Master Hands

Perceptions and the control of them has been an important part of society. To control the perception one has about any given topic can prove to be very advantageous for the controller. The car industry has been at the forefront of controlling an image and fostering the image to fuel the big business it is today. The movie, Master Hands, is a great example of a company attempting to change a mind frame.

The main focus of the movie is in the workers and their importance, which can be seen from the onset of the movie. It opens up with very grand music, setting the mood of the film. The workers are setting up their machinery meticulously making the little things look very big. Throughout the movie you see a constant glorification of the process of car building, more especially in the hand-offs that create it. It is important to understand that this movie was created to influence the minds of people to be more sympathetic to workers and more personally engaged in the encompassing greatness of the automobile.

The movie is centered on the manufacturing process with a great deal of emphasis on the hard labor involved made more dramatic by the scenes that show in detail the skills found in the hands of the workers who through their skill are able to achieve the creation of these machines. Surrounded by evil scary music, the watcher is shown the brute force needed to carry out the mission of building a car. The scenes are sequential so that the viewer is carried through the process and can see how through much dedication and hard work, the pieces of the puzzle start to fit so that together they can become the final creation. Organization is shown to be very important, as the newly made parts are moved into place, the better to suit the workers. Along with the organization needed there is an emphasis on teamwork during the process. The workers seem to work with little protection though the environment seems tough.

Anticipation along with imagery is a key factor in Master Hands. Though the movie makes no use of words, the music played along with the power of each scene is sufficient to sustain the viewer's attention. The audience is captivated by the crudeness of the process as well as by the resilience of mankind which allows him to create such greatness in the midst of such harsh conditions. The workers are given the power over the means of production and therefore they are essential to the creation of the automobiles. As each scene evolves into the next, the anticipation grows and with it the need to see a final product that merits such strenuous work.

Ultimately this movie is propaganda. Its goal is to control and influence the perception people have of the auto industry. The movie makes the worker grand, with the perfect balance of power and grace because to do so is an invitation to the viewer to participate in the excitement, the exhilaration, and the emotional involvement that are elemental to the auto industry.

"Master Hands" is a 1936 sponsored documentary film short which shows what work is like in a Chevrolet automobile factory. Credits include original music by Samuel Benavie, cinematography by Gordon Avil, and film editing by Vincent Herman. It was produced by the Jam Handy Organization, a pioneer in industrial film production.

Although this was originally a film that Chevrolet paid Jam Handy to produce, it now has a wider purpose than whatever it was intended for originally. We have a nice view of the American labor movement in the 1930s, particularly in the auto industry. Whether Chevrolet or Ford or anywhere else makes no difference, this really captures what it was like to work in such a place at the time... before the robots took over.

Just watched this documentary short for Chevrolet, produced by The Jam Handy Organization on the DVD collection called "Saved from the Flames". With little narration or text, we see the auto workers as they go about their business of making cars from beginning to end as accompanied by a symphonic composition written by one Samuel Benavie and performed by the Detroit Philharmonic Orchestra. Nice cinematography by Gordon Avil and perfect editing by Vincent Herman. The whole thing combines to make a pretty entertaining look at how cars got their look during the '30s. It's no wonder the National Film Preservation Board here in the United States gave it the National Film Registry in 1999. So on that note, I recommend Master Hands to anyone interested in this kind of thing.

This film was included in the three DVD set "Saved From the Flames"--a collection of mostly ephemeral movies that have managed to avoid turning to powder, catching fire or melting--something that usually happened with the nitrate film stock used up through the 1950s.

Apparently "Master Hands" was made for a stockholder meeting by Chevrolet and sings the praises of the modern industrial age and those who work with their hands (particularly machinists). However, interestingly, the film is made without narration--just lots of clips all elegantly strung together with a gorgeous sound track. It's almost like an art film in a way--exceptionally well done but also something the average person would be bored to tears to watch. And because it goes on for more than half an hour, I wouldn't recommend it...but I can respect it.