Consistency, Explosion, and the Writing of Film History. On Different Ways to Approach Film History at Different Times

The chapter deals with four Italian books, early attempts at f ilm historiography which were published between 1935 and 1953. These film historical volumes illustrate the role continuity and discontinuity play in historical narratives. These notions are related to cultural frameworks, as the volume published for the Fascist exhibition for cinema’s fortieth anniversary, which offers a narration based on a discontinuous, revolutionary time. Moreover, continuity and discontinuity are also the outcome of attempts of legitimizing cinema, as in Francesco Pasinetti’s works. Finally, history writing is also the result of agencies such as film archives and film clubs, as in the case of Carlo Lizzani’s history of the Italian cinema. Cultural frameworks, contingent tactics, and institutions therefore shape film historiography and the consistency of film history.