In Leaving the Movie Theater, Roland Barthes describes his healing of the movie theater brought about by a certain kind of hypnosis. He introduces it with the effect that musical hypnosis has had on him, and our entry process into the theater serves as a prerequisite for hypnosis. The author graphically describes everything from the entrance before the movie starts, the immersion of the audience during the movie screening, to how the movie theater is set up so that the audience is only intoxicated by the movie.
The attraction of the cinema lies mainly in its “darkness”, which naturally focuses the audience’s attention on the big screen, while the darkness makes the audience feel relaxed and comfortable in the cinema. In addition, the sound also stimulates the audience’s senses.
The author also compares movies to television, in that when watching television you are drawn to many other factors; whereas in a movie theater one can be much more engaged, as if one’s eyes are glued to the image, whether one is sitting close or far away.
The texture of the sound, the hypnotic “darkness”, the light – that’s the charm of the cinema.
I appreciate your writing about Barthes. Your writing seems to be a summary rather than a response. A response is a writing by using your own idea/words/experience bases on the article from other scholars. You pick Barthes’ Leaving the Cinema Theater for your response. You should use this text to reflect on your experience. What is your cinema’s experience? How does Barthes’ hypnosis impact you? Do you agree with him? Can you talk about the ‘darkness’ in the cinema through your experience?