The Art Movement That Changed Film Forever

[@ThomasFlight]

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[@J.C_Hong]

I like your haircut. You're a very handsome man.

[@genzu1111]

Curious about your take on Raised By Wolves

[@sidolanters1394]

It's pronounced "Moonk" btw; not "Munsh"

[@YashRaj-zs1oo]

POV: Me while calling my best friend

[@johni1622]

I can see what the narrator said about noire portrayal of anxiety. The whole impetus and psyche culture of the white ethnicity's are obsessed with death and darkness and embracing insanity. It's like a whole pale ethnicity of Aztecs

[@sanchitaghosh6289]

It's rare that a video essay makes you want to finally get to that unfinished list of film movements that you'd always wanted to study. Thanks for jolting me out of my procrastination.

[@LuisSierra42]

Metropolis is really good despite being almost 3 hours long and silent and even if it was made 100 years ago, it still touches on themes that are relevant today

[@cinama]

There are lots of good essays out there buddy!

[@sanchitaghosh6289]

@@cinama few so well researched, and fewer still on a century old film movement

[@inessa5923]

@@sanchitaghosh6289 I'm not sure if reading is your thing, but limiting yourself to video essays is torture for that exact reason.

[@sanchitaghosh6289]

@@inessa5923 yes, but I'd long kept the list of resources and papers aside. this video renewed my interest in film history once again and my comment was made in that context

[@serjack9916]

Stunning video! The Lighthouse is also a great example of neo-german expressionism

[@LuisSierra42]

Yes

[@taron5244]

Could you elaborate? genuinely curious

[@evanward3964]

Why'd Ya Spill Yer Beans?

[@burpie3258]

@@evanward3964 HARK!

[@imaginnova]

I learned recently that in Munch's painting, it's illustrating the main character's reaction to The Scream rather than him unleashing one himself--he is hearing "the scream of nature" (the actual German title). It completely recontextualized the scene for me, thought it was worth sharing and fantastic video as always!

[@madeleineskogvik6983]

Actually Munch is norwegian and the original name of the paint is «Skrik» which means scream

[@imaginnova]

@@madeleineskogvik6983 Oh for sure, sorry I didn't mean he was German just that was the German title, but the main takeaway I had from the recent analyses were that the scream was emanating from nature and not the main character--is that right you think?

[@simplyshama]

I knew it! This is honestly my first time ever properly looking at the painting. The main character is so clearly expressing shock rather than unleashing a scream. The environment around it is showing much more than the character imo.The German name is way more fitting,

[@kiarraburd]

Was just about to comment this! While it makes for a powerful piece when considering the subject as the source of the screaming, in my opinion there's something so much more macabre about Munch's original intention with the subject as a passive receiver...

[@LoveifyCheck]

@@imaginnova there are a lot of different readings of the painting so don't believe that one is the final, most correct one

[@isadorastrokes]

Love the idea of this video, but I would caution that Expressionism is more stylistically specific than it is often made out to be. Simply displacing internal turmoil into external is also a characteristic of several other artistic movements. In gothic fiction, for instance, the setting often reflects the characters' feelings and fears. Nosferatu, being based on Dracula, reflects its source material's gothic roots much more than expressionism. The film was shot with natural light and on location, two things that are contrary to the expressionist aesthetic. Fritz Lang also always denied being influenced by Expressionism, and while I do think we shouldn't take creators at their word (death of the author and all), it is still worth investigating why he would say that. Expressionism was very extreme in its rejection of realism. Interestingly, another German movement called "New Objectivity" was at least as influential when it comes to film noir. It was gritty and made stark use of contrast, but to tell more realistic stories about seedy city life. Films like "The Blue Angel", "Pandora's Box", "Joyless Street" or even Fritz Lang's "M" are examples of this. They also abound with proto-femme fatale characters, which we don't find as much in expressionist films.

[@ReganAtSea]

well put

[@quaseau]

Yes, well said. I love and admire the aesthetic but the externalization of inner feelings is the most exciting to me. Would you mind offering a few more examples of places/movements/periods to look for such work outside of "expressionism"?

[@melanie62954]

I would argue that Expressionism is a visual grandchild of Gothic literature, or rather, early 19th century Romanticism in general (which at its core was a German philosophical movement). Gothic fiction was one of the manifestations of the Romantic movement in England. The German Expressionist art movement was also heavily influenced by Romantic painters like Friedrich, probably even Fuseli and Goya. So while you are spot on that Nosferatu reflects gothic roots, Expressionism was birthed from the same tradition. They don't have to be mutually exclusive. Film Noir being equally influenced by New Objectivity is something I hadn't considered, but you're right! I think it's less obvious because most of the iconic New Objectivity works are wartime and political imagery. But the feeling of paranoia and decay is unmistakable (of course, you also see those qualities in German Expressionist painters like Kirchner and Nolde).

[@lachlanmclennan2188]

I'd classify all those variations as being under the umbrella of expressionism. The same way metal and punk music have sub genres.

[@isadorastrokes]

@@melanie62954 ​ I agree that Expressionism was heavily influenced by Romanticism and in particular Gothic literature, but they are still distinct movements. Certainly, a film might show evidence of both at the same time, but I don't think Nosferatu is a good case for that, but rather it is sometimes lumped in with Expressionism simply because it was made in Weimar Germany. The film goes to considerable lengths to ground its fantastic story in realism (which is almost the opposite of Expressionism, which turns the real into the fantastic) both in terms of aesthetics (as I mentioned above, with the natural lighting and filming on location) but also in terms of plot with usage of written documents telling the story, etc. In this way, it is a remarkably faithful adaptation of Dracula, despite the fact some changes were made to avoid - unsuccessfully - being sued for copyright infringement. I am glad you consider the New Objectivity connection to noir an insight, I'm actually writing my master thesis about a related subject right now, and this is one of the things I'm arguing :)

[@pizzaisbetterthanyou]

Interestingly, surrealism's predecessor (Dadaism) took off in Europe around a similar time that Expressionism became popular too. Dadaism wasn't nearly as popular in Germany, but there was a small yet prolific group of Dadaists who resided in Berlin. Thinking about the influences and similarities between the two is fascinating, especially considering the historical context of the Weimar Republic! I think keeping the distinction between surrealism and expressionism is important, but they were both borne out of similar conditions.

[@coltonc7832]

Dadaism wasn't as popular in Germany compared to Expressionism perhaps but Germany was a major contributor to the movement. A good number of the movement's authors and artists came from Germany, including the guy who wrote the manifesto - Hugo Ball.

[@annacarollina7703]

I think its good to see the two as "sibling movements", ultimately different although being created in the same conditions

[@bbswr5276]

As well as der stijl and die blaue reiter. There are those who even say der stijl and dada are direct opposites from one same trauma. One wants to blow all to hell, the other to regress to the most elementary essence. Neverthless both have a mindset substancially different to the german expressionism, that backs, or better saying, reinforces their arguments on its adjacent context, whether through colors and gesture in painting, or camera angles, montage or set in film.

[@bradbell4022]

Stimulating comment. Expressionism and Surrealism both render the subjective world on the objective world. Both remain vital today as we are only now realising the degree to which biochemical affect changes fundamental perceptions of the world - hearing a complex web of individual things making sounds around you and being able to identify each sound, it's location and distance, versus drowning in a cacophony of meaningless noise - while at the same time, the environment actually changes our physical brains. (Twins studies; pre-natal effects of food shortages, anxiety, etc) Expressionism and Surrealism represent the nature/nurture question in all it's radical complexity, which is arguably truer than 'naturalistic' representations. Naturalism: 'I change the world, but the world does not change me; I have emotions that are ABOUT the world.' Expressionism, Surrealism: 'I change the world and the world changes me; I am AFFECTED by the world' The so-called Pathetic Fallacy of the Romantics - when Nature takes on the affective character of the hero - also fits with Expressionism and Surrealism and is due a reappraisal. I can't help but think of Millhouse, heartbroken on the windswept peak of the monkey bars, while storm clouds gather in the background😹 But my heart belongs to Dada. Expressionism and Surrealism are serious, psychological, anxious, depressed, and sexual. Dada is childish and silly. Dada is an extroverted rejection of the norm. It's simpler, more political, more performative, and more radical as a movement. Dada is more like climate protesters throwing a can of tomato soup at a Van Gogh. But it's intentionally almost meaningless as individual representations. I like Dada because I live in the introverted, Expressionism and Surrealism world. It's a nice break

[@idadahlanderssen5222]

The scream is, as Munch himself explained, a feeling. He wrote a story about it when he was in France, which in summary says that he was walking along Ekebergåsen, which is a hill in Oslo overlooking the city, with his friends. When he felt a "scream" of anxiety sweep across nature, and which left him with a feeling of utter dread and left him full of fear, while his friends continued walking.The scream represents the very feeling of this experience. He actually made 5 scream paintings, some more known than the others.

[@ALFirebird]

Thomas could you pleaser consider adding the movie title names to every clip you use, like studio binder does? It would be really helpful for us film newbies who want to watch a particular film after seeing a clip in one of your vids🤓

[@MyMomDrank]

Great video, I couldn’t put my finger on just what made Euphoria so visually breathtaking. I knew the lighting was incredible and the cinematography… but I didn’t know WHY.

[@luismarioguerrerosanchez4747]

One element of film I'm infinitely interested in, is lighting, and how fixed lighting can alter or distort the subjects of a given shot. In most articles and essays, both written and on video, they talk about the influence of noir in this regard. The fact that you not only went further in film history (The German Neo Expressionist movement) but went even farther by aknowledging the influence of a diferent form of art in film is something to applaud. This is one of my favorite videos you've done so far.

[@MichaelHeide]

I think it's important to note that Alfred Hitchcock got his start in Germany in the mid-20s. He was directly influenced by Expressionism, and he carried it over to his work in England. You can trace the influence from Das Cabinet des Dr Caligari directly to The Lodger, and even to Downhill, and from there to his later work in the US, especially Psycho. And since Hitchcock was one of the most influential directors himself, that led to directors being influenced by German Expressionism filtered through Hitch.

[@richardwahl6667]

I think it's important to note that your comment is bollocks. Alfred Hitchcock was born in Leytonstone, London in 1899. He was British, not German. He began his career in the British film industry in the early 1920s, working as a title card designer and art director for several UK studios. His directorial debut was the 1925 film The Pleasure Garden, which was made at Islington Studios in London. It wasn't until later in his career in the 1930s and 40s that Hitchcock started working in Hollywood and making American films. But he got his start in the British film industry. So while Hitchcock went on to have a remarkable career spanning decades and work in both the UK and US, he did not get his start in Germany in the mid-1920s. That statement is incorrect. He launched his career in the early 1920s in his home country of England.

[@MichaelHeide]

@@richardwahl6667 what's your source for Pleasure Garden being filmed exclusively in London? As opposed to Italy and Munich (the latter of which is in Germany)? And do you know that before Pleasure Garden, he worked as assistant to Graham Cutts for The Blackguard, filmed at Studio Babelsberg in Potsdam near Berlin? Around the time that Metropolis was shot right there?

[@bingewatcher9681]

''Scream is not just a feeling but something he sensed outside of him. Expressionism blurs the boundries between subjectivity and the external world, and how we feel affects the way we see the world around us. But the world around us also affects the way we feel when the environment seems more off balance, littered with shadows or unreal perhaps that's when artists start looking for ways to express that.'' Noted. 💯🌟

[@gabrielidusogie9189]

Idk if you’ve done this already, but you should make a video essay about how you analyze a film and turn it into an essay. Thatd be awesome. I definitely caught the neon noir vibe of Euphoria but I wouldn’t have guessed to think about the nuances about the expressionism within the episode.

[@xandrafuhrer]

This was wonderful. I hope you do one on Impressionism too, if you find the time. Even more underlooked than its "opposite," the only directors I kind think of who use it comprehensively are Tarkovsky, Malick, Reichardt, and Weerasethakul--but as you said, with expressionism, traces of it are everywhere. It's a bit harder to identify, too...

[@rishibenny]

Funnily enough, Tarkovsky was highly critical of the impressionist movement

[@xandrafuhrer]

@@rishibenny really? That's so interesting. What did he have to say on it?

[@sidolanters1394]

[@andrew_nayes]

Munch is pronounced Moonk, like monk but with a long moo (like cows), or like the moon (plus k).

[@JoseMorales-lw5nt]

#ThomasFlight: May I add another great example of Expressionism shaping modern television shows.... BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES. Showrunners Paul Dini and Bruce Timm have admitted to being heavily influenced by the German movement. They made it a point to have animators work on black paper in order to draw out light from the darkness! The end result was literally the near illegal airing of barely visible background art. Apparently, BTAS pushed the legal limit of how visibly dark a network show can be.

[@kyleliegel]

Thomas this may just be the best video you have produced thus far. Compelling, educational, and relevant. I think I speak for many when I say thank you so much for your work!

[@EvlinDuBose]

Favourite film movement from my favourite video essayist? Yes please, I'm in heaven. As an artistic reaction to social trauma, expressionism is pretty much peerless. Makes it one of the more timeless movements in cinema because it's so rooted in feeling. Reminds me strongly of the Night Window scene from 1917: seeing those shadows warping and stretching across the broken landscape finally made it click in my brain what German Expressionism was talking about.

[@aldrichuyliong8143]

There's an entire generation whose first exposure to German Expressionism was the music video for Red Hot Chili Peppers' 'Otherside'. That video still looks incredible today.

[@KingTFD]

Otherside

[@Omar_Little]

do you mean "Otherside"?

[@helvete_ingres4717]

pretty much everyone has seen some influence of it in Tim Burton movies

[@etashelinto8253]

Had to pause 3 minutes in to come say, Thomas, you are a brilliant human being. I came across your work this year and am impressed by your ability gather interesting ideas, to connect disparate dots, and explain them all clearly. It’s just 💯 impressive.

[@loganwelty7094]

I loved this. Learning about expressionism and surrealism makes me realize just how many of my favorite films lean on those methods of creativity.

[@ThomasFlight]

Kicking myself lol.

[@lacrimatorium]

Thanks for reminding us of the value of the Expressionist mode. I would like to add that Expressionism overlaps with the Symbolist Movement. Munch (pronounced more like Moonk) was both an Expressionist and a Symbolist. And Symbolism has long tentacles into the present as well. From Italian Diva films of the Teens, to the writing of HP Lovecraft, to the classic Mummy films, and horror in general, to Hammer films, to psychedelic poster art, which actually borrows direct images from Mucha (Art Nouveau being the more practical outworking of Symbolism), to the quest objects of Indiana Jones movies, and most ghost stories, to Stuart Gordon's Dagon, to the Lord of the Rings (modern fantasy is an outgrowth of Symbolism) to last year's the Green Knight, all betray the influence of the Symbolist Movement. Look into it Thomas, I think you'll find a wealth of extra material there.

[@ReganAtSea]

good point that various artistic movements overlap and coexist(ed). Symbolism is definitely cool and super influential on lots of stuff (including some of the things you mention) but i mean... "modern fantasy is an outgrowth of Symbolism" is a bold and not-that-defensible claim. i can understand why you might associate Symbolism with fantasy (rejection of realism, use of symbols and symbolic "quest objects' etc) but the truth is more like: "Symbolism and other related and unrelated things led to modern fantasy". (things including: expressionism, art nouveau, the arts and crafts movement, romanticism, mythology, folklore, Christian and other religious mysticism, impressionism, orientalism, Edwardian/Victorian children's fiction, gothic horror, medievalism, magic, camp, Arthurianism, pulp and early scifi, counterculture, the legacy of colonialism, depictions and reactions to depictions of the first and second world wars, the freudian subconscious, etc etc etc) i think probably there's more of a Symbolist influence specifically on some horror fiction and "weird" fiction (Lovecraft) and on some of the current dystopian and gothic scifi and "art horror" stuff than on modern fantasy in general, as well as a lot of Symbolist influence on cinema as a whole partly because of german expressionist films. there's also a lot of Symbolism in subsequent influential poetry and literary fiction from Yeats to Proust to Eliot to Joyce. but bring on more surreal, Verlaine/Rimbaud/Baudelaire/Poe-steeped, uncanny, Symbolist-influenced fantasy.

[@lacrimatorium]

@@ReganAtSea There's a lot to reply to here and I don't want to drag this out, except to say most of these 'other' influences are in the continuum that runs from Romanticism through Symbolism to Surrealism and eventually seems to bottom out at Psychedelia and the ultimate nadir of New Age ideas. In other words they are manifestations of the same basic thing. They are the rejection of realism and materialism that exists on the other side of the Enlightenment rationalists. These two have been leap frogging each other since the 18th Century. But basically Romanticism, Symbolism, Surrealism are the big headings. Expression is interesting for being a halfway house between Symbolism and Modernism (which is much more on the rationalist side of the fence along with realism, impressionism, etc.) That's at least what my studies lead me to conclude.

[@m.i.andersen8167]

Perhaps it is more correct to say that Munch (pronounced not with a "Moon" O, but O sounding like in "Know" as the Scandinavian Å, and "ch" in the end as a germanic "K" sound, and not Anglo-Saxon "ch".) was both a (later) expressionist and (early) symbolist. But he was also under the influence of "Vitalism" just like Fritz Lang's dancing carefree resident above the sweaty workers of Metropolis. Sergie Eisenstein's "methods of montage" also had a great influence on many expressionist films from the period. But the very biggest influence came from Italian and Soviet "FUTURISM", which not only influenced expressionist films, but films ever since, e.g. the grandiose buildings of "Metropolis" (1927), "Things to Come" (1936), "Blade Runner" (1982) and many other modern sci-fi.

[@salganik]

@@m.i.andersen8167 not really, Munch is pronounced very much like a moon, definitely not with å. You may check how it is done in a 1974 film about him or any dictionary.

[@m.i.andersen8167]

@@salganikI am a Dane who has lived in Norway for several years. Here in Scandinavian we don't pronounce it as "moon".

[@nathanrosenblatt9964]

My favorite thing about these videos is that it makes my movie-going experience so much richer; great video

[@jamesmyers6337]

You exaggerated lighting and tilted angles in the last shot was genius. Really sent home the concepts of the video. "Show, don't tell" at its finest.

[@alexlennen]

can already tell this gonna be a CLASSIC

[@udaykiranpanjala2710]

Didn't expect to see you here lol

[@alexlennen]

@@udaykiranpanjala2710 what the hell

[@riloe1]

Despite Noir and Neo-Noir being one of my hugest influences, I never connected how expressionist a movement/style it is. Noir isn't just about stark visual contrast or high-key lighting, but about the stark contrast between dark/light in our own subconscious reading of things around us. Great video!

[@elle2104]

I took a german film and art class as a part of my german minor and the films of that era are so cool, I'm glad the style is coming back

[@samuelrampelt864]

I love this look at German Expressionism. I really found it compelling how you described in the creation of the scream as a scream passing through nature, and connected that to the representation of the environment in German Expressionist cinematography and set. This also, however, makes me think similarly about how Japanese animation differently from much western animation portrays character’s emotions and feelings less through characterization or character animation, but through setting around them, like cuts to rain representing sorrow, or cuts to fireworks representing surprise or reveals. This might be a really interesting lense you could look at this through with Japanese film, especially animation, for a future video. Thanks for the great video!

[@ab76254]

Speaking of expressionism/surrealism, did anyone else notice how oddly designed the school bathroom setting in Euphoria is? Like the angles and mirrors seem off (mirrors reflecting one another creating a funhouse mirror maze illusion), there are way too many sinks, the ceiling is weirdly high, and the stalls are in the middle of the room for some reason. The layout made it feel like the bathroom was an extra surreal space in the context of Euphoria's other settings, and a fitting environment for all the bizarre things that happened in it throughout the show

[@charlesm835]

Thomas, your videos have deepened my love for film by inordinate amount. Brilliant breakdown of stylistic alterations of environments in film. This is absolute gold.

[@brandx248]

This is by far one of the most satisfying, and interesting video essays. Amazing job, I loved it.

[@Advent3546]

I always geek out when I see expressionist lighting.

[@RhiannonSenpai]

Thank you for describing Expressionism clearly to me. I always confused Symbolism and Expressionism and thought they were almost the same but now I see the differences more.

[@hodgemann]

Love the crooked background elements and noir lighting when you are on screen. Most excellent details!

[@tannerthemanner8311]

i've been on youtube for like a decade at this point, and this may be the single video i enjoyed most, you killed this bro

[@squidknee5490]

I don't know what you did, but the HD quality of the clips you used is insane; breathtaking- especially The Scream & The Tragedy of Macbeth.

[@thecinephilefish9465]

Great insight as always! In my review of the show, I mentioned that the hyper-sylised visuals of Euphoria are a manifestation of the way that the characters of the show romanticize their own lives. Sadly the way that audiences have latched onto the show's visuals ensures that the show's romannticization of certain issues has overflowed into the "real world", which, in my opinion, sets a dangerous precedent for people of that age and negates the thematic implication that the show was gunning for.

[@esperanzarobertson4823]

Where is your review? I’m curious about it.

[@scoodler]

This video was inspiring on so many levels, the least of which is that it motivates me to re-watch some of the films you mentioned such as Touch of Evil. I think this style and the ideas expressed within it are more relevant than ever in this time of increased surveillance and financial pressures on the average working citizen.

[@alexiacerwinskipierce8114]

This was so beautifully explained. I don't even have much interest in film per se. But you can't study art movements without learning about German expressionism along the way. Great video.

[@Simply_Jerry]

I love the fact that the camera is slightly crooked!

[@grey_f98]

1:17 these shots actually reminded me of Citizen Kane, although you went on to talk about Welles's Touch of Evil instead, which I haven't seen but now I'm interested

[@Lodacris]

Great video! Would you mind adding the name of the movie shown currently as a tiny label somewhere in the corner? I know it’s in the description, but this would make it so much easier to identify what’s currently shown. Especially as they repeat.

[@jonathansodacan5769]

This was great. Loved how far back you traced the threads of inspiration in film history

[@efleishermedia]

The scream is one of my favorite paintings of all time. Right up there with Garden of Earthly Delights

[@nicolebogda1482]

Great vid! Surprised the use of liminal spaces/ claustrophobic spaces wasn’t also pointed out.

[@ollyf5088]

There’s a brilliant bit in transpotting 2 when spuds shadow takes on a sinister, inhuman proportion similar to nosferatu that really expresses his inner turmoil

[@hydromusic6257]

Oh Orson ❤ I love how much he's peppered within this video, even indirectly. He did love shadows and darkness and what you can do with architecture and how the body fits within that. I don't know if you know this, but Denzel based his Mac on Orson's, and if you watch Orson's Mac you see a LOT of those visuals as well. Anyway, fantastic video, really enjoyed it!

[@christiansrensen3810]

Thanks for the info. And here is why I am 47... An just realized I am a noir and expressionist fan...i didn't know. I always love the scream. I love the cure. I love sin city... I love twin peaks. Even the commercial from the coffee brand coffee noir. I always sad and watched these, and was what happens next to rabid. I love films that pushes to the boundary between internal and external.... So i am oblivious an noir expressionist fanboy... So Thanks now i can focus my exploration on these topics.

[@marknewbold2583]

The Cure suck

[@donlucas5472]

Perfection! Your videos are awesome. Thank you the hard work you put into these. I’ll be donating to your channel. Keep up the great work.

[@kidcal]

It’s not Munch as in crunch. Is Munch as in moonk.

[@lt3111]

I'm currently doing a bibliography essay for film school on german expressionism and i'm gonna use this video as my final source, so thank you dude

[@wilandhugs]

So glad you brought up Lynch. This is gonna get lost and I'm just shouting to the abyss, but I analyzed the music in Mulholland Drive for a film class and it really is unreal how that film is the epitome of expressionism. It's way less surreal than most of his work IMO so the lack of naturality, especially in how off the music is tonally, really lights up the idea that what we're seeing is a warped expression of reality (which it is, it's Diane's dream), rather than reality. Things are still oppressive in showcasing Diane's state in the end but are no where near as hard to pinpoint in terms of like, what does this environment even look like?

[@TheH2ello]

very interrested and well-illustrated videos! i've began to notice these "strange shots", specially in euphoria, but never knew where they drew inspiration from

[@gabrielidusogie9189]

You know I just got done reading the chapter on German Expressionism in my intro to Film Theory book. Thanks for the visual aid.

[@detoxwithp-talksofficial6868]

It's a good day when Thomas Flight uploads a new video. Outstanding video, you surely have given me a reason to now explore these films and understand them from a new viewpoint.

[@Wyatt_b_parker]

I loved this essay I think it was a shame you never mentioned that the “scream of nature” munch talked about was perfectly timed with Krakatoa

[@comunacine]

Great insights on German Expressionism and its influence on Film Noir. But I differ on your expressionist approach to Euphoria. French Impressionism clearly evoques emotions through setting, lenses, flou, rhythm and montage. About Euphoria’s style: it has to do a little with Expressionism but clearly is more influenced by Impressionism and Aestheticism.

[@scubadudefrommaine]

Dude! You said so much I haven't been able to put in words until now.

[@petrick323]

Do you have a list of the movies from the shots used in this video? I love this kind of stuff and I really need to watch more of these.

[@fawn3931]

check the description 🙃

[@jmhoke06]

Maybe more apt to associate the expressive lighting of "Euphoria" with the expressionistic melodramas of the fifties. Check out Douglas Sirk's "All That Heaven Allows", for instance.

[@jackallenproductions]

I've been branching off from your work (& every frame a painting) looking for other video essayists to sink my teeth into. There's a lot of trite, a lot of shite, nothing else I've come across that offers a satisfying bite. Thankyou for being a Content Provider that I actually find engaging. If anyone else has any recommendations, please feel free to leave a reply. Will do my best to respond in order to better narrow down my preferences.

[@ThomasFlight]

Have you watched Tom's videos over at Like Stories of Old? You might also enjoy Julian's from The Discarded Image or Adam's from Entertain the Elk.

[@jackallenproductions]

@@ThomasFlight thanks for the recommendations, will be sure to check them out. Hope you have a good week.

[@yoerivanesseveld]

Thomas Flight watches Euphoria? That is so cool! I love it when worlds that I thought were separate in my head are one. As is everything! Can't wait for you to do an essay on the visual language of the show created by Marcel Rev's and his team!

[@deadinfebruary]

Expressionism, my favourite art movement.

[@carinacebollada3638]

This video has lighted up my curiosity, you´re done a great job!

[@ekawaharafilms]

* not sure if this has been mentioned yet and this is ofc 9 months late to the video but munch (possibly) really was responding to an external environment, and not just an expressionist form of his anxiety. around that same time a volcano erupted, which had resulted in an interesting sky view at the time (including red clouds similar to what the scream depicts). munch's diary which mentions the walk on the evening on which he'd experienced the scream through nature corresponds correctly with the dates of these clouds' sightings, so historians theorize that that is what the scream depicts.

[@adameggers8146]

Thank you for the very nice video essay. When I 1st saw the new Cohen directed MacBeth, I thought: Oh, Shakespeare-noir. My question is where is the dividing line between Expressionism or Neo German Expressionism and film noir? Is it merely about the when and where the film was made?

[@josephm.benoit9202]

Thank you, Thomas, for my acquaintance with CS/Nebula, first heard about through your channel. Finally signed up, through your promo code. Thanks again and Much continued success to you.

[@freddy_rator]

This is a complete side track but I live in a little town in Norway, and Edward Much( which is pronounced more like monk) used to live there. His house is still there which I think is pretty cool

[@ruchirasarma9293]

Beautiful video! So so glad that I found and watched this! Thank you for this video.

[@MonotremeFilms]

Another fantastic video, really great summary of the legacy of German Expressionism via Noir. Excellent stuff.

[@trewhite7903]

the casual off-kilter background at the end is great :D

[@increase9896]

I like how your commercial at the end stayed with the theme.

[@MoviesWithMia]

Fabulous video! Thank you for sharing!

[@tastingsweetfeelingwierd7082]

I know very little about film just came here out of curiosity, but the two points that I went back to to really clarify expressionism in film are at 3:20 "expressionism is relatively simple: express interior experiences externally in the enviornment that surround the subject and the in the style of the work itself. " 9:25 "often when a modern film or show uses expressionism as a technique, people say it is stylized or surreal, but you can be heavily stylized without being explicitly expressionist (Grand Budapest), and surrealism (Rabbits) is it's own unique way of bending or warping reailty, usually it's a language of dreams or subconcious - while expressionism (Trainspotting) is a language of subjectivity projected outward. In film/tv i think the two can often look like each other or even be used in the same work, but they have different uses and effects."

[@tastingsweetfeelingwierd7082]

"Expressionsim brought an idea of how you can approach lighting and set design, that has become such a part of the fabric of film, that it has lamost become invisible to us, it has just become another technique" This point prompts alot of reflection - it is interesting how some ideas, movements or techniques that were once novel now feel like second nature. This seems certainly in large part because of the movements being engrained in our life and culture that they FEEL natural or common sense as they have been sown into the fabric of ourselves since we were born. But I also wonder if this type of thinking/expressing is natural, and it just took someone, a group or just the perfect environment for it to be expressed so clearly that it can be labelled. That is, I am thinking that people might have been using expressionism in their daily life prior to the movement. I don't mean profesional artists but just daily people. LIke how the theory of displacement with fluids was always present, it just took the appropriate person with the connections to name it ?? Also definitely illustrates how important historians are - I know this isn't a hot take but just as someone who isn't all that excited by history it is more of a note to self. Everything builds off of what came before, ontop of or in conversation with or in reaction to. Or everything already exists and it is our job just to find it, make the connections, label it, create output and conversations ... as hypothesized earlier. I guess I would conclude that is true, but we get these connections through the path that has been laid behind us (expressionsism as natural state (???? presently unfounded, youtube comments section 2022) -> german expressionism -> influence stylistically that it simply becomes another technique -> internalized everywhere so that it feels natural -> build new ideas movements through explicit study of historical movements and trends/behaviours and their implicit effect on the culture and psych of the group and invdividual ... i wonder if anyone will ever read this, not going to proof read bc I just woke up but i hope it makes sense. At least to me. For Later

[@fixmyfit]

This guy's "smart guy voice" is on point.

[@zzoa.]

I enjoyed this video so so much. I love expressionism (and video essays) and this is the best video I've watched connecting it with film and TV.

[@Ari_Madrid]

I'm learning again and it's such a joy ✨

[@CallMehXiLe]

A nice little mention of Trainspotting! Love when this movie is given credit.

[@Mel-lx6kp]

I discovered this video today and was so impressed by it that I subscribed to your channel. Loved it!

[@lukahorvat8995]

Wooow, this video is top quality. Great job :)

[@ruebea7274]

I love these vidoes, just learning out the depth of art and film makes it all the more impactful

[@samuelpaulini]

Thanks for the movie references! I really appreciate this.

[@leoc7430]

I appreciate this video very much, thank you Thomas.

[@gabrielmarx8348]

what a great content, keep up buddie

[@josb9836]

Great video, I'm just sad The Night of The Hunter isn't shown or mentioned!

[@ThomasChurchill3]

Loved this video! I just wish there was a bit a of a warning about the Macbeth footage, hadn't seen it yet.

[@PipPreeceArt]

Thank you for the fantastic video! It popped up on my recommended by chance, and has opened my eyes to the artform of cinematography. I have subscribed and am looking forward to watching more of your videos. 👍

[@MonMoon27]

Thank you for this wonderful video. Absolutely loved it and learned a lot from it.

[@antoniolazarski9361]

Thanks Thomas, your content is invaluable and very helpful to anyone and everyone!!

[@jijodobbas]

I love your videos but this felt magical like nothing before. Thank you

[@corysleater965]

David Bordwell has a brief but great article online (on his blog that he does w/ wife Kristin Thompson) about the 'pressionism of Scorsese--uses that term because he argues that Scorsese alternated between the expressionist aesthetic mode to the impressionist aesthetic mode all of the time. Apparently around the same time that expressionism was budding and then booming in Germany, in France, impressionism was budding and booming (a different, more cinematographically kinetic aesthetic mode that still manages to convey/represent subjective states in cinema). Might be an interesting read for anyone who dug this video.

[@martinholden2281]

Excellent article, thanks for sharing. All the best in the New Year.

[@wilhelmsrvoll2230]

Munch is pronounced with a K at the end:))

[@curiousworld7912]

Expressionism has long been my favorite artistic movement. I love the art, and the cinematography. The subjective nature of the art is startling and unsettling, yet strangely familiar. It's use to demonstrate what lies 'under the skin' is marvelous. The fact that it's still used to effect is wonderful to me - 'Macbeth' being the most recent use of this technique, did a fine job. Thank you for covering this. :) (By the way; according to some theories, the sunset in Munch's painting was inspired by the atmospheric results of the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883.)

[@amaldaoud1140]

You are my teacher when I have no time to teach myself, Thank You!

[@mr.noobody369]

How this guy don't work in film...he has a good knowledge in films.

[@reanetsemoleleki8219]

If I remember correctly "The Man Who Wasn't There" is the first film Joel directed solo.

[@jhilumdas5228]

I think we'll see more of this in the upcoming season of Atlanta

[@supersayayinclark]

Bro, you just blew my mind...

[@Donbros]

Really liked expressionism in Trainspoting and eraser head