Learn to See (and LOVE) Invisible Directing
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- čas přidán 22. 08. 2024
- A video essay about the brilliantly invisible directing style of "Sleuth" (1972), directed by the great and greatly underrated Joseph L. Mankiewicz, based on the play by Anthony Shaffer and starring Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine and Alec Cawthorne.
Joseph L. Mankiewicz is one of the greatest screenwriters of all time ("All About Eve" just might be the best script ever written) but if you try to find information about his visual style you'll be met with nothing but disappointment. Critics predominantly call his technique unremarkable and overly dependend on dialogue.
I believe, however, in what I see, not in what I'm told. And when I see Mankiewicz's films I see a master of staging and framing. He blocks his actors with versatility, arranges the set with efficiency and shoots everything from the most informative and unobtrusive angle. He is a definite equal to Howard Hawks.
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Most critics have never blocked actors
And most film directors have never directed a stage production, which is why all too often, they too have never blocked actors.
@@MidlifeCrisisJoeThey prefer to move the camera instead of moving actors. At risk of pointing out the obvious, they *want* us to notice their presence.
I am done with exams and moviewise posts a new video, what a day
What a glorious day!
@@RealWolfmanDan so true
Before I found this channel I loved movies but I knew nothing about directing. Your videos have changed how I watch movies for the better.
In the first half of the movie Andrew usually encroaches on Milo and Milo seeks to move away and put distance between them. In the second part, the policeman encroaches on Andrew and Andrew is the one who generally backs off.
Thank you moviewise for introducing me to “CINEMA”
anti-cinema
@@imacg5 um…….Big NO
Part of my postgraduate education in direction included classes taught by directors (& even a BBC lighting director). Your exploration of the blocking in Sleuth is a great reminder of what I learned so many decades ago - a terrific demonstration of how (as one of my teachers described it) "the best blocking is actors and camera working/moving in concert with each another." The next time I teach students about blocking dramatic scenes for the camera, I hope I have your permission to use your marvelous clip as an example. Thank you!
I would be honored if you did! Thank you for the comment!
First time I saw _Sleuth,_ I rented it on VHS, on a recommendation. Saw the MPAA had rated it G, and the blurb on the back described it as a "lighthearted mystery romp".
It has got to be, hands down, the most unsettling G rated film I've ever seen.
Your videos are near perfection. Your editing ... (chef's kiss).
I had no idea that critics were so apathetic towards Mankiewicz as a director. Sleuth is one of my favourite films of all time and I never thought the direction was anything other than top-tier.
Same re:sleuth
Sleuth is simply one of the best ‘wet Sunday afternoon’ movies ever, along with Clue, Cold Comfort Farm and Noises Off…. Just add a mug of tea and a biscuit…
Nedd. Will check out sleuth.
Paul Klee.
Paul Klee. Saw clue and loved it. Will watch cold comfort farm and noises off.
I remember renting Julius Caesar because of Marlon Brando and felt scammed because nobody told me before about Mankiewicz. That movie looks MONUMENTAL
I've read the play a few times and saw the '54 production quite recently. Mankiewicz understood Shakespeare. JC is a political play, raising questions pertinent to Rome, Shakespeare's England, and the present. The cast is absolutely first rate and the director is audience friendly.
I had to go back and watch The Godfather get kicked off the screen about four times.
You're a hero, man. A goddamn hero.
I absolutely love Sleuth, one of my absolute favourite films. It is criminally overlooked. Thank you for highlighting its brilliance.
01:00 What kind of movie is that? I mean the girl reading the letter.
It is 'A Letter to Three Wives' from 1949
@@carlbradley25 Thank you. Someone said it was All About Eve. But I didn't remember that scene. So thank you. I will take a look at that movie.
Best channel on youtube.
I saw Sleuth in an arthouse theater around the same time as Deathtrap (1982) which was kind of a remake, also with Michael Caine taking the earlier Olivier role. Thanks for championing Mankiewicz. His films are uniquely satisfying for their intelligence and for that "invisible" unshowy way of staging that provides us what's important to see for the story. I agree about the script of All About Eve. Chef's kiss.
Man I will take a look at Deathtrap. Thanks for mentioning it. I saw Sleuth and really liked the movie. I'm a 90s kid but I'm really discovering now the very old movies. Already watched most of Hitchcock's work. Rope was a really neat addition to his body of work. Do you have any other recommendations? I love murder mysteries/comedies like Clue with Tim Curry.
@@EbonyPope If you haven't seen "the man who would be king" yet, Michael Caine and Sean Connery both considered it their favourite movie they ever did and it's excellent, "kind hearts and coronets" and The Ladykillers from 1955 are very good murder/comedies.
Fuck me you really are the best film essayist on CZcams bar none.
It's like Sidney Lumet, even though he directed many popular and critically acclaimed films, such as "12 Angry Men," "Dog Day Afternoon," and "Network." Despite his significant contributions to cinema, his name is not that well known
Interestingly, Lumet made a virtual remake of Sleuth ten years later called "Deathtrap." Watch both and compare them.
@@OuterGalaxyLounge Garbo Talks is one of my favourite films, but nobody ever, erm, talks about it.
I beg to differ. He may not be well known among normies and gen z but he’s definitely a name among film students and professionals. He even wrote a significant book on filmmaking, which I highly recommend (Making Movies).
I now see (and LOVE) Invisible .
I'm surprised that Spielberg, who is also excellent at setting a scene, didn't see that Mankiewicz also had that kind of eye for arranging his characters, props and camera to "show, not tell". Hitchcock was great in that regard, also. Yet only two of the three are seen as visual directors. Maybe the sublime screenwriting overshadows the directorial style. In any case, again, thank you for finding the hidden gem that others have overlooked.
Critics seem to love writing, acting, production design, themes and various intellectual concepts, but directing is one of those things that is assumed to be understood without ever explaining in more specificity than vague adjectives.
Not true! Most critics can't talk about acting either. Next time you read some movie reviews, look out for generally vague compliments for actors and nothing else. It's only in really egregious performances that critics will say anything disparaging to actors.
It's always, "so and so does the best they can with the terrible writing," or "despite the bad pacing, the peformances are good" etc.
you're are one of the best (if not the best) movie channel. I used to watch a lot films, and everything you said was something that I watched in them, but I couldn't articulate something to explain it in words. The way you're teaching film directing and screenwriting it's incredible because you make it so simple to understand.
Thank you very much for your lessons and your recommendations.
By the way, if you haven't watched yet "Animas Trujano" it's a mexican film that I know you'll love it.
Nice day!
A Mexican film with Toshirô Mifune! This I gotta see! And thank you for the comment!
@@Moviewise Ismael Rodríguez was one of the finest film director of his time. "Los hermanos del hierro" was praise by Frank Capra as the first anti western film.
Thanks to you!
And everything is in focus, aah, joy.
And well-lit 👍
Alec Cawthorne is an actor who should be remembered more often
He probably had a great start, but petered out in his latter years.
@6:20 Oh! My dear boy, they are engaged in a game of snooker; ruffians, cads and Americans play pool.
I've not seen Sleuth, and that's about to change. A brilliant essay. THANK YOU! 🙏
Oh look, a great video to start off my Friday.
I'm a film school graduate and I'm learning more from your videos that I did in 2 years and university.
I work as a choreographer and director. And am always going on about how the camera creates the dance, not just the dancer. This illustrates the dancing camera so well.
This is basicly a love letter to blocking.
I’d never pretend this channel is the only film expert but I Will say this channel is a movie expert 🎉
you really are the best film essayist on CZcams bar none.
Sleuth is my favourite movie and I’m so happy for this video. The physical levels also obviously mirror their class positions (especially at the start) and how they alternate throughout as their statuses change.
Sleuth is one of my all time favorite movies and every time I watch it I still notice some new detail or theme to focus on and analyze. This is such a perfect breakdown of how the set design, acting and camera movements all dovetail to execute some amazing visual & verbal storytelling; some of the framing and movement details I hadn't even consciously picked up on until you pointed them out. Brilliant analysis of a criminally underrated film!
never stop making videos. these are gold .blocking is really an art form
Sleuth is a MAGNIFICENT movie, and it's magnificently directed. A true masterpiece. I remember searching online about Mankiewicz, I was surprised to see that people generally didn't think he was that great a director. From what I read, watching this movie today is pretty difficult, which is really sad.
I'm a fan of good (and invisible) directing. I heard your rant about myopic critics who don't know how to watch a well crafted movie. Paused your video around 5:15 because I didn't want to spoil the discovery of it myself. I immediately started watching the movie. In the first shots I was overwhelmed by the precise and deliberate filmaking taking place. All the intro, from the sound bringing the character away from the door we expected him to ring at, the aerial point of view of Milo wandering in the maze, the cuts to the source of the sound being a tape playing and Andrew stopping it to start recording himself, the shot with the wall separating them and then the trick of it turning revealing a pathway. I was just pumped to the top: it's so clear, with perfect editing rythm and interesting (and meaningful) shots. The whole manipulation games about to unfold are clearly hinted in this intro. Just from the start I was baffled about critics not giving the director the praise it deserved. The rest of the movie just confirmed all the amazing blocking, camera work, framing, editing I was expecting. There's so much great directing ideas, it's full packed (like the lingering shot of Milo's hands on the railing having a great payoff later, the focal switching to wide angle for close ups in the end, the first apearance of agent doppler in front of a litteral gigantic target, and more I can't say here without spoiling too much...). You can start the movie randomly at any point, an watch a single minute, and there's always a good filmaking idea to see. I don't understand how any movie profesionnal could be blind to it.
Got back to your video just after. Totally on track with everything you say. That's an amazing and fun video to an equally amazing and fun film. Thanks so much for the discovery.
As a filmmaker, I appreciate both. I like how invisible directing allows the subtleties of a well-written script to cast a spell over the audience. That was something I always loved about Renoir's films. At the very worst, more postmodern directing can actually distract the audience from the story or confuse them.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I taught a film class for 18 years where I got to train directing students how to act and the last third of the semester I got to direct them in scenes from a screenplay. I took this opportunity to train myself in the art of blocking.
Your appreciation and understanding of great blocking is like a breath of fresh air. I find so many modern directors to be so lazy or indifferent to blocking.
Sleuth is an absolutely phenomenal film. Excellent storytelling, excellent filmmaking, excellent craft. And an excellent video (as usual) from MovieWise.
And yet... it is the cinematic closeup that gives away the story's biggest twist. I shall say no more. What a terrific essay, though!
There's a very good blu-ray edition of Mankiewicz' SLEUTH from Spain (titled LA HUELLA). It's as remarkable a film as you say. I would give anything to see Mankiewicz' two-part version of CLEOPATRA, but I fear it's lost forever. It's one of those glorious epics that gets lots of scorn, but it's an opulent, beautiful and magnificently directed film - no matter what you think of the content (which is quite intelligent, by the way) - filmed in splendid Todd-AO 70mm and featuring one of the best recorded 6-track stereo soundtracks in film history. CLEOPATRA is a legendary film for all the right, and wrong reasons, which makes it a wonderful cinematic experience.
Until next time, thanks for all the great content.
When Knives Out was released, I recommended it to everyone I knew, and said that it was like Sleuth, if Sleuth had had an ensemble cast. It was then that I learned that none of my friends or family had ever seen Sleuth!
Besides pointing out once again how many critics basically just brilliantly performed the task of 'show me you're stupid without telling me you're stupid', you reminded me to rewatch that gem which is Sleuth. Kudos! Have a glorious weekend!
I saw Sleuth as a first run. I loved it and rented it last year and still loved it. It really is awesome. Mankiewicz was a genius.
An elaborate study of subtlety (not to mention some proper respect for JLM) is 100% what cinema studies needs.
Great to see Sleuth getting the acclaim it deserves!
You have totally contributed to me seeing movies in a different way. Thank you
I remember seeing this film in the theaters and being struck by the staging. I didn't know the term at the time, nor did I notice the director, but you are absolutely right Mankowitz was brilliant.
My new favorite channel 🙌🏽
Thanks - not just an education, but such a well-made and entertaining presentation!
Simply brilliant! I mean the film and your perceptive appreciation….
I actually saw this a few days ago, so your timing is perfect. And the camerawork, especially the pans and cuts to the objects in the house, is genius. And the way he handles the movement within the set always keeps the visuals dynamic and keeps the audience in constant rapt attention.
I adore Mankiewicz's "Julius Ceaser". It's a triumph, a ballet, where visuals and Shakespeare's prose sing together so harmoniously that it feels like one voice coming out of two mouths.
In the scene where Crassus is trying to convince Brutus that he should lead a conspiracy to overthrow caeser, Mankiewicz expertly uses statues to visually tell the story. As Crassus says" And this man has now become a god! And Crassus is a wretched creasture which must bend he body if ceaser carelessnessly but bod on him." He says this a large statue peering down at him, showing dominance and how ceaser has become larger than life, with also allusions to idolatry. And after he talks more about ceasers tyranny and man's fate he walks over to the statue of the man who killed the last king of Rome, and Brutus' namesake, saying "There was a Brutus once." With the obvious implication
I highly recommend it! I know it's hard to block out 2 hours, so please if you can just watch the scene I was talking about to see if you like it! Its VERY good. The entire film is free on "Internet Archive" and the scene is at 8:12
01:00 What kind of movie is that? I mean the girl reading the letter.
@@EbonyPopeI think that's "All about Eve" I'm not sure what kind of movie that is, I've never seen it
@@spacemanspud7073 Oh I saw it. I remember. It's about an aging actress that gets replaced by a younger one. Then the younger one gets older and the cycle continues. It's historically very relevant but I didn't like it too much. Excellent dialogues though.
@@EbonyPope Was it boring? What didn't you like about it?
Ur directing of this video is all but invisible and damn do I love it. And now I have more homework too.
I've never seen "Sleuth" and now you've got me intrigued. Thank you for these wonderful videos.
Great video, as always! You can always tell if a film director has theatre chops because of the blocking. And actors from the theatre, too, develop a sense for crossing and depth while performing, and you can certainly see that in Caine and Olivier. But I have to say, as an old theatre guy myself, you've got your lefts and rights backwards! lol
A Letter To Three Wives is criminally underrated. It's one of my favorites from the 40's.
Love Sleuth. Michael Caine described acting against Olivier was like getting caught in a tornado.
BTW the game is Snooker not pool.
Years since I have seen Sleuth & it needs a revisit. 2 great actors & a sparkling script.
Literally yesterday I saw Sleuth! What a timing!.
Slueth is one of the most underrated films of the 70s (and top 10 of 1972). The film is impossible to find streaming but i luckily have an Anchor Bay dvd copy that i wouldnt part with.
Thank you for another fine analysis. Now I know why SLEUTH has been one of my favorite movies since I first saw it at age 12 (late in its original release).
I love these videos (I have been liked and subscribed so you know I am serious 😂). While I still struggle to see invisible directing unless I’m actively looking for it, I have definitely come to notice the lack of good staging in movies. The lack of visual language is jaw dropping in so many films today. Trying to sharpen my eye, I will dive into this man’s filmography post hast.
Better than most TV directors working in Hollywood today.Never made a dud movie.
Another excellent video. Thank you. I try to incorporate what I learn into my own videos. I am a rank amateur of course. But I try and your videos are invaluable.
Having scene this on stage, and it obviously being a play, well done on showing some appreciation for just what a great job was done here, Compare it to the remake (also with Caine) and it's night and day
I think the ultimate example of a neglected "invisible" director is Stanley Kramer. His social issue movies are as elegant and naturally propulsive as anything Ophuls or Cukor ever choreographed.
Thanks MovieWise. I watched Sleuth in pandemic, Mankiewicz is the top! Now a lot of us are waiting for you to do a Lynch video, I know you appreciate him to some extent. Don't make us wait too long...
Your channel and Red Letter Media are the only things that make checking CZcams updates worthwhile.
Well I fully agree: Sleuth (1972, not the remake) is absolutely fantastic. Olivier of course was a giant, but Michael Caine kills it. There is also profound wisdom about the human condition in the dialog. Yes I aleays noticed the precision blocking. Thanks for the meticulous break down. And yes: I like this movie more than The Godfather.
Good video ("yes it was. yellow")
Fantastic video once again! ❤
Great post - great film!
Bless your eyes, great video.
Thank you, I love videos about staging
3:44 perfectly comedic delivery.
This is an excellent video. I actually learned something.
Watched Sleuth last night, I wish I knew more film’s just like it
Entertaining and infomative. Good video. Yes it was.
Sleuth is an amazing movie. Do not watch the remake. Thank you
Brilliant video. (I grew up on I, Claudius.)
Thank you! I’m a huge fan of your channel, Geoff! Your video on weak forms made me try to improve my pronunciation in the last few months. And your recent one on the Mid-Atlantic accent was something I always wanted to learn.
I had to stop the video, went to watch the film, and now I'm back.
man this videos are excelent premium high quality without duda
01:00 What kind of movie is that? I mean the girl reading the letter. Anyone?
A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
There are people who don't recognize the genius of the direction in "All About Eve"? What in the world is wrong with people? The mise en scene and the way the actors are blocked is absurdly high tier. Anyway, if I have to say why critics have become numb to good blocking as a part of great cinematography, it's part of them having become used to the cinema of people sitting around tables and higher cuts per second. They are so disconnected from the art's history that they don't notice what's so great about it anymore. Instead, great cinematography has become about how many times you can color grade an entire shot a single monochrome color.
Love your videos about direction the most
Sleuth is great, but sadly almost impossible to find these days. I've read some stuff about a rights issue keeping it unavailable, and that is criminal.
Tis a veritable film school!
Literally!
Another fantastic recommendation. Hard to find this one though. Maybe you'll give a list of your top favorite 50 films some time?
Another great, interesting, informative video about a fantastic filmmaker, thx! 👌👍
My only hope is that just as Every Frame a Painting was able to get Marvel Studios to understand the importance of good theme music and how to shoot and edit action scenes like Jackie Chan, Moviewise can convince Hollywood of the importance of blocking and framing again, because god have they gotten bad at it!
Would love to watch your videos on Arthouse greats like Kiarostami, Bela tarr, tarkovsky and ceylan.
Great synopsis. Such an interesting career in film
did anyone notice that the shot on 14:44 of this video the puppet and Caine have their faces in almost identical contortions
With vids like this USC Film School is out of business.
It would be instructive to see a comparision of the two versions of Slueth, the one of 1972 and the one of 2007. It’s all the same except that they are visually counterparts
This video summed up - "Good shot"
Sleuth is one of my favorite movies. I'm not sure it's better than The Godfather, but I do think Olivier deserved the Oscar that year more than Brando. The 2007 remake was surprisingly awful.
I once read that the garden labyrinth opening the film was the chief inspiration for The Shining -- while the similarity is striking, though, I'd still be curious to know whether this was actually on Kubrick's mind, or just a coincidence. Still, fwiw, Mankiewicz's film beat Kubrick to the punch on that memorable set by almost a decade.
great analysis
remind me of Fincher. Quietly exposing threw his staging.