the part of the city where there is little to celebrate

The late twenties/early thirties saw the birth of the documentary feature and was in many ways the golden age of the documentary film. One of the most important genres to emerge was what came to be called "the city symphony". Among the works of genius that might be so categorised were shorts like Manhatta (Strand and Sheeler, 1921), Rien que Les heures (Cavalcanti, 1926), Les Halles (Galitzine and Kaufman, 1927), Der Brug and Regen (Ivens, 1928-29), Skyscraper Symphony (Florey, 1929), Everyday (Richter, 1929), Images d'Ostende (Storck, 1929), A propos de Nice (Vigo, 1930), A Bronx Morning (Layda, 1931), Douro, fain fluvial (Oliveira, 1931), Il ventre della città (Di Cocco, 1933) and The City (Steiner and Van Dyck, 1939) and the two great features - Berlin – Die Sinfonie der Großstadt (Ruttmann, 1927) and Man with a Movie Camera (Vertov, 1929).

However, although several of these films certainly included scenes of working life and may even have contrasted the lives of rich and poor or shown the monotony of the quotidian, the general tone was positive, even celebratory, sometimes elegiac. They are a picture by and large of modernity and a celebration of progress, with the camera, almost whether the film-maker would or no, tending to extol the constructions, the lights, the machinery and the multiple facets or urban consumerism that were transforming the cities.

Before Misère au Borinage (Ivens and Storck, 1934), politically committed documentary rather than city symphony, there are only incidental images of the downside or modernity, urbanism and progress. So hats off to Georges Lacombe for a superb short that concentrates on an entirely different aspect of city life and focuses on the folk forgotten by modernity and progress, living on the rejected flotsam and jetsam of consumerism.

The documentary is a form of non-fiction storytelling that aims to present factual information, insights, and perspectives on real-world subjects, events, issues, or people. Documentaries can cover a wide range of topics, including history, science, culture, social issues, nature, biographies, and more.

Dziga Vertov in Man with a Movie Camera (1929)

The short form refers to creative works characterized by their brevity and concise storytelling. Unlike full-length feature films, short films have a running time of less than 45 minutes, while TV shorts have a running time of less than 22 minutes.

Benedict Cumberbatch in The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023)

About 'The Zone', a wasteland just outside Paris and a refuge to lower classes from the middle of the 19th century to the 1940's where they could build shelters and live mostly out of sight from the society.

The Biggest Movies and TV Coming in September

"The Gentlemen" and "Slow Horses" return this fall, while the "Reacher" spin-off series "Neagley" makes its debut. See our guide of the biggest Fall TV and streaming releases.

2026 Fall TV and Streaming Watch Guide

&quot;The Gentlemen&quot; and &quot;Slow Horses&quot; return this fall, while the &quot;Reacher&quot; spin-off series &quot;Neagley&quot; makes its debut. See our guide of the biggest Fall TV and streaming releases.

See who dazzled on the red carpet and took home gold at the 78th Primetime Creative Emmy Awards.

La zone

Photos11

Top Cast3

User reviews1

More like this

Related interests

Storyline

Did you know

Top picks

Details

Tech specs

Contribute to this page

More to explore

Recently viewed