Laura Wittern-Keller
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813124513
- eISBN:
- 9780813134901
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813124513.003.0008
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This chapter discusses La Ronde, a saucy, satirical, and cynical treatment of seduction and casual sex. As expected, this film came under fire in the U.S. Supreme Court in 1953, after the New York ...
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This chapter discusses La Ronde, a saucy, satirical, and cynical treatment of seduction and casual sex. As expected, this film came under fire in the U.S. Supreme Court in 1953, after the New York censors claimed that it was immoral. The case surrounding the film has been seen by historians and legal commentators as nothing more than a footnote along the way to the inevitable demise of governmental film censorship.Less
This chapter discusses La Ronde, a saucy, satirical, and cynical treatment of seduction and casual sex. As expected, this film came under fire in the U.S. Supreme Court in 1953, after the New York censors claimed that it was immoral. The case surrounding the film has been seen by historians and legal commentators as nothing more than a footnote along the way to the inevitable demise of governmental film censorship.
Laura Wittern-Keller
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813124513
- eISBN:
- 9780813134901
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813124513.001.0001
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
The proliferation of movies at the turn of the twentieth century attracted not only the attention of audiences across America, but also the apprehensive eyes of government officials and special ...
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The proliferation of movies at the turn of the twentieth century attracted not only the attention of audiences across America, but also the apprehensive eyes of government officials and special interest groups concerned about the messages which the movies disseminated. Between 1907 and 1926, seven states and more than 100 cities authorized censors to suppress all images and messages considered inappropriate for American audiences. Movie studios, hoping to avoid problems with state censors, worrying that censorship might be extended to the federal level, and facing increased pressure from religious groups, also jumped into the censoring business. They restrained the content by adopting the self-censoring Production Code, also known as the Hays code. Some industry outsiders, however, believed that movies deserved the free speech protections of the First Amendment and brought legal challenges to censorship at the state and local levels. This book chronicles both the evolution of judicial attitudes toward film restriction, and the plight of the individuals who fought for the right to deliver provocative and relevant movies to American audiences. The path to cinematic freedom was marked with both achievements and roadblocks, which are discussed in detail. The book's coverage extends from the establishment of the Production Code Administration, to the landmark cases over films such as The Miracle, La ronde, and Lady Chatterley's Lover which paved the way for increased freedom of expression. As the fight against censorship progressed case by case through state courts and the U.S. Supreme Court, legal authorities and the public responded, growing increasingly sympathetic toward artistic freedom. A small, unorganized group of independent film distributors and exhibitors during the middle of the twentieth-century fought back against what they believed was an unconstitutional prior restraint of motion pictures. This effectively gave films after 1965 a new direction and allowed movies to mature into an artistic medium.Less
The proliferation of movies at the turn of the twentieth century attracted not only the attention of audiences across America, but also the apprehensive eyes of government officials and special interest groups concerned about the messages which the movies disseminated. Between 1907 and 1926, seven states and more than 100 cities authorized censors to suppress all images and messages considered inappropriate for American audiences. Movie studios, hoping to avoid problems with state censors, worrying that censorship might be extended to the federal level, and facing increased pressure from religious groups, also jumped into the censoring business. They restrained the content by adopting the self-censoring Production Code, also known as the Hays code. Some industry outsiders, however, believed that movies deserved the free speech protections of the First Amendment and brought legal challenges to censorship at the state and local levels. This book chronicles both the evolution of judicial attitudes toward film restriction, and the plight of the individuals who fought for the right to deliver provocative and relevant movies to American audiences. The path to cinematic freedom was marked with both achievements and roadblocks, which are discussed in detail. The book's coverage extends from the establishment of the Production Code Administration, to the landmark cases over films such as The Miracle, La ronde, and Lady Chatterley's Lover which paved the way for increased freedom of expression. As the fight against censorship progressed case by case through state courts and the U.S. Supreme Court, legal authorities and the public responded, growing increasingly sympathetic toward artistic freedom. A small, unorganized group of independent film distributors and exhibitors during the middle of the twentieth-century fought back against what they believed was an unconstitutional prior restraint of motion pictures. This effectively gave films after 1965 a new direction and allowed movies to mature into an artistic medium.
Robert P. Kolker and Nathan Abrams
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- June 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190678029
- eISBN:
- 9780190678067
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190678029.003.0002
- Subject:
- Literature, Film, Media, and Cultural Studies
Stanley Kubrick wanted to film Arthur Schnitzler’s Traumnovelle since the early 1950s. His interest lay in Schnitzler’s fascination with sexuality and domesticity. The intersection of Schnitzler’s ...
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Stanley Kubrick wanted to film Arthur Schnitzler’s Traumnovelle since the early 1950s. His interest lay in Schnitzler’s fascination with sexuality and domesticity. The intersection of Schnitzler’s writings with those of Sigmund Freud was of particular interest. Kubrick’s favorite director, Max Ophüls, had adapted some of Schnitzler’s plays, and this also attracted the author to Kubrick. Even though he kept putting off the making of the film, its ideas percolated into those films he did make, from Fear and Desire through The Shining. During this long period of gestation, Kubrick entertained many ideas for writers and stars. At one point, he wanted to make it as a comedy. Only after the failure to get his Holocaust film or his science fiction film, A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, made did he finally turn to directing Eyes Wide Shut.Less
Stanley Kubrick wanted to film Arthur Schnitzler’s Traumnovelle since the early 1950s. His interest lay in Schnitzler’s fascination with sexuality and domesticity. The intersection of Schnitzler’s writings with those of Sigmund Freud was of particular interest. Kubrick’s favorite director, Max Ophüls, had adapted some of Schnitzler’s plays, and this also attracted the author to Kubrick. Even though he kept putting off the making of the film, its ideas percolated into those films he did make, from Fear and Desire through The Shining. During this long period of gestation, Kubrick entertained many ideas for writers and stars. At one point, he wanted to make it as a comedy. Only after the failure to get his Holocaust film or his science fiction film, A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, made did he finally turn to directing Eyes Wide Shut.
