Study 25: The Ferry Docking forms part of my Life-world Series, a project that began as an exploration within my Ph.D. dissertation. This series seeks to highlight the Lebenswelt—the immediate and lived world—by transforming everyday experiences into subjects of quiet contemplation. Each film in the series, including Study 25, is an invitation to pause, observe,…
The streaming era has made it easier than ever to access a vast library of films. Yet, paradoxically, the sheer abundance of choices has led many of us to experience “decision fatigue.” As a movie lover, I’ve spent countless evenings scrolling through endless lists of films, unsure of what to watch. That’s where the idea…
Five characteristics of the phenomenalist-realist film were identified by Ian Aitken in The Major Realist Film Theorists: A Critical Anthology (2016) : (1) perceptually realistic; (2) disinterested; (3) nature-like; (4) feeling-oriented; and (5) flowing. In the current essay, I flesh out each of these attributes by expounding on their philosophical influences – particularly Kantian aesthetics…
Seven tropes from the realist film theory of Siegfried Kracauer are presented in this essay. Selected works from world cinema re used to illustrate the discussion.
Investigating Kracauerian Cinematic Realism through Film Practice and Criticism: Life-world Series (2017) and Selected Films of Lino Brocka Note: This is an excerpt from my PhD dissertation, Investigating Kracauerian Cinematic Realism through Film Practice and Criticism: Life-world Series (2017) and Selected Films of Lino Brocka (2018). In 2020, my book chapter — Cinematic Contemplation Online:…
Siegfried Kracauer was ‘as much a social scientist as a film theorist’ (Armstrong, 2007, p. 62). This is evident not just in Theory of Film: The Redemption of Physical Reality (Kracauer, 1960) but also in his (1) articles and reviews as a ‘practical film critic of the Frankfurter Zeitung’ (Petro, 1991, p. 131) of the…
