Strange tales and dark dreams: Fantasy, Horror and Surrealism in European cinema
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- Start Date: 14 Jun 2025End Date: 21 Jun 2025Sat (Daytime): 10:30 - 13:00OnlineFull fee £69.00 Senior fee £55.00 Concession £45.00
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What is the course about?
This online film studies course explores a selection of films that variously belong with fantasy, horror and surrealist traditions of European filmmaking, many of which are also recognised as major works, sitting beyond the boundaries that these genres may imply, and which have a 'visibility' and status in popular culture more generally. We will be considering early cinema's 'trick' films, avant-garde and modernist from the 1920s, and films from cinema's more recent past. A key theme in the exploration of these films will be innovation in terms of filmmaking and, of course, their unsettling visions.
A representative group of films for this course might include the following:
A Trip to the Moon (Georges Méliès, 1902) The Cabinet Dr. Caligari (Robert Wiene, 1920), The Phantom Carriage (Victor Sjöstrom, 1921) Nosferatu, a Symphony of Horror (F. W. Murnau,1922), Haxan (Benjamin Christensen, 1922), The Fall of the House of Usher (Jean Epstein, 1928), Un chien andalou (Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí, 1929), L'Age d'Or (Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí, 1930), The Blood of a Poet (Jean Cocteau, 1930), Vampyr (Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1932), La Belle et la Bête (Jean Cocteau, 1946), Orphée (Jean Cocteau, 1950), Two Men and a Wardrobe (Roman Polanski, 1958), Eyes Without a Face (Georges, Franju, 1960), The Awful Dr Orloff (Jesús Franco, 1962), Blood and Black Lace (Mario Bava, 1964), Repulsion (Roman Polanski, 1965), Cul-de-sac (Roman Polanski, 1966), The Iron Rose (Jean Rollin, 1973), The Tenant (Roman Polanski, 1976), Suspiria (Dario Argento, 1977), Alice (Jan Švankmajer, 1988).
What will we cover?
• Genre and European Cinema (fantasy, horror and surrealism)
• Early, 'primitive' European cinema
• Avant-garde and modernist European cinema
• Key directors and films
• Art cinema and popular cinema
• European cinema and popular culture
• Critical accounts of key films.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
• Assess fantasy, horror and surrealism in European cinema
• Assess key movements and phases in European fantasy, horror and surrealist cinema
• Identify and asses key directors and films
• Describe and assess art cinema and popular cinema in relation to European fantasy, horror and surrealist cinema
• Demonstrate a knowledge of European fantasy, horror and surrealist cinema in relation to popular culture
• Assess European fantasy, horror and surrealist cinema within a critical framework.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
The course is suitable for all levels and you do not require any particular skills - just an enthusiasm for film and discussing film. The course will provide an introduction to the subject but will also be useful for those wishing to build on existing knowledge in the subject area.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
Screenings of extracts from films, talks by the tutor, reading materials, small and large group discussions. It might also be a good idea to see what you can find out about the subject in advance of the class, but this is not essential.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
You will require a pen and paper (or laptop/device) but the tutor will provide all other materials such as handouts. The tutor will show extracts from films and you do not have to obtain them.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
Please look for other Film Studies courses at www.citylit.ac.uk/culture, history & writing/film studies.
Jon Wisbey teaches film at City Lit and Morley College. He was for many years a committee member and vice-chair of Chelmsford Film Club, screening contemporary and classic world cinema releases. He has an MA in Film Studies from the University of East Anglia. His teaching focuses on classical and post-classical Hollywood, European cinema, British cinema, film noir and horror cinema.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.