Carl Dreyer

Carl Dreyer was a master at the art of cinema and often regarded as one of the most influential figures in the progression of film. His career took place during the most pivotal periods of cinema; from 1912 to 1968, from silent movies to sound. In his work, Dreyer was innovative: observed in his artistry, his sense of visual power, his intensity and his ability to demand performances out of his actors (Drum, 48). As an innovator, Dreyer worked obsessively to create properly staged films.   Due to his meticulous nature, Dreyer created relatively few feature films during his long spanning career. However each film comprises a wealth of immaculately composed images and introspective psychological portraits.   Dreyer created cinema as art by focusing on the people within his films and creating psychological portraits from his focus. His art is revealed in his actors, camera shots.   The films which will be focused are Dreyer’s The Passion of Joan of Arc and Day of Wrath. Joan of Arc was released in 1928 in France. In the middle of   the Hundred Years War in England and set in 1431, Joan, a teenager, is condemned to death by the chuch for heresy and burned at stake. The movie, which is based on historical transcripts at the actual trial, is one which depicts faith, redemption and suffering. Day of Wrath, released in 1943, is sent in 1623, a hundred years prior to the Protestant reformation. Protaginist, Herlof’s Marth is denounced as a witch and reaches out to Anne to escape punishment. Similarily, this film reveals faith, redemption and suffering. Both films display a theme of women suffering. Dreyer was one of the first filmmakers who regarded films as art. Other filmmakers during Dreyer’s career believed that cinema was blatantly different from theatre and literature and that cinema was either a production of all arts or an art form similar to music (Bordwell, 20).   In contrast, Dreyer disagreed and classified film as, “a merging of novel and drama in the form of...