Jean Epstein
Jean Epstein (1897-1953)
Born in Warsaw, which was then part of the Russian Empire. His father was French and his mother was Polish. He grew-up in Switzerland. He called France his home once he began medical school. He changed his mind to become a director when he worked part-time as Auguste Lumière’s translator.
Cœur fidèle (1923). Faithful Heart in English. One of his first films. A woman looks at the camera who is uncertain of herself. It’s a melodrama with heightened emotion. Strange camera angles. Superimposed images. The camera loves to stay at the face of the characters. A POV sequence on a carousel that will leave you dizzy. The sequence did influence the climax in Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train.
The Three-Sided Mirror (1927). Story of a young man who plays with the feelings of three women. He loves a sports car a little too much. We are shown his day-dreams and his past juxtaposed with what is happening in the present. What do we really know of a person? He loves to see himself in his three-sided mirror. Tonal shifts! You will never forget the final sequence nor the final shot.
The Fall of the House of Usher (1928). Used German Expressionism influence to create a haunting adaptation of the Edgar Allen Poe short story. Luis Buñuel worked as Epstein’s assistant on this and co-wrote the screenplay with Epstein but they clashed on set. Fog! Low-camera angles. Slow pacing. Tracking shots. Very 19th Romantic feel. Striking visuals with almost everyone wearing black or white. Editing tricks that make it seem a woman has two heads.
Finis Terræ (1929). The Ends of the Earth in English. It’s use of non-actors, handheld cameras, and documentary-like style were hugely influential to the Neorealism directors. Epstein’s love of the sea shows through here. Not as experimental as his other films but still has his trademark style.
He continued to make movies until 1948 but none are really remembered as these four. He died on April 2, 1953 from a cerebral hemorrhage.
While the French Impressionism helped bring about the Poetic Realism of the 30’s, Epstein is the main influence. He showed what it was like to be a person of the middle-class. Poetic Realism have themes of disappointment and ennui. Images of the sea. Close-ups of objects and faces.
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