View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Scholar Commons | University of South Florida Research University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 11-15-2015 Now, We Hear Through a Voice Darkly: New Media and Narratology in Cinematic Art James Anthony Ricci University of South Florida, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the Film and Media Studies Commons Scholar Commons Citation Ricci, James Anthony, "Now, We Hear Through a Voice Darkly: New Media and Narratology in Cinematic Art" (2015). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/6021 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Now, We Hear Through a Voice Darkly: New Media and Narratology in Cinematic Art by James A. Ricci A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of English College of Arts and Sciences University of South Florida Major Professor: Phillip Sipiora, Ph.D. Margit Grieb, Ph.D. Hunt Hawkins, Ph.D. Victor Peppard, Ph.D. Date of Approval: November 13, 2015 Keywords: New Media, Narratology, Manovich, Bakhtin, Cinema Copyright © 2015, James A. Ricci DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to my wife, Ashlea Renée Ricci. Without her unending support, love, and optimism I would have gotten lost during the journey. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I owe many individuals much gratitude for their support and advice throughout the pursuit of my degree. The completion of my degree could not have been achieved with the tireless support of my major professor Dr. Phillip Sipiora. As a mentor and intellectual father, his words, time and efforts have been countless. He has assisted me through every moment of my course work and dissertation, and when I left Florida he maintained a constant correspondence with me to ensure I stayed on track. I have the deepest gratitude for my dissertation committee, Drs. Hunt Hawkins, Margit Greib, and Victor Peppard, who provided me with feedback and advice throughout the entire course of my career as a graduate student. My dear friend and colleague Marisa Iglesias, who sustained me through constantly collecting signatures, tracking down committee members, and managing endless forms, this dissertation would never have come to completion without her. I would like to express my love and thanks to my parents, Charlie and Laurel Ricci. Their support, faith, and expectations ensured that I become the best version of myself possible. To all my friends and colleagues that are not mentioned here, please know that you are never far from my thoughts and I cannot thank you enough. TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... ii Chapter One: The New Adaptation – Observing Cinematic Narrative Through New Media ........................................................................................................................................ 1 Chapter One Notes ............................................................................................................ 22 Chapter Two: Wet City – Variability of Cinematic Genre: The Pastiche Noir Aesthetic of Miller’s Crossing .................................................................................................................... 25 Chapter Two Notes ........................................................................................................... 44 Chapter Three: Folly of Youth - The Dialogic Narrative and the Aesthetics of Neo-Noir in Rian Johnson’s Brick .......................................................................................................... 47 Chapter Three Notes ......................................................................................................... 65 Chapter Four: The Golden Handshake - Narrative Time Travel Explored Though Chronotope and Modularity in Looper ................................................................................... 67 Chapter Four Notes ........................................................................................................... 84 Chapter Five: All the Clocks Have Stopped - Negotiating Aspects of New Media and Narratology in 20,000 Days on Earth ..................................................................................... 86 Chapter Five Notes ......................................................................................................... 100 Conclusion: Following the Voices .............................................................................................. 104 References ................................................................................................................................... 106 Appendix A ................................................................................................................................. 112 i ABSTRACT This dissertation explores the intersection of new media and narrative, as it is presented through a cinematic aesthetic. The narrative language of film is analyzed through the theoretical framework of Bakhtin’s concepts of Heteroglossia, Chronotope, and Dialogism. Bakhtin’s ideas of classifying language act as strong tools for demonstrating how cinematic narrative can inform and alter the perception of its spectators. Lev Manovich’s principles of New Media, specifically Variability, Modularity, and Automation are also utilized to demonstrate how cinema is a constantly evolving paradigm. Chapter one focuses on the theoretical terminology, outlining the conceptual definitions and illustrating their relevance in precise moments of cinema. This chapter introduces the idea that despite the original conception of Bakhtin and Manovich’s deriving from text and digital processes, their concepts are strongly present in contemporary cinema. Chapter two explores Manovich’s concept of variability in the cinematic genre of Noir. The Coen Brother’s Miller’s Crossing illustrates how the use of pastiche and homage has paved the way for the classic Noir genre to evolve into the genre of Neo-Noir. The aesthetic of Miller’s Crossing is examined in great detail to illuminate the comparisons between the variability of both genres. Chapter three also employs a Neo-Noir aesthetic. In Rian Johnson’s film Brick, the language is as much a character as any of the actors on the screen. A detailed reading of film exploring Bakhtin’s Dialogic concepts is established. The narrative of the film is examined with the idea that multiple meanings exist throughout individual units of speech. Chapter four continues the exploration of new media narrative concepts with a Science Fiction and Noir cinematic hybrid in ii an investigation of Rian Johnson’s film Looper. The basis of this analysis will be focused on fabula time and how the narrative of the film explores time travel, literally and metaphorically. In Looper the concepts of Chronotope and Modularity are both used to illustrate the director’s stylistic use of narrative sequencing to explore the paradoxes of time travel. Chapter five illustrates Manovich’s principles of new media as demonstrated in a biographical music drama. The documentary 20,000 Days on Earth features 24 hours in the life of Noir rock musician Nick Cave. The use of Cave’s music as a basis for the documentarians’ artful biopic creates an interpretive grid for analyzing the views of the artist and the persona that he has created for himself. Representations of diachrony in Cave’s reflective interviews regarding his evolution as an artist are also examined. The goal of this dissertation is to provide academic consideration for theoretical concepts that have not been traditionally applied to the study of cinema. It should be of interest to scholars seeking to supplement their endeavors within the realms of film studies as well as new media. In the interest of nurturing an interdisciplinary space for literary studies to exist and inform other branches of scholarship, the topics of new media and narratology, when applied to cinema establish a juncture between historical linguistics, digital media concepts and film studies. iii CHAPTER ONE: THE NEW ADAPTATION OBSERVING CINEMATIC NARRATIVE THROUGH NEW MEDIA In the dark of the cinema we arrive seeking transformation. The metamorphosis is seldom sought consciously; the desire drifts at the outskirts of our awareness. The time the viewer spends gazing upon the screen, absorbing the images and synthesizing the features of the narrative is precious. Distance between the sensory exposition of the film and its audience becomes defiant of standard conventions of space-time ratios. We are afforded the experience of timelessness; a variety of spaceless travel through an artistic weave of cinematic storytelling. The cinema audience is privileged. They admit themselves both individually and communally most often in the guise of finding entertainment. What they receive is a far richer outcome regarding the psychology of their awareness. No human being emerges from a film the same as before they witnessed it. This transformation is not limited to the standardization of cinematic genre nor is it shackled