week 3 The Kiss in the Tunnel + Uses of Cinema

Films: View from an Engine Front Barnstaple (Unknown, 1898)

The Kiss in the Tunnel (George Albert Smith, 1899)

The Kiss (William Heise/Edison Studios, 1896)

What Happened in the Tunnel (Edwin S. Porter/Edison Studios, 1903)

Reading Due:

1.Frank Gray, “The Kiss in the Tunnel (1899), G.A. Smith and the Emergence of the Edited Film in England” (TSCR)

1.              2. “The ‘Uses’ of Cinema” (EC)

When watching all the films in the order that it is posted, I was able to see a continuous progression between them even though they weren't created within the same year or with the same filmmaker. The first film View from an Engine Front Barnstaple (Unknown, 1898), set the scene of the train and the train tracks as we move with the train, it is as if we are physically on a train and am experiencing first-hand the scenery. The second film The Kiss in the Tunnel (George Albert Smith, 1899), again starts with what a passenger would see from inside the train looking out but then shifts our attention to a rather private moment between two people. It is intimate because of how private the moment is but it is being shot in such a public context. The editing is interesting since just as the train moves into the tunnel, our view and attention does too, as we are now condensed to only the moment between the two. This makes the viewer feel as if they are invading the space or at least, that's just how I felt watching it. The third film The Kiss (William Heise/Edison Studios, 1896), intensifies that intimate moment and really makes us focused on the act of kissing. The fourth film What Happened in the Tunnel (Edwin S. Porter/Edison Studios, 1903), is also a very intimate but in an uncomfortable way. It involves a third person and I guess what really made it uncomfortable for me was how close everyone was to each other and even though it is without audio, the viewer is able to fill in the silence and create a narrative with the context given.

I would say The Kiss in the Tunnel (George Albert Smith, 1899) serves as an art form, especially with the editing as it adds to the aesthetics of cinema. It also serves as a representation of real-life emotions while adding it to a fictional narrative. The scene is representative of reality while still allowing the viewers imagination. While it is all very engaging, it does not provide an educational or informative aspect to it.