film is a projection of life
—-the metaphor in “the man without head”
What is widespread acknowledged is that in the history of film theory, films have been described as frames, windows and mirrors. (Stam 2017) people might say cinema is like a window or cinema is like a frame, however another way of looking is limited. And it ignored the audience. and the audience is engagement with the image. So it could be decided that we are not just outsides looking through the window, but we are actually seeing ourselves somehow reflected the image. This easy provides an overview of the theory “cinema as mirror” and analyze the movie “the man without head”.
What come first is that Film is often described as a technology of the imagination. cinema as mirror not shows that film is a true copy of life, it is more commonly regarded as a kind of illusion, which is the projection of a complex psychological imagination. The imaginary object can actively please people and give emotional value to the film. Christian Metz (Metz 1982, P.9) said “All this is undoubtedly reacti-vated by the play of that other mirror, the cinema screen, in this respect a veritable psychical substitute…” Therefore, he believes that film can be called the imaginary signifier. The film screen actually exists as a mirror from which the audience can obtain recognition and find another self. Thus watching a film is an activity like looking into a mirror, as well as an activity to identify and satisfy desires. Additionally, the perception activity of the film is real, what the audience perceives is not the real character itself, while the shadow of the character. Kristin Thompson, in terms borrowed from Barthes, stated that ‘characters are not real people, but collections of semes, or character traits’. (Newman 2006, P.53) The characters of the movie are made up of many symbols and elements, people find similarity with themselves in the characters, empathize with them. It is better for audience to make sense of a character’s beliefs, desires, and the personality and understand a character’s feelings. At the same time, the character’s emotional expression is also revealed through the character’s body.
At the beginning of the short film, smoke, airships and chimneys are used to depict an industrial society full of science and technology. In this world, people need to buy their own heads and can change them at will, which is very ironic. Different people can use the same face, and old people can also have the face of a young girl. The main character is a headless man who has no money to buy a head, then he wants to date and dance with the girl he loves. I believe the fitting room scene was very critical and helped me understand this film. When the man enters the dressing room, the light changes in dark to bright, it used the first perspective to create a dream feeling. The shop owner’s voice is weakened by the man’s inner voice, so that the audience can feel the joy and desire for the man’s heart. However, when the curtains were opened, the man’s face appeared in multiple mirrors, rigid and strange, suggesting that man had become more complex in the guise of the head. The shop owner’s snobbish attitude reminded me of the arrogant attitude of some luxury store employees, it’s an ironic reflection of reality. In my opinion, this film does not want people to know a world without a head, but to make the head become a metaphor or symbol to express its meaning. The head may represent money, appearance, or clothing, which people judge each other’s identity. Without the head, how are people supposed to get to know each other? At the end of the film, the woman dating the headless man, loves him and is attracted by his sincerity even though she can’t see his head. Perhaps this shows the film’s beautiful fantasy about love.
From what has been discussed above we may reasonably arrive at the conclusion that the film is a mirror projecting oneself. The world in the movie can violate the rules of the real world, but it can feel some characteristics more real than the reality, which is also the reason why the movie is so attractive.
Metz, C. (1982). The Imaginary Signifier: Psychoanalysis and the Cinema. Indiana University Press.
Stam, R. (2017). Film theory: An introduction (pp. 72–76). John Wiley & Sons.
Newman, M. (2006). Characterization as social cognition in Welcome to the Dollhouse. Film Studies, 8(1), 53–67. https://doi.org/10.7227/fs.8.7