Blog Response- Article- Intensified Continuity

David Bordell's concept of intensified continuity has greatly revolutionized the cinematic arts. Intense Continuity is continuity that creates cinematic incoherence and stylistic fragments. This idea of intensified continuity had not developed, or was not adopted until the 1960s. Prior to this, films had generally followed the idea of realism in which the focus of continuity was displayed through elongated shots and a lack of cuts. This preserved the realism within the film which, in turn, made for absolute coherence in the film. Yet this style was soon revolutionized when new lenses, camera movements, faster cuts, and closer shots were integrated.
With the addition of extreme lenses in a film, the ability to create more coverage within scenes. Polarized lenses, such as narrow lenses as opposed to the more commonly used wide-angled lenses. The use of narrow angle lenses created a much more discrete depth of field which, in turn, allowed their to be more concentration within each shot. Along with that, this use of extreme lenses allowed for the creation of more surreal images. This not only amused the audience to a much larger degree, but it also allowed for an expansion of narratives. Film makers were enabled to film more radical narratives that were well-supplied by the use of extreme images.
Faster cuts is what defined "intensified cutting". The use of faster cuts had greatly sped up the pace of the film. Action became much more substantial as events took place in frames that lasted less than 3 seconds on average. The introduction of this technique heightened the effects in action, thrillers, and horror films. Faster cutting has been so affective and appealing to the audience that it dominates the modern world. This was a large transition that marked the largest innovation in cinematic art.
The integration of camera movements has also greatly enhanced film production. With the addition of camera movements and tracking shots, the audience is more compelled to the actions of the film as the camera itself brings them closer to the film itself, as if they are participating in the events themselves. Tracking shots and panning had also added to the affect of bringing focus to the frame. This is exemplified by directional movements; thus, adding to the dynamics of camera movements. In some cases, this addition to the cinematic arsenal has also allowed the camera itself to adopt a personality of its own. Depending on its movements and role within the film, the camera becomes very affective in making the audience feel as if they are interacting with the actors within the film themselves.
Last, the use of closer framing added the emotional aspect of this cinematic revolution. As the use of close-ups and extreme close-ups became more prominent, the connection between the audience and the actors grew. As the audience is closer to the action of the film, they feel a larger emotional attachment to the events that are occurring. This supplemented the fast cutting as the audience begins to feel the intensity of the action.
Although their were many strong additions to the film industry, this adaption did come with some minor discrepancies. The abandoning of a more realistic style of filming lost a sense of continual continuity. Film became a bit more choppy, and lost some sense of realism within the film; Events within the film were not fully depicted in the scenes. Despite this loss, overall, films use of "intensified continuity" has strongly aided film into what it has become today.