Film scholar David Bordwell refers to the years 1917–1960 as the classical era of filmmaking in Hollywood.
Topic
Bordwell's definition of Hollywood's "classical period", as it relates to musicals
Framework
Challenge a Position
Main Point
Bordwell's explanation of how musicals fit within the realism of the "classical style" is not fully satisfying.
Summary
P1 - Introduction to Bordwell's "classical era"
This paragraph neutrally introduces Bordwell's characterization of the classical era -- basically, it was a realistic style that was all about telling a conventional story and making you forget that you were watching a movie. Stuff was only done to serve the interest of the narrative, not to call your attention to the fact that you were watching a work of visual art.
P2 - The Curious case of Musicals
It's weird that we don't get our central topic until the beginning of the 2nd paragraph, but the adjective "anomalous" is meant to have the same effect as our typical Purpose Pivot (usually using words like "but, yet, however, recently"). When we start with background and then pivot into something that feels like, "But this thing is different ... ", then we know that this different thing is what the author really wants to focus on.
This paragraph explains how musicals offer quite a challenge to the classical era definition, given that they have wacky musical numbers throughout the movie that are anything but realistic and don't have any purpose in advancing the story. The author innocuously asks whether musicals can be included in under the umbrella of classical era.
P3 - Bordwell's handling of "musicals" and the author's critique of that handling
Bordwell says,
The author ain't happy with this. She thinks it's really dodging the common sense issue that these musical numbers are totally un-realistic, and it also bothers the author that, as a viewer, you can plainly tell that the director is now just having fun as a visual artist, wants you to notice that, and doesn't any longer care about advancing the story.
The author is basically saying that even if an audience member said to themselves ahead of time, , the viewer would still notice the musical numbers as being a total break from reality.
The author concludes by trying to redirect the efforts of people like Bordwell so that they don't come back with crap they're currently selling, sayin' that musicals are realistic when they clearly aren't.