In today’s fast-paced culture, it is difficult for many individuals to find time for relaxation; nevertheless, when they do, they often engage in entertainment. This is because many individuals find it difficult to focus on tasks that require less mental effort. This is illustrated by seeing the theater or the movies. There are numerous parallels between the theater and the cinema industry, and both kinds of entertainment are interdependent. People who attend the theater and watch the cinema consider several factors and their preferences before making their choice, but many are unaware that cinema and theater are two distinct art forms.
Cinema is different from the theater in several ways. The most obvious difference is that cinema is a visual medium, while theater is primarily auditory. Cinema relies heavily on editing and mise-en-scene to tell its story, while theater relies more on the spoken word. Europe ’51 is a film that illustrates how cinema differs from the theater in several ways. In Europe ’51, the use of editing and mise-en-scene is evident from the very beginning. The film opens with shots of different people in different places. These shots are edited together very quickly, and there is no dialogue. This is a very effective way to introduce the different characters and settings in the Film.
Cinema can also create illusions of movement and time that are impossible in the theater. For example, cinema can use a montage to show the passage of time impossibly on stage. Additionally, cinema can use special effects to create impossible illusions in theater, such as making someone appear to fly. The Film Europe ’51 also illustrates this by using montage to show the passage of time impossibly on stage. For example, there is a scene in which the main character, Irene, is shown receiving a letter from her son. The scene then cuts to a montage of Irene reading the letter and reacting to it. This is a very effective way to show the passage of time and Irene’s emotional reaction to the letter. The article What is Cinema by Andre Bazin also asserts this on page 108, where it explains that the photorealistic style of cinema is an effect of the medium itself. The presence of a marvel or fantastical feature in a screen image does not undermine the image’s truth; rather, it is a Tolost valid case for the image. In contrast to the theater, where illusion depends on the audience’s tacit acceptance of a set of principles, film illusion is based on the audience’s incontrovertible experience of the world as it exists.
Cinema is also a more intimate medium than theater. Because the audience is so close to the screen, they can feel like they are a part of the story. This is impossible in theater, where the audience is usually much further away from the stage. In Europe ’51, for instance, the audience is drawn into the story through close-ups. For example, there is a scene in which Irene is talking to her son on the phone. The camera is very close to Irene’s face, and we can see her every emotion. This is a very effective way to make the audience feel like they are a part of the story.
On page 102 of the article What is Cinema by Andre Bazin, He notes that the audience and the actor must be aware of each other’s presence in the theater, but only about the performance. Since we are participating in a play across the footlights, the theater effectively censors us. However, the converse is true in cinema, where one stares through the half-opened slats at a show that neither knows nor cares that they exist while they hide from the world in the darkness. Nothing prevents them from imagining they are a part of the world unfolding before our eyes.
Finally, cinema is a more personal medium than theater. Because the audience is alone in the dark with the screen, they can have a more personal experience with the Film. This is impossible in theater, where the audience is usually seated in a large room with other people. The book Questions of Cinema by Stephen Heath supports this statement by providing a detailed analysis of how cinema is a more personal medium than theater. Heath argues that the personal nature of cinema arises from the fact that the audience is alone in the dark with the screen, which allows them to have a more intimate and personal experience with the Film. This is in contrast to theater, where the audience is usually seated in a large room with other people, which prevents them from having the same level of personal engagement with the Film. In his article, Bazis further explains that theater needs architecture, whether it’s a cathedral plaza, an arena in Nimes, the papal palace, a trestle stage at a county fair, or the rococo amphitheaters of the boulevard mansions. Plays, whether put on or celebrated, must never look like nature, or they will be eaten up by it and go away. It must be very different from the rest of the world, just as play and reality, care and apathy, ritual and everyday use of objects are all very different from each other (pg. 103). Based on these assertations, Theatre is different from cinema, which is based on the idea that there are no boundaries between what happens and how the audience sees it.
References
Bazin, A. Theater and Cinema—Part Two. What Is Cinema, 95-125.
Europe ’51. [Film]. Retrieved from.https://depaul.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Embed.aspx?id=d98147b9-6960-4a8c-8bf2-a99f0117aefe
Heath, S. (1981). Questions of cinema. Indiana University Press.
Suspicion. [Film]. Retrieved from. https://depaul.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=331390ca-61eb-4d4f-9d78-a96701503162
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