Thematic and Stylistic Devices in the Film Chinatown - Essay Example

Thematic and Stylistic Devices in the 1974 Film Chinatown Roman Polanski’s Chinatown (1974) is a wonderful film thatmodern cinema can learn a lot from it. The characters built in the film are extremely memorable, and Chinatown takes viewers back to when ideas were thriving in the film industry. The ability of the director to trace the journey of the protagonist through different relationships was well planned and executed. In the essay, some of the thematic and stylistic devices used in Chinatown will be explained. The director uses these devices to express the post-Nietzschean existentialist opposition to ancient realist thinking. Roman Polanski’s Chinatown (1974) was released at the time when film noir had long gone. The film is a good example of the lasting effect of film noir’s impact. The film creates the picture of the lasting effect the patriarchal aspects of the classical film may have on the depiction of autonomous women in the movie. It portrays this aspect through character Evelyn Mulwray’s behavior. The film presumes the viewer’s knowledge of noir archetypes so that they can be led to false conclusions. Chinatown’s false leads serve to further its ideological rejection of the depiction of independent women in film. Evelyn Mulwray plays the part of femme fatale in the movie. In the early stages, Evelyn appeared not to fit because of her ability to hide it. Evelyn acts completely clumsy in all ways as she secretly takes care of business without anyone knowing (Polanski). Mulwray uses sex to place Gittes where he belongs. Evelyn just tells him what she wants him to hear; she is the book’s femme fatale. The film uses the thematic device of anti-hero very well as displayed by the character J.J. Gittes. In the movie, Gittes is seen as being prideful, and his dialogue consists of lies and accusations. Also, Gittes is very harsh and charming. One of my favorite scenes in the film involves an act of violence where Gittes is caught poking his nose where he is supposed not to be. One brute in the film sticks a knife up Gittes’ nostril and cuts on one side (Polanski). The attacker warns Gittes that his entire nose will be cut next time if he is found to be snooping. That act of intimidation served the opposite of the intended effect: Gittes began taking the whole issue personally. Gittes’ humiliation after he was taken advantage of and the infidelity in the movie make emasculation a critical theme. The source of revenue of Gittes was in danger for failing to check the identification of the woman who asked him for help. The drive to redeem his reputation is likened to an attempt to redeem his manhood. For many years, men have feared the emasculation that is accompanied by being cheated by their wives or any other woman. Such kinds of attacks on the masculinity of the men victimized have not gone down well with men. The issue of morals is evidently shown in the movie. Chinatown starts with pictures of a man that cheats on his wife with a different woman. The pictures show the two lovers in different positions of sexual congress, although no private parts are shown (Polanski). As the film proceeds, Gittes and Evelyn are shown in a scene just after completing a sexual act. The scene is very erotically charged, and the viewers may be titillated by what they do not see. In the same movie, some characters smoke cigarettes, but the most eye-catching scene is when Evelyn Mulwray smokes a cigarette in bed next to Gittes. Also, the Chinese happen to receive all the racism attacks in the film noir. One such scene is the long winded sexual joke that was narrated by Gittes about Chinese men. Chinatown uses parallelism to help create a cyclical concept of fate. The director of the film manages to hint at the film’s tragic end. The tragic end is Evelyn being shot in one eye. Roman Polanski manages to foreshadow the conclusion with some audio and visual elements. Halfway through the film, the head of Evelyn casually bows towards the steering wheel and by accident hits the car horn. The scene clearly foreshadows her eventual death when she is shot in the left eye. In the film, the left lens of Gittes’ sunglasses is broken when he is beaten in the grove. Gittes bifocals’ left lens is lost when he finds the bifocals in the backyard pond. Gittes also points out that the left iris of Evelyn has a flaw in it. Polanski uses these scenes to show what will happen towards the end of the film. The director of the movie Chinatown uses oblique camera angles and a disruptive balance of scenes when the movie begins. The director uses different camera shots as a way of pulling back and gradually revealing new information to the audience. It disorients the audience at the start since the audience is not sure what they are viewing. Roman Polanski manages to use the stylistic device of characters; these characters actions may not be motivated rationally. The film uses many symbols to portray different meanings. In Chinatown, the rule of law appears to be worthless and good intentions are censored. This serves as the symbol of the real nature of most cities. The injury that Gittes sustains acts as a symbol of his limited heroism. The typical movie hero is supposed to shake off his challenges and move on. In the film, Gittes has the injury most parts of the film. The bandage on Gittes nose shows human frailty and fallibility. The movie has used thematic and stylistic devices to challenge the patriarchal hierarchal system of traditional realist thinking. Patriarchy system is often characterized by a system of male dominance. The depiction of J.J. Gittes as the antihero of the film challenges the patriarchal hierarchal system of traditional realist thinking where men are seen as heroes. Gittes was caught poking his nose in the affairs of other people something that led to his injury on the nose. In the patriarchal system, such behaviors are identifiable with women. Gittes was also taken advantage of by a woman leading to the theme of emasculation. The theme of emasculation challenges the patriarchal system because men in the patriarchal system take advantage of women, not the other way round. Mulwray is also seen smoking a cigarette in bed next to Gittes. Cigarette smoking is often identified with men, and a woman smokes, then the patriarchal hierarchical system is challenged. The movie uses the stylistic device of parallelism to challenge the patriarchal hierarchal system of traditional realist thinking. The film uses Evelyn to bow her head and hit the steering wheel to predict her unfortunate end. In the patriarchal system, it is mainly men who are involved in various battles and conflicts. The movie, however, uses a woman to show how the movie will end. This is seen as giving women a crucial place in the film. The injury that Gittes sustained acted as a symbol of his limited heroism. This symbolism challenges the fact that men will always be heroes like in the patriarchal system. Discussion Board Question A patriarchal society is a society that is run by men. In this society, men make the rules and are a dominant feature in business and other activities. In the film Chinatown, Noah Cross actions challenge the viability of the patriarchal hierarchical system. Noah Cross is a character that treats the life of humans with contempt. Noah appears to despise both society’s rules and decency. In a patriarchal society, a man is supposed to keep rules and decency because men are the ones who set the rules. By breaking the same standards that men set, Noah challenges the existence of a patriarchal society in modern days. Noah Cross blames his actions on how evil people may be when asked about the rape of his daughter. Noah does not feel that his actions are regrettable. He believes that it is within his right to control the innocence of both Evelyn and Katherine. In a patriarchal hierarchical system, such criticism is supposed to be directed to a woman. In this film, however, Noah is criticized for rape: a woman becomes a victim. Since Noah does not feel like he did a wrong thing, he is the one who becomes an obstacle to women. Films that support a patriarchal society present women as obstacles to men. Noah is a self-centered person and wants to control all things that are around him. He wants to control the water supply of the town and the land in the valley. By being selfish, Noah challenges the viability of the patriarchal hierarchical system because, in such system, a man is supposed to offer leadership and direction to other people. Selfishness is not an attribute that has been linked to men. Works Cited Polanski, Roman, dir. Chinatown. 1974. Film. http://classiccinema.org/movie/1225/Chinatown. Read More