The Fall of Film Musicals in the Context of the Evolution of the Music Industry in the 1960s and 1970s

Niniejsza praca opisuje, jak musical filmowy ewoluował w latach 60. i 70. XX wieku, a także jak zmieniała się jego relacja z muzyką popularną. Na wstępie opisane zostają początki gatunku w czasie narodzin filmu dźwiękowego. Podkreślone zostają znaczenie gwiazd muzyki popularnej w kinie tamtego czasu i z drugiej strony wpływ Hollywoodu na muzykę popularną. Przypadki klap finansowych z lat 60. zostają przedstawione, aby pokazać, jak klasycznie pojęty musical w dużej mierze wypadł wtedy z mody, co przyczyniło się do kryzysu w Hollywood. Zaproponowana zostaje natomiast szersza definicja musicalu, obejmująca muzyczne filmy dokumentalne i biografie. Następne rozdziały opisują, jak nowe gatunki muzyczne były portretowane i wykorzystywane przez filmowców w latach 60. i 70. Kluczowe przykłady to filmy z udziałem the Beatles, Boba Dylana i the Monkees, a także dokumenty o festiwalach muzycznych Monterey Pop, Woodstock i Altamont. Najważniejszym omówionym zjawiskiem z lat 70. jest cross-promocja filmów i ich ścieżek dźwiękowych z muzyką popularną, wydawanych na płytach.

This work aims to present a novel perspective on the fall of film musical in the 1960s and 1970s. It will apply a broad definition of the genre, argued by some scholars, that will allow for the inclusion of works that stray far from what is typically understood as a musical. This extended canon will be examined as an extension and reflection of the changes in musical industry, exemplified primarily by the era’s biggest stars. The first chapter opens with a summary of how the popular music of the jazz era became essential to cinema with the arrival of sound film and film musical. This successful early conjunction of both media later serves as a point of reference. A string of financial and commercial failures of the 1960s is discussed, which involved film musicals distributed in a limited form called „roadshow”. The disconnection between these entries in the genre and the situation in popular music emerges as a factor in the fall of the musical and the resulting decline of the Hollywood studio system. Finally, the chapter surveys definitions of the genre. The work will resort to one opening the canon to a variety of films focused on presenting musical performances. One common aspect is distinguished, that of how even classical musicals aspired to preserve an air of spontaneity and illusion of authenticity. The second chapter examines how a new, revolutionary genre of popular music, rock 'n' roll, was represented on screen and employed by filmmakers. Early examples include the so-called „jukebox” musicals, and films starring Elvis Presley, who became assimilated by Hollywood and neutered of his once shocking qualities. The chapter goes on to examine the film output of The Beatles and the influence of their collaborations with the director Richard Lester. A requirement of authorial authenticity, which became expected of rock musicians, is discussed based on the case of the pop group the Monkees, modeled on the Beatles, but cast by television producers. The group's film Head, and its failure to change their perception, shows how audiences were not ready yet for subversions of countercultural myths. Next, the chapter examines the arrival of rock documentaries, including the works of D.A. Pennebaker, the film about the Woodstock festival, and the early films of the Rolling Stones. Finally, the example of Easy Rider illustrates how the use of popular music changed in the New Hollywood. Finally, the third chapter surveys how popular music and film coexisted in the 1970s. It opens with an account of how Black cinema in synergy with Black music produced hits and masterpieces at the beginning of the decade. A subchapter about Robert Altman’s Nashville shows how country music, neglected by mainstream cinema, became a subject of a masterpiece, but at a price of ridicule. The chapter goes on to describe examples of musicals in which numbers with rock music are integrated into the plots, furthering them. The chapter closes with an examination of how synergy between musicals and soundtrack albums was used by producers to maximize profits of their horizontally integrated businesses.