Barthes put forward the concept”cinema situation”, describing the film as a “lure”. Compared to watching TV at home and watching shows in a “legitimated theater”, the uniqueness of watching a film in cinema lies in the immersive trap. That is, the environment of the cinema( including the light of the screen, the sound, even the audience sit beside you) and all the ideological discourse (especially image-repertoire) effect with each other, creating a hypnotic atmosphere. In my mind, Barthes’ attitude towards movies is critical but hopeful. In an era when the cinema first came into the public eye and the role movie played is not that clear enough, Barthes guided us to rethink the “function” of movies: it can be either enticing or healing, but it can also be looked at from an out-of-the-box view. Instead of “glued” to the image, spectators may keep distance, and appreciate. I think this is what “taking off” means. The artistic part of movies should be seen more by the public besides the commercial part.
You have summarized Barthes’ piece well. I would love to hear more from you, as you said Barthes’ was ‘hopeful’. If he was hopeful for films in cinemas, why was this piece titled ‘Leaving the Movie Theatre’? How has the act of leaving the cinema given Barthes ‘hope’? I would encourage you to elaborate on your key points more with regard to the readings. Also, you are reminded to put your name and UID on the blogpost for easy identification.
Also, I would like to remind you to leave your name at the end of your response for easy identification 🙂