[The Sabbaticus]

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has been offering a free online 23-videos long lecture on the analysis and history of movies:

This course concentrates on close analysis and criticism of a wide range of films, from the early silent period, classic Hollywood genres including musicals, thrillers and westerns, and European and Japanese art cinema. It explores the work of Griffith, Chaplin, Keaton, Capra, Hawks, Hitchcock, Altman, Renoir, DeSica, and Kurosawa. Through comparative reading of films from different eras and countries, students develop the skills to turn their in-depth analyses into interpretations and explore theoretical issues related to spectatorship.

The first episode can be found here:

Complete list of videos: link.

Many of the listed examples of the early years of cinematography can be found online, e.g. for the second video lecture titled 'Keaton':




The Great Train Robbery 1903

The Lonedale Operator 1911

The Playhouse 1921

The General 1926

Steamboat Bill Jr 1928

Chess Fever (Russian) (Not mentioned.)