Week 1. Screening 1.

The Plow that Broke the Plains (1936). Directed by Pare Lorentz. 25 min.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2taApjVSogQ

The documentary begins with a narrative and textual exposition that informs the viewer by way of a synopsis of the geography and a (very short) history of the central plains of North America. This exposition is rooted in fact and is presented as an extension of factual information. It introduces the viewer to what is known as the great plains at the beginning and assumes no knowledge whatsoever. The footage of the documentary itself is blended with the introductory factual portrait of the plains by way of clever editing; the plains themselves are edited to appear as part of the blackboard, a subtle method to suggest that the following footage, and thus the documentary itslef, is fact.

There are a number of scenes which would appear to be co-ordinated such as at 6:36 when a line of horses and wagons are seen to take off at the same time. This reconstruction of events is used to illustrate the advancement of farming onto the great plains, co-ordinated with the voiceover it has the effect of appearing to lead the viewer by the hand. This reconstruction of illustrative events also allows the director to script the telling of the story.

There is the use of newpaper headlines to illustrate the information given to settlers returning from war. While these headlines are obviously constructed as an abstract they demonstrate the gist of the message and illustrate the directors cynical view of the hype endorsed by both the media and the state, something which is illustrated by the later usurping of the promised land. The film foregrounds a heightened (?) score to emote the illustration of the script. The documentary encapsulates a historical event, the brief synopsis and constructed narrative ark mean that it brushes past many of the stories dimensions, even if this ark and narrative contruction makes it more watchable. The end voiceover narative represents only one dimension of the fallout from the depression, illustrated here with numbers in perhaps an attempt to factualize the information. The ending illustrates the attempts to repair the damage done to communities and to the land, the fact that it was funded by the US government indicates the scope of its objectivity.