As I was reading Some Visual Motifs of Film Noir, I felt that I would have to pay close attention to the movie in order to find some of the motifs that characterize film noir. I thought the visual motifs would be difficult to notice but I was wrong. The film is full of shadows, high contrast, hiding faces, tough close-ups, and depth of field. It was very easy to realize the effect some of the techniques had on character and plot development.
Place and Peterson, in their article, list and identify the various motifs of film noir. The one motif that stood out to me during the movie was the mirror. Towards the end of the film, Geremio is having drinks with Kathleen on his birthday, which he seems to have forgotten, while his family is at home waiting for him to arrive. When he is reminded of his birthday, he realizes he needs to rush home to his wife and kids. As he gets up, he knocks over the drinks causing glass to break and an injury to his hand. There is a mirror behind him and he does look into it before leaving for home. This scene reflects, literally, the change in Geremio’s personality. At first, he’s gotten tired of his wife and would rather spend time with Kathleen. He suddenly realizes how important his wife and kids are to him once he gets up to leave. He has a sudden realization that the way he’s been treating his wife is wrong, which matches the idea that a mirror reveals a fragmented ego, as identified by the article. His life has changed since he’s cheated on his wife and betrayed his friends. but after the mirror scene, he runs home to apologize to his wife and to let her know that he’s a changed man. The change in Geremio is significant because it occurs with the presence of a mirror; it was striking because the mirror’s presence corresponds with his decision to return home to his wife.
The ending of this film was so different and depressing. It was so sad to see Geremio being buried under all the cement. I really wanted for somebody to come and help him but I realized that wasn’t going to happen. It’s very ironic how Annunziata’s dream of owning a house finally comes true with the death of her husband. Throughout their years together, they only try and save money so they can one day buy a house but it’s never possible. However, she receives $1000, the original price of the house, after his death and is able to purchase the house. The ending was miserable for me because she finally gets what she wants but after her husband’s death; he wasn’t even there to enjoy the house that he was working so hard to buy and which caused the problems in his life. Because he wanted to earn more money to buy the house, he became a different man, one who betrays his friends and cheats on his wife. But after he realizes that what he’s done is wrong and the way he’s treated people is wrong, he dies. The ironic ending definitely messed with my head and I just could not understand why it ended the way it did.
