An Analysis of Space and Place in Cinema - Essay Example

Space and Place in Cinema - An Analysis with Film Form and Content Connection. Space and place in cinema is a topic worth on the go discussion. Filmspace is not a topic that can be glanced at untailored. Space in cinema is determined by the director, who is the first viewer, when the angles which are not relevant for creating the space are screened out by him. Film space is a term that can be interpreted in various perspectives. In a film the space is used in a set design that is both literal and metaphorical. As an extension to this particular point it can be stated that when conceptions of space are re-orientated it is not simply within a particular scene, but its significance is extended through the entire film. More specifically, an object on the wall shown in the first scene may not be brought into the film again; in spite of this its significance is stayed behind. Actor’s body in space is the next level of significance. This idea can be expanded as the actor’s dimensions and negotiations of space and filmmaker’s skill to represent a movement through space. The concept space can be comprehended only by moving through spaces. In such an outlook the acting body is recognized as the site of transference between the viewer and the actual site of the film. Apart from this, the manipulation and creation of the space are by the camera eye. Just as an architect acknowledges the specular and blind space that his construction necessarily have, specular and blind space in film making are acknowledged by film technique. An implicit narrative to the role of space is revealed as an appendage character and action using the narrative space. Space cannot be considered merely as the setting of stories. In fact narrative is generated by it in films assuming the status of a character and it is turned to be the fabric of the narrative itself. Compared to the other art forms with respect to conveying the dynamics of space cinema is more successful, which is a three dimensional environment in which objects take their place. [Konstantarakos, 2000, p1-2] Cinema is a construction in which an artificially built environment and communicative meaning are assembled together. In cinema dissimilar pieces are put into place. In it meaning is derived from both the placement and the act of placing. The factors significant in placement are time and composition, the frame, perception and experience and the most important is space itself. The medium cinema is closer to architecture fundamentally because both these articulate lived space. Comprehensive images of life is created and mediated by both these art forms. The time of its making and the era represented by it are reflected in a film. The dimensions of existential space are defined in it. Experiential scenes of life situations are created here. The viewer turns to be a body less observer during watching the film. What gives the viewer his body back is the illusory cinematic space. A kinesthetic way of experiencing space is there in the case of cinema. A variety of spatial themes are approached these days by the recent film studies. Urban and rural settings, the use of camera in such a creation, and social-spatial metaphors of marginality or confinement are important in this respect. [Arendt, 1968, p217-251] Another important topic to be dealt with prior to the in depth study of the selected films, is the narrative space. It can be referred to as any space in which a narrative can be taken place. It may not be a concrete, physical space but can be emotional or psychological. These indefinable narrative spaces have been used in many of the films to create a variety of tones and moods. This can be interpreted in terms of the film Days of Heaven by Terrence Malick. Not many directors have used the charm of space like Terrence Malick has done. A crucial role is played by the environment throughout his films. Character’s emotions and motivations are depicted in the background of this spatial representation. What is provided here with is a lyrical canvas for the action. A deeper understanding of the personal stories also is made possible by Terrence Malick with this technique. Landscape, that is space, is used in his films for the definition of the essentially philosophical and ethical issues. Within a single short itself a perspective from tiny peripheral detail to epic depiction is made possible by Terrence Malick. An extraordinary visual frame work is presented in this film. Malick’s approach to genre and iconography are functioned in this film like many of his other films. In Days of Heaven the emotional journeys of the characters are offered in terms of the places and spaces. The cinematic environment or the space in cinema is elementary in the film Days of Heaven . Thus Malicks settings, and the manner in which these settings are portrayed, produce a kind of common meaning and reaction in the audience, precisely because of the use of a certain recognizable place in the film.[ Konstantarakos, 2000, p3-7] The opening scene of the film Days of Heaven portray old photos of turn of century America. The musical theme in this persists throughout the film. This is an indication of the space shift in this. Considering the film in a nutshell is necessary to analyze the impact of space in it. The characters in the film, Bill and Abby a young couple, are subjected to a psychological space shift, as they are pretending to be brother and sister to the outside world. The space shift in the geographical form also occurs in their life as a result of which an escape from the poverty and hard labor of the city to South is opted by them. The narrator of the movie Linda is the companion they get to facilitate them for the space shift with respect to their status; they are employed in a farm in the Panhandle, Texas. They are invited by the rich and handsome farmer who has fallen in love with Abby. What are followed in the film illustrates the space shift in the mental and physical environment of the characters. As all the three are employed in the vast wheat field of the farmer the events they face with is of significant role in the film Days of Heaven. Linda’s observation rooted in a philosophy that a man is born for once and he should have the life nicely, echoes what they too wanted to be like. In the scene in which the farmer observes Abby using a telescope the charismatic harvest scenes also are gifted to the viewers by which they regain their body to where the characters of the film are. Spaces in Malick cinema are either key action spaces or far-off reference points. Malick codifies natural spaces in the most natural way. The traditional cultural configurations of the country and city are pictured in his film to provide the viewers with enchanting openings for gratification. The country was codified as virtuous, filled with a sense of community and shared purpose; conversely, the city was corrupting, the storehouse of individualism and a lack of community values. This romantic approach to opportunity of the countryside over the city is brought into play repeatedly throughout early cinematic representations of the two spaces. This is very significant in terms of cinema. Exit from the city for salvation in the countryside is a recurrent pattern in American film noir: This can be viewed in the film Days of heaven with all its appeal. The dichotomies between urban and rural are introduced at the outset of Days of Heaven. In this film Bill, Abby and Linda flee the industrial disfigurement of the city, all steel-grey color schemes and grimy bareness. This has a symbolic significance as it turns to represent their life itself. What this break out from the urban set up eventually consents is an exploration of, and assimilation into, nature. Nature itself plays a prominent role in this film in this respect. The presentation of nature and the landscape are simultaneously reflexive and highly significant. In the film Days of Heaven the cinematography fetishises nature to an extent that the images threatened to be engulfed by the narrative. Here the art of film making is turned to be the cheerful act of film painting. Pictorial quality of presentation is also obvious in Days of Heaven. Contrasts in mood and landscape are established through the differing color schemes in this film. The final scenes of Bill fleeing justice are shot through a cold blue filter, emphasizing the growing sense of seclusion and senselessness. Here is a harsh opposition to the rich shades of the harvest and the farm can be visualized. This is attention catching too. Placement of the human protagonists within the widescreen outline results in the succeeding dwarfing of their proportions by the natural surroundings. This is symbolic of the powerlessness of humans against nature. This is best demonstrated by the presentation of the Farmers home on the grassland in Days of Heaven, which is positioned within the totality of the landscape. The isolation faced by the farmer is represented here. Futility of human interference in nature is represented throughout the film by the presentation of vast spaces as the physical background of the life of the characters. Nature is not posed for the camera, what Malick has done in the film Days of Heaven just as in his other films is capturing and aestheticising the elements of nature,. It is made possible by him generally through close up shorts that gives the feeling of life. In Days of Heaven, the director seeks out to convey a clear image of the action space which includes his characters. The blissful portrait of the landscape presented in the film is further improved by characters’ experience of it through various point-of-view shots. A beautiful example for this is the scene in which Bill and Abby gazing up at the moon. It is through this self-motivated combination of image and point-of-view that the beauty of nature is blended into both protagonist and spectator. [Patterson, 2007, p77-85] The film Days of Heaven can be measured an avant-garde in the use of notable expressive means as time and space. Almost every minute, the screen is filled with striking and startling images of the open crop fields. There are several panoramic close-ups of the open landscapes and waving fields. The understanding of the characters and protagonist are influenced by a long way by these images. It seems, as their individualities are being lost; their needs and patterns of life are miniaturized comparing to the vibrant landscapes of the Texas and its beauty. Spaces in Malick cinema are either key action spaces or far-off reference points. Malick codifies natural spaces in the most natural way. The traditional cultural configurations of the country and city are pictured in his film to provide the viewers with enchanting openings for gratification. The country was codified as virtuous, filled with a sense of community and shared purpose; conversely, the city was corrupting, the storehouse of individualism and a lack of community values. This romantic approach to opportunity of the countryside over the city is brought into play repeatedly throughout early cinematic representations of the two spaces, Exit from the city for salvation in the countryside is a recurrent pattern in American film noir: This can be viewed in the film Days of heaven with all its appeal. The dichotomies between urban and rural are introduced at the outset Days of Heaven. In this Bill, Abby and Linda flee the industrial disfigurement of the city, all steel-grey color schemes and grimy bareness. What this break out from the urban set up eventually consents is an exploration of, and assimilation into, nature.[ ,Gustaffson,2007,p9-102] The depiction of nature and the landscape are simultaneously reflexive and highly significant. In the film Days of Heaven the cinematography fetishises nature to an extent that the images threatened to be engulfed by the narrative. Here the art of film making is turned to be the cheerful act of film painting. Pictorial quality of presentation is also obvious in Days of Heaven. Contrasts in mood and landscape are established through the differing color schemes in this film. The final scenes of Bill fleeing justice are shot through a cold blue filter, emphasizing the growing sense of seclusion and senselessness. Here a harsh opposition to the rich shades of the harvest and the farm can be viewed. This announces the influence of space in human thoughts and reflections. [Lefebvre,2006,19-59]. One of the most inspiring scenes of the film is the episode in which the fire scene is shown. It can be regarded as one of the most gorgeous spectacles for the spectator during the film. It is very figurative as it encompasses the transition from the first act of the film to the second and exemplifies the change that should happen in lives of the protagonists. The use of space in this scene has a great meaning. First of all, it shows that person has no power over the nature and, at the same time, he is an ingredient of it. To converse of this concept more clearly a reading of the film in a distinct way is obligatory. Here the space represented forefingers the transition of the mindset of the characters itself. What they strive for is an escape from the hard ships to a more light and promising life style. The spectacular depiction of nature with man in it spreads inexplicable delight to the heart of the viewer. What reaches here is the success of the film as a medium of entertainment. Here in Days of Heaven contexts of the detachment of the viewer from the viewed are very rare. While watching the movie, the viewer can move with the landscapes and characters. In fact we become one with the characters while watching it. The space shift the viewers undergo connects the film Days of heaven to the other selected film for our analysis Rosemary’s Baby. Rosemary’s baby is a 1968 horror film modified by Roman Polanski from Ira Levin’s1967 bestselling novel. This film is special as feminist speculation is invited to it. Here in this film pregnancy is treated as a Gothic spectacle transforming the protagonist’s psychological space to an abnormal one. Rosemarys fears and suspicions can be attributed to psychosis, through which a sort of space change of her perceptions are visualized in the film. The psychological space change Rosemary undergoes can be materialized in new fetal visualization technologies like ultra sound. In Rosemarys Baby the pervasive, paranoid discourse on pregnancy becomes horrific. The aggressive relationship between pregnant women and fetuses formulated by medical and legal discourses takes a provoked form in the satanic fetus in Rosemary’s baby. We are shocked by watching the toxic effects of the pregnancy on Rosemarys body. The space shift with respect to her status is made so explicit through the presentation of her movements and postures. When both Guy and Sapirstein, her obstetrician, assume a paternalistic authority that enables them to easily disgrace her as psychotic, together with Rosemary the viewers also are invited to a realm of horrors and terror generating spaces. The alteration of space is not only affecting Rosemary, but the viewers too in an amazing manner. What Rosemary believes is that there is a plot against her, but as she becomes intensely conscious, no one will consider her perceptions. Rosemarys story would seem to depict the confines of time alone as a protection against violence. Rosemary confronts the power of her husband and obstetrician and this adds to her problems. She is shifted to a psychological space where she undergoes a strange feeling that she is subjected to the corporal union with a monster At this point she raises her confession towards the pope. But later Rosemary reaches the realization that ‘This is really happening!’ [Rosemary’s Baby]. Here it can be assessed that Rosemary’s Baby theorizes a permeable relation between fantasy and reality. In other words a change from one emotional space to another is elucidated here. As an example, early in the narrative, Rosemary happened to hear the Castevets through her bedroom wall as she falls asleep. The dream succession that followed is a recollection from Rosemarys Catholic-schoolgirl childhood, but Rosemary’s dream is penetrated by the sound of Minnie Castevet criticizing her husband. It is interesting to see that at the same context Rosemary was being scolded by a nun in her dream. Here fantasy and reality are in close communication with one another. Similarly, a frightening and enlightening moment occurs during the rape scene when Rosemarys logical perceptions are interrupted by her drug-induced dreams. Her recognition is that she has confused rape by someone inhuman with a pleasurable dream of sex with her husband. As fear replaces her formerly submissive, voyeuristic interest in those dreams, Rosemary protests "This is no dream! This is really happening’ (Rosemary’s Baby) as described earlier. A vivid psycho analytical space shift can be viewed here. Her protest simultaneously emphasizes a distinction between fantasy and reality and acknowledges how closely entangled they are. However, in the morning, despite the scratches on her body that provide evidence for what happened in fact Rosemary believes everything is a part of that dream. The film megaphones the following tips for a woman by showing the space shifts in it. She is advised not to trust anyone, not even her own husband and definitely not to talk to the strangers even though they live the next door. Here the change of the mental state is terribly portrayed in the screen. To Rosemary’s uncertainties about her husbands blameworthy behavior and her suspicions of an evil plot are justifiable estimations of her situation. She firmly believes that no one is there to lend a hand to her and this feeling sets the pace with her anxieties and dilemma. The concept of the shift of psychological space can be elucidated by citing considerable moments from the film Rosemary’s Baby. Some unsettling elements of the film are explained by the actual linkage of witchcraft and childbirth. It is very effective to place them within a psychological frame. Rosemary’s frenzied thoughts are consonant with representations of women’s normal experience of parturition. Conception is the first step of the birth process and in Rosemary’s Baby, the primal scene overlaps with panic. One night, guy discloses his unexpected wish to father a baby while having dinner. At the juncture in which guy’s mind set up reached a decision to be a father a space shift started in the life of both rosemary and guy with far reaching consequences. The meal is interrupted by the arrival of Minnie with the special chocolate mousse which has a chalky understate that Rosemary dislikes. but she eats it because the guy urges her to do that. Very soon after eating Rosemary collapses and guy carries her to bed. Thus we can see the very sudden mental change of the guy. And it really affects rosemary who suffers an actual ecstasy. A shift from psychological emotions to physical impulses can be viewed. Even if she intercourses with her husband she feels that a monster is present there; But she teaches her mind that it is happening really by a strong burst out of words from herself..The burst out from her ‘this is really happening’ is the realization of the shift to an emotional space she was carried to. Her vision of the union with the monster that led her to the thought of confession to the pope turns to reality at this moment that it was not the evil spirit that was with her, but her life partner. [ Fischer, 1992,p3-18]. In Rosemary’s Baby, Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse rent an apartment in Branford Rose Mary wants to make a family and that is her only aspiration. The change of place with turns to be a problem in the film when Roman and Minnie Castevet enter the couple’s life. Though Guy resists them but Rosemary urges him to socialize. But after the dinner party Guy almost befriends the Castevets.It is very mysterious when Rosemary is given a foul-smelling amulet to wear. What happens shortly is Rosemary becomes pregnant and different from the previous approach to Minnie she is advised to administer herbal medicines. She is also asked to enlist Dr.Abraham Sapirstien. The spectators can easily recognize how intensely the situations affect Rosemary. She is sickened and afraid of some upcoming danger. Here it is very clear that the space is highly psychological. Rosemary’s mind can be taken as the space here. It undergoes a lot of mysterious alternations that affect her body also. The influence of the place where she lives also is a problem for Rosemary. The strange and terrible space around her compels Rosemary to escape the clutches of the Castevets and this itself can be interpreted as her urge to move from an insecure space to a safe one. She reaches Dr. Hill. Unfortunately he thinks that she has become crazy and calls Sapirstein and Guy to retrieve her. Here is the time for the spectator to witness Rosemary’s escape to a space where she can get her baby secure. She runs and passes a lot of places. An interpretation of this particular juncture is possible in terms of psychological space. All the problems are in the mind of Rosemary. She flees to escape from these terrible facts which are in existence in her perception only. At last she gives birth to her baby in her home but the baby is taken from her and she is told the baby is dead. This context also can be cited as an instance in which a space change happens, Rosemary’s psychological space being a mother is lost here and she is in empty space. The end of the film takes us together with Rosemary to the Castervet’s apartment. She reaches here following her child’s cry. There a coven is celebrating the arrival of the devil child. First Rosemary is repulsed but soon she approaches the cradle to comfort the infant. A geographic proximity which has doomed her pregnancy can be detected in the film. Rosemary gets access to her child through a door that conjoins the Woodhouse and Castevet. The glimpses of the influence of space are very significant here. [ Valerious, 2005,p115-136]. The films Days of Heaven and Rosemary’s Baby have no common traits at a peripheral prospect. But an in depth perception of the films leads us to the dimensions of space shift in both. This is clear from the above discussed points from both the films. Once again it can be elucidated by the analysis of a scene each from both of the films. In the film The Days of Heaven the scene in which Bill megaphones his wish to leave the then working firm throws light on the conflict he suffers out of the hardships in his working place. He wants to be relocated in respect of the space of his labor. The film portrays Bill in the following way: “Bill works in the glow of a blast furnace. He does not seem quite in place with the rest of the workers. A pencil moustache lends a desired gentlemanliness to his appear­ance. He looks fallen on hard times, without ever having known any better--like Chaplin, an immigrant lost in the heartless city, with dim hopes for a better way of life.”(Malick,1976,p4) Here the motive of Bill is not a mere alteration of the living space, but it is his step forward life in its faithful meaning. He wants to live a life that is promising and worth living. He does not want to spend his valuable moments under the stress and hardships. Bill wants her dear one to accompany him when it is decided by him to set off to the west. “We’re going west. Things gotta be better out there.” Here Bill’s hope turns to the discourse form. What he was searching was a better life. He selects a place that seems to be better for him and his love. The decision here is to reach a land that can give life to them. Just as in this case, such a shift is depicted in the film Rosemary’s Baby too. Rosemary, after moving from their old place to the new, opines on the present apartment, “It is a marvelous apartment, I love it.” ( Polanski,1967,p5) What is reflected here, just as in the case of the thought of Bill in Days of Heaven is optimism and anticipation of something secure. Rosemary likes the charm of the apartment. She likes to be there. But what follows in both the films as explained earlier is far away from positive representation of life. In the Days of Heaven, what followed is not what Bill expected; in Rosemary’s Baby too the case is exactly that. When a study on the role of space in the emotions of the characters in a film, Rosemary’s Baby can be taken in another angle of space, but this aspect of study also is in connection with the above given one, that is the space shift and character emotions in Days f Heaven. In both the films what is depicted is a transfer of people from one place to another. This transfer causes changes in them. This is not simply a shift from one place to another in both these selected films, but the result of the search for secures life. It is natural that the characters hunt for a better living space. What makes the films Rosemary’s Baby and Days of Heaven alike in some respects add to the complexity of the plots of the two sometimes. What is important is the result gained by the making of the films in all respects. Both these films are worth watching due to the scope of narrative space in them. From the above given analysis on the films Days of Heaven and Rosemary’s baby the role of space and place in films is comprehensible. What is significant and worth mentioning is the specific perspective with which one approaches the films under study. Within the perspective of the film through the eyes of a layman all its aspects cannot be brought out. Another fact is that the envisioning of the maker of a film is not supposed to be followed by the people who watch it. The power of perception and interpretation is distinct and unique in everyone. While going with an appreciation the most significant point is reading on some fundamental theories appropriated to the selected topic. Here in this paper a study on the theories based on the space in cinema and the contributions of it in this medium was conducted. This critical study reveals the fact that the concept of space plays an extremely remarkable role in the aesthetic perfection of a film. When the audience spends their time in the theatre they should be arrested by the presentations and shifts in space. That means, the space cannot be arranged in any way the film maker decides; he should take the viewers into consideration. In the above analyzed films agreement to such a code of film making is reflected. References: 1. Patterson, Hannath, Wallflowerpress, Lndon, The cinema of Terrence Malick, Poetic Visions of America, 2007. 77-85 2. Lefebvre Martin, Between Setting and Landscape in the Cinema. Landscape and Film. Ed. Martin Lefebvre. New York: Rotledge, 2006. 19-59. 3. Gustaffson, Henrik, Out of Sight : Landscape and Cultural Reflexivity in New Hollywood Cinema ,Stockholm,2007.9-102 4. Fischer, Lucy, Birth Traumas: Parturition and Horror in "Rosemarys Baby" Cinema Journal,31.3, 1992. 3-18 5. Valerius, Karyn. Rosemarys Baby, Gothic Pregnancy, and Fetal Subjects. College Literature 32.3, 2005. 116-135. 6. Konstantarakos, Mytro, Spaces in European Cinema, Intellect Books, UK, 2000. 1-7 7. Arendt, Hannah, Walter Benjamin, The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, Illuminations Schocken Books, New York, 1968, 217-251. 8. Lewis, Norman, Roget’s thesaurus, Jawahar Nagar, Goyal Publishers, 1995. 1-495 9. Polanski, Roman, Rosemary’s Baby. 1967, 1-167 10. Malick, Terrence, Days of Heaven. 1976. 1-71 ‘ Read More