A Personal View of Cinema Take Home Exam
Part 1
Three movies that have changed my view of cinema are Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1954), Bresson’s Pickpocket (1959) and Sirk’s All That Heaven Allows (1955). Although the movies seem quite simplistic, each of them contains some specific cinematic element that distinguishes them from the modern art of cinema. Through such elements as a setting, film structure, narrative approaches, and the use of film techniques, the directors of these movies create a new insight into the meaning of the plot and its comprehension.
The setting of Hitchcock’s Rear Window plays the crucial role in its plot. In his article “Alfred Hitchcock: Rear Window,” Truffaut comments on this film as “one single place and solely from Stewart’s point of view” (79). From the first seconds of the film, I could not imagine how such minimalistic approach could be so diverse and interesting. However, my view of this film in particular and cinema in general has changed after watching it. As Truffaut admits, the courtyard is the world, the protagonist is the filmmaker, and his binoculars are the camera and lenses (79). The voyeuristic perspective attracts the viewers and arouses their desire to look into each window. The movie feels like watching several different TV series simultaneously, and all these series have the same director – James Stewart, who enjoys his job and even develops the plot despite the distance. Barthes says, “I am hypnotized by a distance” (“Living the Movie Theater” 349). This distance between the protagonist and his neighbors is shortened through the binoculars, and the viewers see everything through Stewart’s eyes, which is not often seen in the modern cinema. Thus, the setting and narrative approach distinguish this film from the others and make the viewers think of the cinema in a different way.
The second movie, Bresson’s Pickpocket, has an unusual film structure. It is narrated in the form of a diary, and the protagonist is its author. In this movie, I have noticed the novel approach to the depiction of the objects, actions, and space. In his book Recollection to Dreams, Deleuze states that objects construct the space here (13). For example, Michel’s hand, specifically its action, is often shown in a close-up. The director understands that continuously looking at speaking people is unbearable, and he distracts the viewers by emphasizing the objects and actions (Farocki “Bresson: A Stylist” 180). Hands’ movement is a separate plot line, and it successfully fits in with the protagonist’s story. After watching this movie, I realized that the absence of film innovations does not always mean that the film would fail. By means of an interesting structure (a diary), close-ups of the objects and actions, and the actors’ play, Bresson creates his own movie style, representing the world as a prison and the citizens as “the acolytes of their own lives” (Farocki 182). I liked the movie because of its unordinary approach to the narration and its symbolism.
Finally, All That Heaven …
