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filmista · 3 years

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Film history: The Hays code 🎞 ✄

For more than thirty years, an ironclad system of regulation of cinematographic content put the professionals of the moment at the limit of their ingenuity in order to prevent their films from falling prey to censorship.

Despite being an undoubted period of repression, this need to avoid the scissors, brought out a whole series of resources, double entendres, veiled references. In certain cases and in genres such as comedy, it gave rise to the suggestive ability of not showing or not saying openly what was obvious. The Hays code was a well-known regulation that was in effect from 1934 to 1968 and was conceived by William H. Hays, a member of the Republican Party and the first president of the Film Producers and Distributors Association of America –MPPDA–.

The cinema, like all artistic expression, did not take long to generate controversy. In the midst of the twenties, to the controversial arguments that could appear on the screen, the scandals of actors and directors outside of it were added. The tabloid press of the time was abuzz with all its explosive tribulations, riddled with murder, drugs, or death.

The movie mecca was depicted as nothing less than a scene of depravity and immorality. Among the most notorious events, we find the alleged rape and subsequent death of the unknown aspiring actress Virginia Rappe at the hands of the comedian Roscoe Arbuckle. Also widely publicized was the divorce of the then famous Mary Pickford, from her first husband Owen Moore, while she was having an affair with Douglas Fairbanks.

With the purpose of avoiding government intervention and favoring self-regulation, the heads of the cinematographic studios decided to create in 1922 the MPPDA, later called the MPAA –with the end of World War II– or the Cinematographic Association of the United States. William H. Hays was named its president and given the mission of restoring the good image of Hollywood and, at the same time, dictating the morality of its films.

In 1929, with the help of the Catholic publisher Martin Quigley and the Jesuit priest Daniel A. Lord, the code of norms was developed and, after being revised by the study leaders, it was finally adopted by the MPPDA in 1930. At first this was called The Production Code and was later renamed for posterity as The Hays Code. In addition to some general sobering precepts, focused on preserving the morale of the films, a huge list of vigilance guidelines was drawn up that targeted sex, especially violence or blasphemy.

In this way, the scenes of passion were reduced to the minimum expression. Manifestations such as kisses and hugs should eliminate any trace of lust and, of course, any explicit scene. In particular the kisses became so chaste that they were even timed, they could only last a few seconds. Marriage as an institution also had to be protected, a sign of the moralising nature of the norms.

On-screen crimes had to be shown without showing all their brutality and the use of weapons was reduced to the bare minimum. The irreverent use of language, especially if it was perceived as an offense to religion, was eliminated. These are some examples of the restrictions that the code marked and that forced the filmmakers to avoid any obvious reference.

Other rules were also the most bizarre, especially the most curious have to do with the nude. In this sense, the woman, her dress or the lack of it; they were closely supervised.

Transparencies or fabrics that excessively emphasise the shape of the female body were not allowed and the navel should not be shown under any circumstances. Men were also a cause for censure, as it was considered lewd to show the hair on the torso and it was not advisable to expose it. These observations have to do with the more inflexible nature of the censors, but even though they were exaggerated, they left a long trail of puritanism that is still felt in American cinema today.

During its first years of validity, the code was observed with some permissiveness and this favored certain productions that managed to avoid its guidelines. In the midst of the Great Depression, studios couldn't afford any more losses, so they were initially reluctant to adopt a series of measures that directly affected popular genres, such as gangster movies or comedies. However, the threats of boycott by the Catholic sector of American society and the withdrawal of funds by some influential investors, forced the studios to abide by the code in force from 1934. These years were known as the Pre- Code Hollywood.

Some of the films that somehow circumvented censorship in these years were, among others, ‘The Blue Angel‘ (‘Der blaue Engel, Josef Von Sternberg, 1930) with a sensual Marlene Dietrich. Other examples include the movie (‘Baby face’, Alfred E. Green, 1933), with Barbara Stanwych openly using her charms to advance socially; or 'The Sign of the Cross' ('The Sign of the Cross', Cecil B. DeMille, 1932), centered on the time of Emperor Nero, played by Charles Laughton, shows its excesses in an overt way.

Several of these Pre-Code films suffered the burden of censorship after 1934. An example is the film 'A Farewell to Arms' ('A Farewell to Arms', Frank Borzage, 1932), starring Gary Cooper and Helen Hayes, it was shortened later on so that only its censored version remains. Other professionals affected by the code were the Marx brothers - known for the audacity of their dialogues - or some actresses, such as Jean Harlow or Joan Blondell, especially the latter was vetoed on numerous occasions.

However, some creators found somehow even within the severe surveillance of the code, an incentive to challenge their ingenuity. On many occasions, difficulties are a stimulus for those unwilling to yield before them.

That is why masters such as Ernst Lubitsch or Alfred Hitchcock knew how to circumvent censorship with their inimitable talent. His fantastic dialogues or the actions behind a closed door are two of the landmarks of Lubitsch's magic.

The famous sequence of the long interrupted kiss is also particularly insurmountable - remember that kisses could only last three seconds -, in which Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman offer us one of the most intimate scenes of Hitchcock's filmography in the marvellous 'Notorious' ('Notorious', Alfred Hitchcock, 1946).

Ultimately, the demand for more realistic plots and the evolution of American society, dictated the disappearance of the Hays code in the late 1960s. This conclusion gave way to the age classification system that is preserved to this day. In addition to observing this stage in the history of cinema as a markedly restrictive time in many respects, I believe that it should also be appreciated with admiration for the talent of so many filmmakers who made their misdirection manoeuvres unrepeatable.

@siobhanlovesfilm @mad-prophet-of-the-airwaves @purecinema @vastness-and-sorrow @klaineharmony @idasessions

#the hays code #old hollywood #american cinema #film history #film censorship #cinema #film #movies #films

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kitsnicket · 2 years

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My toxic trait for the Netflix show? I genuinely loved the time period they set up. Like it’s such a damn hodgepodge of everything. Not gothic, sure, but like - I can live without gothic aesthetics when you have Eleanora Poe in clothes that resemble Louella Parsons’/Heda Hopper’s style, Jacquelyn is very much noirish (MAJOR Barbara Stanwych vibes) just the general atmosphere being so Weird and so Combined,,,,it’s genuinely really good

SO TRUUUUUUUE I’m partial to a more gothic aesthetic myself but the Netflix Look was very well done. Cohesive but still off kilter

#correspondence #denim-supreme

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lizzieviolet13 · 6 years

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Similar to my previous post about Thea, Heather Babcock is another inspiring woman in my life who, when I met her, we immediately clicked. We discovered very early on that we were both obsessed with the 1930s and pre-code movies and vintage fashion. We instantly bonded, this was a friendship that was meant to be. Every day I am inspired by this beautiful woman!

The first time I met Heather was after she read at a Plasticine Poetry event. Her reading was amazing and she looked like a 1930s redheaded moll. During this time I was co-running The Beautiful & The Damned and my own show Lizzie Violet’s Cabaret Noir. She was so incredibly sassy and talented, I knew we needed to book her and I wanted to talk to her on a personal level. My gut screamed that girl is super swell! My gut was right! Eventually, I met her boyfriend Neil and they met Zoltan. Together we now put on a show called The Redhead Revue and we have all become incredibly good friends.

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When I hear Heather read or when we talk about our interests or life in general, I am motivated to do better and to be a better person. After spending time with Heather, I always feel like I’m not working hard enough. She is one of those writers who, with knowing she is even doing it, kicks me in the ass!

Heather Babcock is an incredible writer, storyteller, poet and performer. She has an incredible wealth of knowledge about the 1930s and pre-code movies. In fact, she is a walking library of facts. Oh… and she also happens to be a published author! Heather’s chapbook Of Being Underground and Moving Backwards was published by DevilHousePress in 2015 and her novel filthy sugar is being published by Inanna Press. Please also check out her blog Heather Rose Babcock…Writing to Exhale.

Redheads Writing in Cafes Except When It’s a Redhead Riot! Similar to my previous post about Thea, Heather Babcock is another inspiring woman in my life who, when I met her, we immediately clicked.

#1930s #barbara stanwych #blogger #blogging #clara bow #Fiction #filthy sugar #Heather Babcock #jean harlow #Of Being Underground and Moving Backwards #precode #redhead riot #ruby keeler and dick powell #storyteller #the beautiful and the damned #the redhead review #vintage #waiting to exhale #Writing

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darringauthier · 7 years

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Double Indemnity (1944)

Genre: Film Noir

Who’s in it: Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, Edward G Robinson

Who Directed it: Billy Wilder

Plot: An insurance representative lets himself be talked into a murder/insurance fraud scheme that arouses an insurance investigator's suspicions.

Running Time: 107 minutes

Rotten Tomatoes Score: Critics 96% Audience 95%

My Viewing History: I’m a Film Noir mega fan so I’ve tried to watch as many as I can and also when tapes first came out I tracked down all the classic film noirs to watch them. So I watched this pretty early one, I’ve seen it a couple of times.

Thoughts: This is a great film noir but I’ve always found it a tad weird, Billy Wilder is a legend but not know for this type of film, I knew Fred MacMurray from TV and My Three Sons, Barbara Stanwych is a great actress but not my first choice for a Femme Fatale, but the film works not only works but it’s one of the best film noirs of all time. It’s now a very standard film noir tale, women gets a man, kind of dumb or greedy man to kill her husband and of course there’s double crosses and you throw in Edgar G Robinson, that man was born to be in film noirs. Great script and good chemistry between the leads.

I’ve always described a Film Noir has bad people do bad things and it ends badly, this one is true to that statement, it’s so well done, the look is great and the film just reeks of that film noir vibe.

Standing: It’s a classic no doubt and a must watch for any film fan or movie nut, whatever you liked to be called.

#double indemnity #fred macmurray #barbara stanwyck #billy wilder

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