Before reading Roland Barthes’ article, I have never realized such detailed influences on audiences’ impressions and spirit from the cinema. Barthes’ description of the visual effects, sounds, lights, environment, and all these miracles of the ingenuity of movie theatre is figurative, with subtle words, reminding me of the feeling in cinema. The stimulation created by the sudden lights off and the first sound emitted is undeniable, the romantic atmosphere due to the reflection on faces from the screen brings excitation as well.
Although he wrote about his fascination with films and theatres, the title is named ‘Leaving the movie theatre’. Barthes used ‘Lure’ to film images and sounds. In my point of view, there may be a conflict in his thought between the immersion in stories and the confusion after leaving. The most fascinating thing is possibly the hypnosis during the process of finding a proper distance from film images, in other words, the ability to capture moments and creativity that will not descend because of absorbing new joy from others’ products.
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