British Cinema 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

British Cinema 2 - Essay Example A little research into the history of British cinema tells us that in the early 1900s, it experienced a boom or a period of development, which was marred by a recession in the next ten years due to increased competition, mainly from the US and due to other commercial practices. To make the film industry recover from the devastating recession, a Cinematograph Films Act 1927 was put into effect which was successful in achieving the desired result as the 1930s saw a production of approximately 200 hundred films. Some of the names that caught attention were of Alfred Hitchcock. Many argue that this over-expansion had an adverse affect on the industry, which reached an all time low point during World War II period. As with any other industry, it recovered in the post-war period and gained stability with increasing American investment. It was in this period that British films also earned Academy Awards, and Charles Dickens's classics were adapted into movies. However, another period of recession struck the industry towards the middle of the 1970s and continued to last till the end of 1980s. As investments started coming, it recovered from the previous setbacks and continued to develop in the 1990s. Even though, it is impossible to say whether the British film industry was at its high or low judging from the quantity of the films made but it still gives an idea of how it was developing. Many people claim, that some of the best British films were churned out before the world when it was undergoing through recession, so it can be argued that even while British cinema was facing recession, it still had its importance and a strong foothold in the film industry. BRITISH FILM PRODUCTION IN 1990s- 2000s In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the British film industry was facing hard times due to tough competition given to them by their American successes, which attracted a large audience from people living in Britain too. They were faltering times for the British films industry, whose films were not even becoming a success in their own country. Their box-office revenues had nose-dived but changed its direction in 1993 and cinema attendances began to go up. Many expensive and high-budget films were also produced. However, they did not become as much a success as the lower budgeted movies became because of their different story line and advanced sound techniques which also received international appreciation, including American audiences. Four Weddings and a Funeral released in 1994 became a huge success and revived interest in British cinema. It was produced by Duncan Kenworthy, Working Title Films and Channel Four Films and was penned by Richard Curtis. The issues faced by British film production in the early 1990s were countless. The British film industry was in constant pressure of releasing huge budgeted successes to compete with the successes achieved in America. Unfortunately, for the British films industry, making huge-budgeted movies did not guarantee success and the audience was somewhat getting bored of stereotypical roles in movies given to actors. Productions costs were rising dramatically what with the search for additional and advanced equipments for film making and newer technology to improve the quality of sound. Computer generated images had begun to be used in movies and the added