Each film
has been made to make the spectator react in a particular way, whether it is
through characters, themes or filmmaking techniques. For example, Revolutionary
Road (Sam Mendez) creates a melancholic feel through the dialogue and character
driven narrative whereas Drive (Nicholas Winding Refn) creates tension through
visual style.
Spectator
responses can vary from person to person depending on different factors present
in the individuals’ life. Differences in age and religion can dictate the way a
person reacts to a film as well as their own personal experiences. For example,
a World War II veteran may have a more extreme reaction to a film like Saving
Private Ryan than somebody who has never seen war. Audiences are also forced to
feel a certain way through the Hypodermic Needle Theory, where all the elements
of a film have been carefully crafted to tell the audience what to feel.
However, this can be quite alienating as the filmmakers treat the audience as a
whole and not as individual spectators. This also removes the spectator’s
ability to form his or her own response.
The visual
style of Drive, particularly in the ‘Oasis’ sequence, could be seen as
extremely artificial and unrealistic to some, especially if the spectator is
watching passively, however, the true connotations of the elements used can be
understood if analysed in detail. For example, the sunny, warm evening creates
a nostalgic sepia tone and covers the location in a
golden light, which emphasises the dreamlike, romantic quality of the scene and
is used to give the audience a feeling of tranquillity. Also, the song chosen
to accompany the scene contains the words “a real human being and a real hero”
which reflects the good side of Driver that we as an audience have not seen yet
but will only be picked up on if searched for thoroughly.
Thomas
Newman’s score for Revolutionary Road is also a very important signifier of
events as well as visual style, despite being much more subtle and more focused
on dialogue and character. The main theme is played before and after the main
events in the film, like when Kate Winslet’s character, April Wheeler, decides
to give herself an abortion. As abortion is such a controversial issue, it is
not surprising that many people will have such an extreme reaction to it,
although some people might react more strongly to it than others, like mothers
or women who have miscarried or just women in general might have a different
reaction than men. The way the abortion scene was shot is an effective way of
manipulating the audience as the act itself is not seen, but we are made
uncomfortably aware of it through the use of the sad music as well as through
the cinematography. The audience sees April’s feet walking shakily down the
stairs, alerting the audience that it has already happened, and the camera
zooms out from where she is stood at the window to see the pool of blood
between her feet.
In conclusion,
spectators can react differently to films in general or may only be affected by
particular scenes, characters or dialogue that relates to them via things like
their personal experiences, religion, age or gender, but only when the audience
are treated as individuals and not as one.
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