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Early
American Cinema in Transition
Story,
Style, and Filmmaking, 1907–1913
Charlie
Keil
Wisconsin
Studies in Film
"An important contribution
to the exploration of silent cinema."
—Kristin Thompson, series
editor
The period
1907–1913 marks a crucial transitional moment in American
cinema. As moving picture shows changed from mere novelty to
an increasingly popular entertainment, fledgling studios responded
with longer running times and more complex storytelling. A growing
trade press and changing production procedures also influenced
filmmaking. In Early American Cinema in Transition,
Charlie Keil looks at a broad cross-section of fiction films
to examine the formal changes in cinema of this period and the
ways that filmmakers developed narrative techniques to suit the
fifteen-minute, one-reel format.
Keil outlines
the kinds of narratives that proved most suitable for a single
reel's duration, the particular demands that time and space exerted
on this early form of film narration, and the ways filmmakers
employed the unique features of a primarily visual medium to
craft stories that would appeal to an audience numbering in the
millions. He underscores his analysis with a detailed look at
six films: The Boy Detective; The Forgotten Watch; Rose O'Salem-Town;
Cupid's Monkey Wrench; Belle Boyd, A Confederate Spy; and
Suspense.
Charlie Keil is associate professor in the Cinema
Studies Program and the History Department at the University
of Toronto.
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December
2001
352 pp. (est.) 132 b/w film stills, 5 tables
6 x 9
ISBN 0-299-17360-7 Cloth $60.00s
ISBN 0-299-17364-X Paper $24.95t
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