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self-reflexive

SELF- REFLEXIVE

Self-reflexive Page 1

Self-reflexive is a term used for literary works such as poetries novels and movies that are explicit in reflecting their own processes of artful composition . These masterpieces are frequently found in modern works of fiction . These fictions usually comment to their individual fictional status . Poets , novelists , as well as movie makers use the metafiction or the metafilm technique in dealing with these kinds of fiction wherein the film is symbol of the production of a movie . Some parts of the film maybe a part of the

writer 's or director 's experience they may also add cameo appearances and shot the film to familiar Hollywood spots . This self-reflexive can also be found in earlier movies such as Sunset Boulevard (1950 , Singin ' in the Rain (1952 , and The Player (1992

Sunset Boulevard , directed by Billy Wilder under Paramount Picture is about a less-fortunate screenwriter (William Holden as Joe Gillis ) that became a kept man of an aged silent film star (Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond ) and lured him to write the script of her comeback film Salome . Self-reflexivity can be seen in several scenes of the movie . One with be in the first scene where a dead man is seen floating face down a swimming pool . As the story went along , it was explained that the man was no other than Gillis , killed by the brokenhearted Desmond . The ending showed the most apparent self-reflexivity when Desmond told the cameramen and Mr . DeMille that she is already prepared for her close up . These scenes showed the element of metafilm where the film shows that there is a film being done inside the film as shown by the cameras and reporters getting near Desmond . And since the film was mixed with the realities of film-making , other Hollywood legends and stars such as silent-screen director Erich von

Self-reflexive Page 2

Stroheim (playing as Max von Mayerling , the devoted butler of Norma , a famous Hollywood director Cecil B . DeMille (playing as himself while doing the Samson and Delilah film when Norma , Joe , and Max went to Paramount , and also the aging silent era stars Norma used to play cards with (Buster Keaton , Swedish-born Anna Q . Nilsson , and H . B . Warner playing as themselves . They also used the Paramount Studio itself

The movie Sunset Boulevard became the root of all pictures with social context and with regards to the movies it is so far one of the best creation of Wilder . It was the inspiration for Robert Altman in doing the film The Player in 1992 based on a novel of Michael Tolkin . In this film , the scene that showed self-reflexivity was shown when Griffin Mill was being blackmailed by the scriptwriter whose script he rejected before . Also , the scene that shows quality scripts and films being rejected by major film studios because of commercial value also show self-reflexivity because it actually happens it reality . In fact director Altman suffered such discrimination when he was still a beginner . Throughout the film...

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