Despite 50 years in the Hollywood film industry, during which he made/directed over thirty five films, the name Otto Preminger is relatively unknown among the generality of filmgoers. Particular films might prompt a response – Laura, In Harms Way, or River of No Return – from aficionados of film noir, war films or Marlyn Monroe, perhaps. Others might recall stories of a tyrannical autocrat on set or. his apparent fearlessness in challenging the notorious Production Code with uncompromising subject matter. He also became the object of humour for his temerity in declaring The Man With The Golden Arm a film ‘by Otto Preminger’ (presuming priority of the director above studio, producer or others before the practice became common). Later, in the 1950s and sixties his name featured regularly in debates about popular film art for those who needed no persuasion about the status of the film director as artist, as auteur.
This course offers a general introduction to Preminger’s film career which covers essential works and develops critical thinking about issues of film authorship, genre and the director’s approach to film style