Examine Rififi through a feminist lens. Use at least one quote from a feminist film theory essay (either the Laura Mulvey essay or Anneke Smelik's essay.) Read the film by analyzing one five-minute scene. Be sure to discuss the film's meaning as a whole (through the feminist lens) and the scene's relation to that meaning. Why did you choose the scene? I also want you to mention your favorite part of the movie and what cinematic techniques you learned you could use in your own productions. Minimum of 2 paragraphs.
And, check out these cool production design pictures from the movie!
Due: Monday, January 27
Rififi is not especially concerned with the feminist lens in my opinion but it does offer a great deal of insight into the theme. In the scene from 11:00-16:05 where Tony beats Mado for getting him locked up, the idea of feminism must come into many viewers minds. In the scene, Tony tracks down Mado and tells her to come back to his apartment where he beats her. In the beginning of the scene she follows him and even tells her date to listen to Tony because of what appears to be fear of him. She also allows herself to be beaten and eventually discarded.
ReplyDeleteIn Smelik’s essay she writes that Claire Johnston, one of the first feminist film critics, says that, “Women are negatively represented as being ‘not-man’. The ‘woman-as-woman’ is absent from the text of the film.” This is evident in the scene because we see Mado as essentially just an object of men. She needs to always be with a man which is clear when she says “It was him or someone else” to Tony regarding her new man. When Tony beats Mado we do not necessarily feel that much empathy for her as she has already been characterized as sly and mostly a gold digger. We know that it was her who got her own boyfriend Tony arrested previously and Tony reveals more when he says “You always did manage” upon seeing her new expensive ring. So we already are set up by the film to feel this sort of formality and businesslike approach to her beating almost as if it is right but not quite. I chose the scene because I think it is the best demonstration of the feminist lens in the film.
My favorite scene in the movie would have to be the end where Tony drives with his nephew and eventually crashes and dies. This scene was really interesting in it’s cinematography and editing because everything is moving so strangely and we get definitely know the outcome through this. Also the jumpy, discontinuous editing of Tony getting more distressed, the nephew going insane with his gun, and the trees which run quickly by the car. I would really like to accomplish something like this in one of my films because it is done so masterfully to tell us what is happening and in an extremely cool way.
Throughout the film the Male Gaze, or Laura Mulvey’s theory of how men view women is in effect. Laura Mulvey’s theory states that as men, or even a more wide spread viewer of cinema, we focus on the physical, attractive aspects of a women. Women throughout the film are often objectified. From the mistreatment of them by Stephanois to the women singing Rififi who is merely a silhouette against the wall. In this scene lighting is used to highlight her curves, and nothing else. This is the essence of the Male Gaze, being that the viewer only sees the physical aspects of the female. Rather than the female as a whole. “Woman as an image, and men as the bearer of look”.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite scene in the film is obviously the scene where they successfully rob the jewelry store. The sound design is well done throughout the scene and the screenplay is well written There is no dialogue, yet the viewer still knows what is going on. The only sounds that you hear throughout the scene is diegetic noises of them robbing. This dramatizes every little noise they make putting the viewer on edge. The lack of noise makes the viewer paranoid and adds to the tension. This brilliant use of sound design inspires me to challenge myself by manipulating noise (or lack thereof) to add to the tension of the film.
One of the first scenes i noticed to portray women in an unflattering way was the scene that introduced the character of Mario Ferrati. The scene opens with him in a bathtub being bathed by his wife. She is wearing a very revealing dress during the scene and throughout it, she seems to treat Mario like a baby. This includes getting the phone for him, washing him, and dunking his head in the water as if he were a child. I found the scene particularly distasteful due to this portrayal of a wife. This brief but significant moment in the film seemed to say that a wife is nothing more than eye candy and a servant rather than a partner and companion. But, in the defense of the director, this could be interpreted as an attempt to portray Mario as a despicable man who treats women in this fashion. If that is the case, it makes sense within the narrative and is a good method of characterization. In Smelik's essay, she states, "classic film narrative can present the constrcted images of 'women' as natural, realistic, and attractive." But, this is not the case for this scene in Rififi. Instead, the woman is given a sexualized and submissive portrayal.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite scene in the film, along with most people, is the half-hour robbery sequence. The scene relies all on character movements and cinematography to keep from being boring. At first I was skeptical that a 30 minute scene of guys robbing a store without talking would be incredibly boring. However, the meticulous nature of the scene and lack of sound are the two details that keep the viewer on the edge of their seats. Tension is enhanced as any sound is amplified to an extreme due to the complete silence. This makes the viewer cringe with fear anytime something louder than footsteps is heard. The constant tension and unique nature of the scene are what make it stand out as the landmark scene of the film. In my own work, I could use silence as a way to put an emphasis on cinematography and character movement in a scene.
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Deletescrew you carl ~(@_@)~
DeleteThe first scene aint even got a woman in it. dookie head
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