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THE POWER OF FILM is a 6-part television event from legendary UCLA film Professor Emeritus Howard Suber, analyzing why certain films have remained both popular and memorable for generations.
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"A one-of-a-kind odyssey into the soul of cinema and why it matters.”
WADE MAJOR, LAist, FilmWeek, Cinegods.com
"By connecting us to what makes our stories powerful, Howard Suber connects us to who we are as human beings. An extraordinary and essential series.”
ALEXANDER PAYNE, DIRECTOR, THE HOLDOVERS, SIDEWAYS
Ancient Mythology in Modern Film Storytelling • Sociology and Power Dynamics in Society • Institutional Power and Political Power • The Cult of “Heroic” American Individualism • The Role of Antagonists and Protagonists • The Psyche of the Audience • Bisociation • Duality and Paradox in Film • Loss, Death and Transcendence • Power Dynamics in Character Relationships • The Power of Memory in Storytelling • The Relationship Between Pain and Humor • Fate vs. Destiny • Heroes as Intermediaries • Representations of Family • The Appeal of Psychopaths and Sociopaths in FilmDate of Completion: 2024 | Run Time: 45 minutes | Language: English | Captions: Yes | Includes: Transcript | Created/Written by: Howard Suber | Executive Producer/Supervising Editor/Writer: Doug Pray | Executive Producer/Director: Laura Gabbert
THE POWER OF FILM is a 6-part series about the inner workings of America’s most popular and memorable films. It’s hosted by legendary UCLA Film School Professor Emeritus Howard Suber, Ph.D., who’s insights are interwoven with dramatic clips from an incredible array of powerful and beloved movies from the last century through today. For over fifty years, Professor Suber taught directors, screenwriters, producers, and scholars the defining principles and hidden patterns of great films. THE POWER OF FILM distills these teachings into six episodes with clarity, humor, and an understanding of the history of storytelling from Aristotle to Shakespeare to Coppola and beyond. Neither a technical analysis nor a review, this series reveals the psychological underpinnings of why certain films affect viewers so deeply and can impact viewers for generations beyond their release. Using dramatic film scenes, Suber uncovers mysteries, dispels myths, and explains powerful themes that have impacted us for millennia. Though THE POWER OF FILM is about movies, it’s really about ourselves. By examining the psyche of the audience, Suber ultimately inspires us—as the heroes of our own stories—to realize that we can seize our own destinies, “that we CAN change our world.”
In HEREOS AND VILLAINS, Professor Howard Suber debunks the binary conception of hero and villain, asserting that frequently the hero and villain are more alike than they are dissimilar. In fact, film heroes tend to be conservative and almost boring, while some of the most memorable characters are the villains who are free to create chaos. Building on the concept of “power” in Part 1, Suber looks at “Shane,” “The Matrix,” and “The Dark Knight” in which the hero desires to prevent change, while the villain desires to produce it. Also covered in Part 4 is a look at many different types of villains: from the psychopath to the comic to the trope of the female villain (invented by the male screenwriters who created them). In discussing clips from “Casablanca,” “Star Wars,” and “High Noon,” Suber illustrates how heroes are always committed to ethical acts, and that in embracing their values, heroes usually pay a personal price. However, the hero’s sacrifice on behalf of society is why they last in our collective consciousness. Memorable films tend to be a compensation for what we don’t see much of in the real world— justice, commitment, and altruism.
Wade Major | LAist, FilmWeek, Cinegods.com
“A one-of-a-kind odyssey into the soul of cinema and why it matters.”
Alexander Payne | Director, The Holdovers, Sideways
"By connecting us to what makes our stories powerful, Howard Suber connects us to who we are as human beings. An extraordinary and essential series.”
Dave Karger | Turner Classic Movies
“When it comes to documentaries about movies, ‘The Power of Film’ is one of a kind in that it explores how we as an audience interact with classic films. In exploring how movies affect us, the series is equally affecting.”
Stephen Saito | Moveable Fest
"Gabbert and Pray cast their own spell in carefully juxtaposing clips from films throughout Hollywood history from “Casablanca” to “Whiplash” to show the elements of timeless appeal Suber has identified and highlight his own enduring wisdom.”
Robert Abele | President, Los Angeles Film Critics Association
"Why and how do our favorite movies live inside us? Let filmmakers Laura Gabbert and Doug Pray, and great cinema mind Howard Suber, show you how with a deeply entertaining dive into this lasting art form.”
Alonso Duralde | Linoleum Knife
"This is a fun watch, the kind of academic lecture where people applaud at the end... it's THAT level of entertaining.”