1. Bordwell, David "Mizoguchi and the Evolution of Film Language" from Cinema and Language (Frederick, MD: University Publications of America, 1983) 107-117.

In this article, Bordwell analyses the work of Kenji Mizoguchi in order to refute the conclusions of Andre Bazin concerning the evolution of film language. Bordwell's sources include the essay 'The Evolution of the Language of Cinema' by Bazin, and works by Brecht, Eisenstein, and Burch. This segment seems to be a chapter from a book written either by an academic or a fan of film and cinema who is highly critical Bazin's essay. This article is probably intended for those involved in or knowledgeable about films. It assumes familiarity with some film language and terminology that the average person may not have. For example, "Temporal continuum" or "Continuity editing".

This work attacks the shortcomings of Bazin's essay very effectively. In his analysis of the evolution of film language, Bazin neglected to comment on Japanese film whatsoever. Bordwell explains powerfully the importance of Japanese film, namely the work of Mizoguchi, in the evolution of film language and why Bazin's conclusions are inaccurate. Bordwell's work is also very useful in absorbing the style and tendencies of Mizoguchi. He goes into detail describing exactly why Mizoguchi was a noteworthy filmmaker and how he differed from his peers in Hollywood. Bordwell however, also he comments on the 'Oriental sign' which I found to be very difficult to follow. He uses a lot of unfamiliar terminology and insufficient explanation. This section requires extreme attention when reading.

- Brad Alexander