Lipkin reading

The Lipkin reading on docudramas addressed the ways in which Twentieth Century Fox cashed in on the use of documentary elements in their post-war films. They sniffed out the hot button issues and either gleaned many composite cases and developed a story around it, or re-created some real life event to shed light on a moment in history. TCF put a lot of emphasis on actuality based films after WWII. They had made docudramas in the past, but perhaps the success of Italian neo-realist films encouraged them to churn out the docudramas more frequently after the war.

The postwar docudramas produced by TCF were considered both films noir and social problem films. Films were shot on location to seem more gritty and real, as opposed to the “dreamland” fabrications made by Hollywood up until this point. Many actuality-based docudramas were lauded for calling attention to issues that had not been talked about publicly. In order to address and strive to ameliorate the problems presented in the films, close attention was paid to making things look as authentic as possible, through technology, shooting on real locations, printed materials, etc. This added a journalistic air to the film, and journalism is (arguably) a more respected medium in terms of telling the truth. When these non-fictional elements were fit together properly with the fictional narrative, a believable docudrama was achieved. But the main criticism of docudramas was that they often relied too much on melodramatic tones. The melodramatic acting, score, etc. at times overshadows the actuality-based documentary style and defeats the purpose of believability.

Lipkin identified three ways in which docudramas link data with claims. Models are used to represent the real life documents, places, people that the docudrama is re-creating. The term sequencing refers to the ways in which the real footage and fictional scenes are merged in the film to make it believable. Lastly, the placement of fictional and real elements within a scene are referred to as the interactions. These elements, in conjunction with the audience’s willingness to suspend disbelief, are what make a docudrama successful. Lipkin argues that the postwar docudramas produced by TCF represent how to utilize these elements, and are copied by the docudramas of today.