Cinema: Not Frames But Veils

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to rethink the metaphors of the cinema as window and frame. The first one addresses the cinema as a transparent, open window that faithfully reproduces the world, taking the spectator’s view beyond the screen guided by realism and indexicality. The second one takes the screen as a rectangular surface that focuses the audience’s eye on the images that are produced inside its borders. In these pages I will revisit both notions, adding a third one inspired by the passe-partout of Derrida: the cinema as veil, also theorized as backdrop and decor. Ultimately, this approach explores the idea of simulacrum by analizing two examples: Blue (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2018) and Decor (Ahmad Abdalla, 2014).