I found the movie Orpheus very hard to follow because of all the symbolize and images that created a much deeper meaning to the film's significance. Overall, I felt that Cocteau did an amazing job with his artistic use of visual elements. He really showed the viewer life as it really is perceived and easily transitioned us into the underworld involving myth by creating the camera shots to be fuzzy...almost dreamlike. He also portrayed the underworld in contrast with the world of the living in a way that enabled the viewer to easily decipher between the two worlds (living and dead). The world of the living was shot in daylight in clean/ordered surroundings. The underworld reflected the devastation left from WWII. There was rubble, disorientation, and broken down buildings in every camera shot. It truly reflected the chaos of the situation. I also loved Cocteau's use of the mirror being a portal to the underworld, it was really a neat cinematic technique. To me, it showed us that death is almost within reach and not so final with Orpheus stepping in and out of the worlds of the living and the dead.
On a different note, I found Orpheus to not be charming at all! Yes, he had a great look but he was such a rude, depressed, and self-centered man. I found it hard to believe, as other characters were talking, that his marriage to Eurydice was anything amazing. All her friends kept reassuring her (when he went missing for a night) just how much he is completely in love with her yet all we see is him rudely brushing her off and ignoring her. I also couldn't understand why they slept in separate beds!It was sad to watch him unravel so quickly. First, he lost his touch in writing profound poetry, he has to deal with a younger boy stealing his light, and than he totally disregards his wife and instead falls in love with his death (whom I found spider like). A peer in the class made a great analysis in stating that by Orpheus falling in love with his death he is almost giving up in a form of suicide, for they can only be together in the underworld. This comment really shed more light on helping me understand the movie. Orpheus falling in love with death floored me!!Throughout the movie, you believe he is going to the underworld to save his wife yet it's really to see his death...twisted. I never saw this coming however I did see his death falling for him. I really liked how Cocteau had death dressed all in black but changed her clothing to white when she was being confronted by her watcher/driver about her love for Orpheus. To me, this symbolized that even though she is dead and meant to feel nothing, she has life in feeling love for him.
I found the reading difficult to understand but by having discussed it in class I believe I am getting it. Greene states that Orpheus could not be separated from his power to enchant, to seduce. This is true yet he is evenly seduced by his own death, whom is an ice cold woman of cruelty. I do not completely understand masochism....but I feel like Orpheus undergoes this pain and pleasure by wanting his death. She causes pain yet he seeks her pleasure. This pleasure brings him to his best work and closer to his own death.
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I agree with a lot of what you said about Orpheus. I also thought that he was not charming and that his marriage was anything but perfect. I thought it was interesting how you mentioned Orpheus almost giving up life just to be with Death. I also agree with you about how all the underworld portrays the devistation from WWII. I found the reading hard to follow as well, but I liked what you said abotu it.
ReplyDeleteMasochism, from my understanding, is all about the pleasure/pain thing, and in this film, wanting to return to the cold mother, Death, which makes Orpheus's poetry better. The film celebrates sexual cruelty. Pleasure+Pain=Broken Ego, which in turn can lead to better art for allowing artists, in this case a poet, to experience reality in a different perspective. But I think you are definitely right, there are a lot of crazy images in this movie! I hope my explanation helped a little. I don't grasp the concept completely either!
ReplyDeleteAt first I was extremely disappointed that Cocteau bent the myth so far, but the more I read everyone else's blogs the easier it is to understand his perception and point in doing that with the myth. And I agree with you that a lot of that was done with the camera shots and his portrayal of the underworld.
ReplyDeleteSarah, I really like your observation that in the cinematic world Cocteau creates, death and life aren't really that separate. That is a very cool insight, and I'd have liked to see you play with it a bit. It's original, and I think you're onto something. As I said on someone else's blog, I don't think Orpheus is on a suicide mission at all--I think that Death is where all the fun in life is, for him--certainly not within the constraints of a conventional marriage.
ReplyDeletestop making sense's response regarding masochism here I think is a useful one. I've responded to your question on her blog too, because again it's an interesting one.