theater" (p. 786). The term implies a sense of active participation on the part of audiences in ways that transcended previous media and compelled people to return time and again. Braudy and Cohen further advise that "It is an informed amazement at film's power rather than a child's incomprehension that is at work in this 'cinema of attractions,' characteristic of the first decade of early film" (2004, p. 786).

As early cinematographers drew on thousands of years of theatrical tradition in developing their own unique approaches to the emerging medium, one of the defining characteristics of early cinema was its ability to deliver high production values to millions of people, making it a cultural and social equalizer of sorts. Instead of being reserved exclusively for the affluent, elaborate and expensive theatrical productions could be presented in cinematographic form and shown repeatedly. As Higson explains, "The cinema of attractions is concerned with showing. This means in part a pictorial mise-en-scène which puts the decor, the sets, the props, and the costumes on display; but it also means that the story, the drama itself, becomes another of the attractions on display" (p. 91).

Camera Technique and the Aesthetics of Early Film

Irrespective of thematic content, one of the defining characteristics of the cinema of attractions was its camera work. Higson notes that, "Rather than the camera engaging with the story and integrating the spectator into the narrative space through scene dissection, use of close-ups, eyeline matching, and so on, the camera for the main part stands back and observes the characters and their actions from, as it were, a respectful distance. It is as if the pre-given story is being observed by the camera (and by the audience) as it unfolds before it like a stage play" (1997, p. 91). Higson also cites the "recurring look at the camera by the actors, which Gunning sees as another feature of the cinema of attractions" (p. 92).

The impact of this new medium on both its producers and audiences is explored in The Brain Is the Screen: Deleuze and the Philosophy of Cinema, wherein Flaxman (2000) asks, "Is there really anything extraordinary about the cinema?" and answers: "The cinematographic image so departs from normal perception as to compel philosophy to create new concepts" (p. 88). The methods that defined the cinema of attractions would ultimately serve as building blocks for future cinematographic production rather than becoming a rigid model, due in large part to the limitations of the technology of the day.

Conclusion

Although modern cinematographers continue to experiment with different approaches drawing on technological innovations, it is reasonable to conclude that these practitioners truly stand on the shoulders of the early giants in cinema who modeled the way for those who followed by developing design elements and production values that made cinema an attractive entertainment alternative for millions of people. From its primitive days using the camera obscura to the three-dimensional IMAX productions enjoyed today, cinema has developed from its origins in the late nineteenth century into an enduring and powerful medium. In the final analysis, cinematographic historians of the twenty-second century will likely cite the cinema of attractions as the beginning of this remarkable process.

References

Barlow, M. (2007). Toward a feminist 'Coney Island of the Avant-Garde': Janie Geiser recasts the cinema of attractions. Afterimage, 34(4), 21–23.

Blyn, R. (2004). Imitating the siren: West's The Day of the Locust and the subject of sound. Literature/Film Quarterly, 32(1), 51–53.

Braudy, L., & Cohen, M. (2004). Film theory and criticism: Introductory readings. New York: Oxford University Press.

Brockett, O. G. (1968). History of the theater. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Elsaesser, T., & Wedel, M. (1996). A second life: German cinema's first decades. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.

Flaxman, G. (2000). The brain is the screen: Deleuze and the philosophy of cinema. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Gaudreault, A. (1990). Showing and telling: Image and word in early cinema. In T. Elsaesser & A. Barker (Eds.), Early cinema: Space, frame, narrative (pp. 274–281). London: BFI Publishing.

Gunning, T. (1993). The cinema of attractions: Early film, its spectator, and the avant-garde. In T. Elsaesser & A. Barker (Eds.), Early cinema: Space, frame, narrative. London: BFI Publishing.

Higson, A. (1997). Waving the flag: Constructing a national cinema in Britain. Oxford: Clarendon Press.