Assignment:5 From Berlin to Hollywood:
Echoes of Expressionism in Fritz Lang's "The
Woman in the Window" and "Scarlet Street"
This blog is a part of an assignment for the paper 110A: History of English Literature – From 1900 to 2000, Sem 2,2024
From Berlin to Hollywood: Echoes of
Expressionism in Fritz Lang's "The Woman
in the Window" and "Scarlet Street"
TABLE OF CONTENTS: -
❍ Personal information
❍ Assignment Details
❍ Abstract
❍ Keywords
❍ Introduction
❍ Fritz Lang’s German Expressionism
❍ Transition to Hollywood
❍ Expressionism in “The Woman in the Window”
❍ Expressionism in “Scarlet Street”
❍ Conclusion
❍ work cited
PERSONAL INFORMATION: -
Name: - Priyanshiba Kanaksinh Gohil
Batch No: M.A. Sem 2 (2023-2024)
Enrollment Number: - 5108230018
E-mail Address: - priyabagohil7126@gmail.com
Roll Number: - 21
ASSIGNMENT DETAILS: -
Topic: - From Berlin to Hollywood: Echoes of Expressionism in Fritz Lang's "The Woman in the Window" and "Scarlet Street"
Paper & subject code: -110A: History of English Literature – From 1900 to 2000
Submitted to: - Smt. Sujata Binoy Gardi, Department of English, MKBU, Bhavnagar.
Date of Submission: - 25 April,2024
About Assignment: - In this Assignment, I try to explore From Berlin to Hollywood: Echoes of Expressionism in Fritz Lang's "The Woman in the Window" and "Scarlet Street".
Abstract:
Fritz Lang’s cinematic journey from Berlin to Hollywood is a testament to the enduring influence of German Expressionism in American cinema. This study examines the stylistic and thematic continuities in Lang’s “The Woman in the Window” (1944) and “Scarlet Street” (1945), highlighting how these films encapsulate the essence of Expressionism despite the transition to the Hollywood studio system. Through a close analysis of visual composition, narrative structure, and character development, the paper argues that Lang’s American films are not merely commercial products but are deeply rooted in the artistic tradition he cultivated in his early German works. Lang’s Expressionist techniques such as chiaroscuro lighting, distorted perspectives, and psychological depth contribute to the films’ critical acclaim and lasting legacy in the film noir genre. This abstract sets the stage for a comprehensive exploration of Lang’s work, bridging the gap between two distinct cinematic worlds and offering insights into the migration of artistic movements across cultural boundaries.
Keywords:
Fritz Lang, Films, Cinema, Expressionism, German Expressionism, Berlin, Hollywood, "The Woman in the Window", "Scarlet Street".
Introduction:
Fritz Lang’s ‘The Woman in the Window’ and ‘Scarlet Street’” discusses the continuity of Fritz Lang’s filmmaking style from his German Expressionist roots to his Hollywood crime melodramas. It challenges the notion that Lang’s American films represent a decline from his earlier work, arguing instead that traces of Weimar-era Expressionism can be found in his American films, particularly in their visual composition and themes of desire and fear. There is a significant degree of continuity in Lang’s work, despite the change in filmmaking environment from Germany to Hollywood. It highlights how Lang’s German Expressionist influence carried over to his American films, especially in the visual stylization and thematic focus on subjective states of mind. The introduction emphasizes Lang’s unique ability among his contemporaries to maintain the Weimar influence in his American films, particularly in the crime melodrama genre. Lang’s Hollywood films are seen as subversive, working within the studio system while still reflecting his Germanic legacy through visual dissonance and conflict between conventional narratives and expressionistic elements.
Fritz Lang’s German Expressionism
Fritz Lang’s transition from Berlin to Hollywood is a significant chapter in the history of cinema, marked by the infusion of German Expressionism into American film noir. His films “The Woman in the Window” (1944) and “Scarlet Street” (1945) are particularly noted for their Expressionist elements, which include a strong visual style characterized by stark lighting contrasts and complex psychological themes. Lang’s work, his Expressionist roots from his German films carried over into his Hollywood era. Despite the change in the filmmaking environment and industry, Lang’s American films continued to exhibit the distinctive features of Expressionism. This is evident in the mise-en-scène, the visual composition, and the thematic focus on subjective states of mind, which create a sense of disorientation and ambiguity.
The continuity of Expressionism in Lang’s work can also be seen in the way he addressed societal issues and human psychology. His Hollywood films, while produced within the constraints of the studio system, managed to retain a subversive quality, often challenging the norms of the time and pushing the boundaries of conventional narrative cinema.it provide critical insights into the influence of German Expressionism on Lang’s Hollywood films and how this style contributed to the development of film noir as a genre.
Transition to Hollywood
The transition to Hollywood for Fritz Lang is marked by a significant degree of continuity in his filmmaking style, despite the change in production environment. Here are the key points regarding his transition:
Continuity in Style: Lang’s Hollywood films, particularly “The Woman in the Window” (1944) and “Scarlet Street” (1945), exhibit strong echoes of the Expressionism from his German years, maintaining the visual composition and mise en scène characteristic of his earlier work.
Studio System Challenges: While Lang faced constraints under the Hollywood studio system, he managed to infuse his American crime melodramas with subversive elements that aligned with his Weimar-era Expressionism.
Anti-Nazi Films: His early Hollywood films, such as “Fury” and “You Only Live Once,” addressed societal injustices, while his wartime films like “Man Hunt” (1941), “Hangmen Also Die” (1942), and “Ministry of Fear” (1943) were anti-Nazi and showcased a stronger indebtedness to German Expressionism.
Influence on Film Noir: Lang’s work, along with other German and Central European expatriate filmmakers, contributed to the proliferation of film noir in the 1940s and early 1950s, bringing the Weimar influence to Hollywood.
Expressionism in “The Woman in the Window”
Expressionism, as an artistic movement, is characterized by its focus on representing emotions and subjective interpretations rather than reality. In the context of Fritz Lang’s film “The Woman in the Window,” Expressionism manifests through the film’s stylistic choices that emphasize mood, atmosphere, and psychological depth. The film employs a visual style that is heavily influenced by German Expressionism. This includes the use of stark lighting contrasts, shadows, and angular compositions that create a sense of unease and disorientation. The cinematography often distorts space and scale to reflect the inner turmoil of the characters.
The narrative structure of “The Woman in the Window” is also reflective of Expressionist techniques. The story delves into the psyche of the protagonist, Professor Wanly, played by Edward G. Robinson, as he descends into a world of crime and guilt after becoming infatuated with a woman portrayed in a painting. Expressionism is known for its thematic exploration of the human condition, often focusing on themes such as obsession, madness, and existential angst. In the film, the painting of the woman serves as a symbol of the professor’s desires and the catalyst for his subsequent actions, which are fraught with psychological complexity.
The film revolves around a man who becomes obsessed with a mysterious woman. Lang perpetuated the visual style of his German films, making “The Woman in the Window” more subversive than typical Hollywood productions. The film’s visual storytelling, lighting, and composition echo the Expressionist aesthetics of his earlier works.: 1944 marked the emergence of dark crime films, and “The Woman in the Window” contributed to this trend. Fritz Lang’s background in German cinema, where Expressionism was a dominant force, heavily influenced his work in Hollywood. “The Woman in the Window” showcases Lang’s ability to adapt the principles of Expressionism to the American film noir genre, creating a work that is both a continuation of his earlier German films and a unique contribution to Hollywood cinema.
Expressionism in “Scarlet Street”
Fritz Lang’s work in film spans from the silent era, through the golden era of German Expressionism in the 1920s, to the classic studio system in Hollywood. His career is often divided into two major periods: the silent German films and the American studio movies. Despite the constraints of the Hollywood studio system, Lang managed to maintain a degree of continuity across his career, and traces of the Expressionism of his German years found their way to Hollywood.
“Scarlet Street” has been claimed by film noir, with its dark lighting and heavy use of shadows. These elements can be seen as echoes of German Expressionism. The film depicts an entrapping, claustrophobic, deterministic world in which the characters are controlled by larger forces and internal desires beyond their understanding. This is a common theme in Lang’s films and is characteristic of the Expressionist movement. Scarlet Street, with a script by Dudley Nichols and based loosely on Jean Renoir's film Lachine (1931), features the same principal players - Robinson, Bennett, and Duryea - and offers a similar polarization, and convergence, of sexual allure and fatal entrapment central to The Woman in the Window. The film, in essence, is a reconstruction, a reworking, of the earlier film, with a far grimmer denouement. In the opening Christopher Cross (Robinson) - and I will say more about the significance of the unlikely name later - is being feted at a dinner party hosted by his employer, J. J. Hogarth, for his twenty-five years of loyal service as a cashier. Hogarth (Russell Hicks) represents wealth, power, prestige, and, though an older man, sexual privileges.
The film explores themes of art and authorship, with the protagonist, Christopher Cross (Edward G. Robinson), being a professional cashier and amateur painter. The paintings in the film, which are initially dismissed as lacking perspective, are later recognized by an eminent art critic as having a "certain peculiar something". This could be seen as a commentary on the subjective nature of art and its evaluation, a theme that aligns with the Expressionist focus on representing subjective experiences. Despite the shift from Berlin to Hollywood, Lang managed to perpetuate, to a significant degree, the mise en scène and visual composition found in his German films. This suggests a considerable degree of continuity across his career and the enduring influence of German Expressionism in his work.
Conclusion
Fritz Lang’s films “The Woman in the Window” and “Scarlet Street” are significant works that showcase the continuity of Expressionism from his Berlin period to his Hollywood career. Despite the shift in the filmmaking environment and industry, Lang was able to maintain the stylistic and thematic elements of German Expressionism, adapting them to the American film noir genre. Both films exhibit a visual style that is heavily influenced by German Expressionism, with stark lighting contrasts, shadows, and angular compositions that create a sense of unease and disorientation.The narratives of these films delve into the psyche of the protagonists, exploring themes of obsession, madness, and existential angst, which are central to Expressionist art. Lang’s films are characterized by dark shadows, disorienting angles, and mirrored or distorted identities, elements that are characteristic of German Expressionism.. They depict an entrapping, claustrophobic, deterministic world in which the characters are controlled by larger forces and internal desires beyond their understanding. This is a common theme in Lang’s films and is characteristic of the Expressionist movement. Moreover, Lang’s films explore themes of art and authorship, with the protagonists often being amateur artists trapped by circumstance and fate. The subjective nature of art and its evaluation is a theme that aligns with the Expressionist focus on representing subjective experiences. Despite the common view that Lang’s American stage of his career represented a decline from his earlier German work, it can be argued that there is a considerable degree of continuity across his whole career, and that traces of the Expressionism of his German years found their way to Hollywood. More than his German immigrant contemporaries, Lang kept alive the Weimar influence in his American crime melodramas.
Work cited.:
Conley, Tom. “Writing Scarlet Street.” MLN, vol. 98, no. 5, 1983, pp. 1085–120. JSTOR,https://www.jstor.org/stable/2906063. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Fine, David. “From Berlin to Hollywood: Echoes of Expressionism in Fritz Lang’s ‘The Woman in the Window’ and ‘Scarlet Street.’”
Literature/Film Quarterly, vol. 35, no. 4, 2007, pp. 282–93. JSTOR,https://www.jstor.org/stable/43798747. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Hall, Jeanne. “‘A Little Trouble With Perspective’: Art and Authorship in Fritz Lang’s ‘Scarlet Street.’” Film Criticism, vol. 21, no. 1, 1996, pp. 34–47. JSTOR,https://www.jstor.org/stable/44019025. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
https://daily.jstor.org/how-fritz-langs-flight-from-nazi-germany-shaped-hollywood/
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