Ballet Mecanique (Leger & Murphy, 1924)

Citation: Film Art, David Bordwell & Kristin Thompson                                                                                                       ‘Experimental Film’, pp. 43-60.  Ballet Mecanique (Leger & Murphy, 1924)                                                                                 Vera Pavlovich.. s3463716.. 18/3/16                                                                                                                                                               

Bordwell & Thompson p-45.. contend that “abstract film form has been criticised as ‘art for art’s sake’…yet in doing so, such films often make us more aware of such patterns, and we may be able to notice them in the everyday world as well.”

I contend that ‘Ballet Mecanique” is, in fact, making a strong narrative exploration of the world. I believe it to be a harsh critique of the industrializing world and a condemnation of a system which uses humans as machines, the ramification of which is de-humanisation and a loss of connection with nature resulting in dissociation and mental illness.

In analysing the film I think we must remove George Antheil’s film score which I feel is in large part the highlight of the current film. Antheil removed his score from the film and used it as an accompaniment to a play about his and Hedy Lamar’s invention of a frequency blocking system.

The most beautiful work in the film is Man Ray’s imagery of his girlfriend Kiki..the woman’s lips and eyes. But Man Ray refused to work with Leger who was overbearing and took control of the project. Leger later removed Man Ray and Dudley Murphy’s (the original cinematographers) name’s from the film.

The film begins with the paper cut out of the “Chaplin” character who had a slightly jarring mechanical type of movement.. which is reinforced by the rhythm of the parts of the character dissembling. The next image is of a woman closely associated with nature..even seeking shelter and solace from nature. The film is bookended by the two images so we must assume they are the dominant, referential images we should consider when evaluating the film. In between are images which, using Freuds “free association”, overwhelm us with rapidly moving discordant images of machines, everyday cold and hard objects and endless repetition. The image of the “horse collar” reminding us that we are now shackled to our machines, to our industrialised way of life, even to our everyday utensils. Our lives are a series of bombardments of noise, of speed, the constancy of the spheres rushing at us relentlessly, instill fear and anxiety in us. We feel set upon. After a time of such barrage the woman appears upside down overwhelmed by the unabating onslaught the of harsh imagery.  Later a woman is seen in peasant dress going about her simple daily tasks walking up stairs.. again and again and again.. it immediately reminds us that the repetition of industrial work and assembly line drudgery is dehumanizing. It has broken our traditional connections with nature, with the simple, relaxed tempo of peasant life. The result is unending stress and tension that will result in mental illness as we turn society on it’s head. We clearly see the lovely woman’s smile turn to sadness and anxiety as the harsh mechanisation of our lives further breaks our ties with the peace and harmony, and comfort of nature.

If we then add Antheil’s soundtrack, the repetition and discordance of the loud cacophony of mechanical noise is extremely disturbing and unsettling.