Between 1908 and 1913, D. W. Griffith played a key role in the
reformulating of film's narrative techniques, thus contributing to
the creation of what we now think of as the classical Hollywood
cinema. This book is the only extensive treatment of a critical
period in the history of film acting: the emergence of the
realistic "verisimilar" style in Griffith's biograph films. Roberta
Pearson shows how Griffith gradually abandoned the deliberately
affected "histrionic" acting style derived from the
nineteenth-century stage. No longer did actors mime distress by
raising their arms to heaven or clutching their heads--a subtle
facial expression, a slight change in posture would convey a
character's extreme emotions instead. Pearson makes detailed
comparisons of certain Biograph films and brings a freshness to her
analysis by closely examining contemporary journalistic writing,
acting manuals, and the recollections of actors of the time. Her
work is important for anyone interested in early cinema and
performance, and it will enliven the study of American cultural
history and mass communications.
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