Film Theory, 'The Gaze' & Psychoanalysis

--The structure of consciousness -- Consciousness has become synonymous with meaning our awareness of self -- Its how we perceive the world around us --

Iceberg Metaphor

-- Consciousness is made entirely made of the Ego (the side we show the world) -- The Super-Ego lies below the surface - it is our conscience (moral, social etc.) -- Id is our desires and drives --

Society

We repress instinctual desires, mainly sexual or aggressive

Object Relations

-How we view and use objects - Transitional Objects are precursors to our adult appreciation of art - Advertising prays upon our investment in inanimate objects - Abject the part of our body that repulses us -- is that which society cannot accept -- it is that which we find repulsive - we regard as dirty and are taught to feel distaste for

The Gaze

Male dominated hollywood - Scopophilia an objectified other - Narcissistic Identification - Projected notion of 'ideal ego' in image reflected (Explored in Fight Club?)

Suture often forces empathy with lead protagonist - spectators look through the eyes of the actors in the film - we are 'their' gaze ie. Peep Show invites us to be part of the scene, we view through the eyes of the character

Forms of Gaze

1. The spectators' gaze

2. Intra diagnostic gaze

-Recognition of the power of the gaze

-We are not the perpetrators

3. Extra diagectic gaze

-The subject gazes upon us

-we are invited to be viewed

Different forms of gaze evoke different strucures of power - We can objectify and identify