A Study Of Billy Wilder’s Comedy Films

This paper focuses on Billy Wilder’s comedy films,trying to give a systematic description of Billy Wilder`s comedy films creation.Based on a perspective of narratology,this paper will discuss the narrator,structure of story,construction of major and minor roles,and his ways of dealing time and space in movies.For a better understanding of Wilder’s comedy film style,this paper will trace his film career back to his early German period and also shows how Germany stage comedy plays and Ernest Lubitsch`s comedy films exerted influence on him.The first chapter will describe Billy Wilder`s life and film careers both in German and the United States where he established himself as a famous film director.I divide his works mainly into two genres: film noir and comedy films and take the latter as the subject of my research.The second chapter discusses the diversified and mixed subject matters in Billy Wilder’s comedy films.The third chapter focuses on the narrator and narrative perspective,giving a preliminary talk about the restricted narrative-perspective and unrestricted narrative-perspective.This part will also discuss the "present narrator” in Billy Wilder`s film,that is,the leading roles of the story or other minor roles.The unique function of the “present narrator” in his comedy films will be illustrated in this chapter.The fourth chapter analyzes the division of act,the construction of comic sequences and the mixing dramatic techniques in terms of structure mode of Billy Wilder’s comedy film.The fifth chapter analyzes how the leading roles and minor roles are designed and constructed in his films.The sixth chapter discusses his ways of dealing time and space in his films from the perspective of narration.The paper will conclude with a short summary and an appendix to Billy Wilder’s chronology.The paper will focus on a close text reading of Billy Wilder’s comedy films.Based on the narrative perspective,this paper will give a logical and systematic analysis of Wilder’s narrative mode,the establishment of comedy sequences,his styles and artistic characterristices.Hopefully,this research will provide examples and lessons for Chinese comedy film prodctions at present.