Breaking the fourth wall isn't a new thing. It's been a fundamental technique exercised for the better part of the history of cinema as far back as the early 20th century. Often used to pull the audience into the storyline or even used as a comedic tool to break the awkwardness of a scene, breaking the fourth wall is a subtle reference to the intrinsically voyeuristic nature of cinema.
For those still unsure where this implied plane exists, the "fourth wall" is a term that refers to the front plane of a stage. It is the imaginary wall on the front of the stage in a traditional three-walled box set in a proscenium theater. Originally a tool used in stage acting, the concept has been adopted in modern cinema.
Back in 2013, video essayist Leigh Singer put together a supercut of examples of this imaginary plane being broken (above). Varying from the creative to the comedic, they bring the audience into the film and break the boundary between the story and the audience. Now Singer has compiled a second and more thorough supercut of some of film's best examples of breaking the fourth wall (below). See if you can name the films:
Every movie is naturally voyeuristic, not only the most intimate ones, and that is a great part of their appeal — the sensuous immediacy that goes beyond the stylized realism of the fourth-wall theater. A feeling of occasion and artifice may separate us from a particular movie, as it usually separates us from even the most realistic play. But with the camera eye substituted for our own the potentiality for greater intimacy, mediated by ‘me, the narrator,’ is still there.
—Alfred Hitchcock
[via Slate]
This is good stuff. I've never heard of this 4th wall thing before. Probably because I never went to film school
Interesting set of cuts. I'm a much bigger fan of the work of https://vimeo.com/channels/everyframeapainting than these super cuts. Check out his Silence of the Lambs or Fincher stuff. Very accessible. I'd rather see some discussion of the tool rather than just a collage.
There is a half way point between this kind of super cut and the stuff by 'Every Frame,' try Plot Point Productions, also on Vimeo. The cuts are used to tell a story or at least to illuminate a theme, I'm thinking specifically about their Origins of War.
All that to be said, I'd like to see more than a series of cuts, I'd like to see some substance.
Agreed. Every Frame A Painting is always great!
Just noticed you touted the stuff he did for Drive!!! Good stuff! I'm late to the game I guess. :(
I love breaking the fourth wall during multicamera interview shoots– while no one "addresses" the camera, a wide BTS shot reveals the gear setup and offers a visually interesting, often genuine, look into the interview that is taking place. It can even lend a small amount of credibility because we're sort of removing the veil from the viewers eyes, showing in effect that we have nothing to hide.
Thanks for the read Mike.