Nowadays, it has become quiet around various Hollywood genres of the Classic Period of cinema. In the time between both World Wars, and also soon after WWII, Hollywood filmmaking meant entertainment to a frustrated and humiliated world audience. Especially dance-comedy- and musical-genres became more picturesque, especially because of Technicolor, the plots less melodramatic and the actors followed a progressive and innovative typecast.
Particularly the world of the Hollywood film musical opened up new possibilities when presenting a fictional world in their studios that enchanted an international audience. Hollywood spared no expenses and pains to explore particularly European capitals to promote a dream as well as their understanding of the American way. To which extent Hollywood created an image of Paris that gained acceptance with a global audience? And in how far can be said that American female stars changed their outer and inner appearance, in order not to correspond to obsolete Hollywood typecast.
In my work I would like to give a better impression of what historically happened in American filmmaking, that glorified and idealized the French capital; and in French filmmaking, that searched for new themes, settings and individuals. In the first chapter a historical outline of the time from the 1920s onwards, as well as a brief introduction into the structures of the American- and French-film industry will illustrate to what extent Paris turned out to be an aesthetic and significant feature in motion pictures of that time.
In the following it is of my concern to analyze the City of Light & Love and its international reputation. My analysis leads to one specific aspect of filmmaking – the divergence between the American female (stereo-) typology and European gender roles during the postwar years of the 50s and 60s. Audrey Hepburn serves as a well-known example, which is considered to be a representative for European subculture, French haute couture and American fairy-tale dreams. I try to illustrate in how far Audrey Hepburn changed the female image during a time in which anybody preferred blond femininity instead of brunette individuality. My aim is to find out how much Paris served as the ideological medium – both in French- and in Hollywood-filmmaking.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 Historical outline of the Parisian movements before the Second World War
1.2 A brief introduction to Hollywood- and French- film industry in the postwar period
2. Analytical Thesis on the ‘City D’Amour’
2.1 The role of the city in films
3. Analytical Thesis on Stars
3.1 American female typology & European gender roles
3.2 Audrey Hepburn – a representative of European subculture
4. Conclusion
5. Appendix
6. Literature
6.1 Bibliography
6.2 Internet
6.3 Filmography
Research Objectives and Themes
This work examines the portrayal of Paris in postwar Hollywood cinema, focusing on how the city served as an ideological and aesthetic medium. It explores the divergence between American female typologies and European gender roles during the 1950s and 1960s, using Audrey Hepburn as a central case study to analyze the transformation of the female image and the construction of "Americanized" European subculture in film.
- The intersection of urban space and cinematic representation
- Hollywood's construction of idealized, "studio-built" European capitals
- The evolution of American female archetypes in postwar genre cinema
- Audrey Hepburn as an icon of European sophistication and American fantasy
- The influence of the French Nouvelle Vague on cinematic authenticity
Excerpt from the Book
Social Typology of Female Characters
In 2.1 I have already mentioned the role of the gangster who is inseparably connected to the noir-city. Now another kind of social type will be introduced with the ‘city boy’, who “was a product of performance, genre and ideology transmuted into popular entertainment.” (McArthur 1997: 28) The city boy is the quasi-consequence of what is considered being the most significant aspect of the American cinema: the myth of the Western hero. The difference just insists on the changes in concepts of male behavior that became more individualistic, sensitive, and increasingly concerned with family life. Subsequently a master opposition between country and city can be made, which is also valid for the characterization of the ‘city girl’, who is as well inseparably connected to the American culture as her antipode in form of the country girl. In the following I would like to illustrate my explanation with the role of Audrey Hepburn in FUNNY FACE. Before the fashion-photographer Rick Avery (Fred Astaire) insists on making a star mannequin out of the boring bookseller Jo Stockton from Greenwich Village, the girl embodies all features of the country girl, who is determined to wear a ‘long dress’, because she is by no means interested in superficial materialism because she is used to ‘think’ about the theory of ‘empathicalism’. But in the course of the film she presents herself as able to combine intellectualism and beauty, Beatnik-culture and style, Paris haute couture and American domesticity. The individualistic city-girl, she is going to be, is determined by ‘dark, short hair’, who is ‘made-up’ and fits perfectly within the jazz-club atmosphere of contemporary Paris. (McArthur 1997: 21)
Audrey Hepburn seems to be the representative of what Dyer has defined as a mixture of the independent superwoman and the superfemale. Whereas the superfemale is
A woman who, while exceedingly ‘feminine’ and flirtatious, is too ambitious and intelligent for the docile role of society has decreed she play, [does] [s]he remain within traditional society[…] (Dyer 1998: 54).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter outlines the historical context of Parisian movements before WWII and introduces the structures of the American and French film industries in the postwar era.
1.1 Historical outline of the Parisian movements before the Second World War: Discusses the intellectual and artistic climate of 1920s Paris, focusing on avant-garde movements and the influence of expatriate writers.
1.2 A brief introduction to Hollywood- and French- film industry in the postwar period: Examines the shift in film production after WWII, contrasting American musical-style representations of Paris with French cinematic developments.
2. Analytical Thesis on the ‘City D’Amour’: Investigates how Hollywood studios constructed Paris as a utopian space to meet the desires of a postwar international audience.
2.1 The role of the city in films: Analyzes the city as a cinematic protagonist and explores the tension between authentic location shooting and Hollywood’s constructed "screenscapes."
3. Analytical Thesis on Stars: Explores the star system as a social phenomenon and its role in reinforcing American cultural ideologies.
3.1 American female typology & European gender roles: Analyzes the dichotomy between the "country girl" and the "city girl" archetypes and their evolution into the "superfemale" or "superwoman" persona.
3.2 Audrey Hepburn – a representative of European subculture: Evaluates Audrey Hepburn’s unique screen persona as a synthesis of American fairy-tale dreams and European existentialist style.
4. Conclusion: Summarizes the transformation of Hollywood’s cinematic approach and the lasting impact of the "star-typology" on the representation of femininity.
Keywords
Hollywood, Paris, Audrey Hepburn, Postwar Cinema, Gender Roles, Nouvelle Vague, Stardom, Americanization, Cultural Identity, Genre Cinema, Female Typology, European Subculture, Cinematic City, Poetic Realism, Studio System
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental subject of this research paper?
The work explores the cinematic construction of Paris in Hollywood films during the postwar era, specifically looking at how the city was used as a backdrop to project American ideological perceptions of femininity and "European" class.
What are the primary thematic areas explored?
The core themes include the representation of urban space in film, the evolution of female character typologies, the divergence between French and American filmmaking approaches, and the role of the film star as a mediator of cultural identity.
What is the central research question?
The paper asks to what extent Hollywood created a constructed, idealized image of Paris for a global audience and how this influenced the development of female star personas compared to their European counterparts.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The author uses historical-cultural analysis combined with film-theoretical frameworks, particularly utilizing Richard Dyer’s observations on stardom and other analyses regarding the representation of cities in cinema.
What does the main body of the work address?
The main sections analyze the "City D'Amour" as a studio construct, the social typology of female characters, and the specific role of Audrey Hepburn in bridging the gap between American domesticity and European subcultural aesthetics.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
Key terms include Hollywood, Paris, Audrey Hepburn, Postwar Cinema, Gender Roles, Stardom, and the Nouvelle Vague.
How does the author define the "superfemale" persona in the context of this work?
The superfemale is defined as a woman who balances traditional femininity with a level of intelligence and ambition that challenges the docile roles typically assigned to her by conventional society.
What is the role of the "city girl" vs. "country girl" archetype in the analyzed films?
These archetypes function as a master opposition in American cinema, where the "country girl" is initially associated with simplicity and tradition, while the "city girl" represents a sophisticated, often individualistic transformation facilitated by the environment of a city like Paris.
- Quote paper
- Sandy Nirwing (Author), 2004, An American in Paris: Audrey Hepburn and the City of Light - A historical analysis of genre cinema & gender roles, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/49705
