-The frightening truth- what really goes on behind closed doors? Ostracizing people for not fitting the norm.
The voyeuristic nature of this film generally made me feel thoroughly uncomfortable. This is my attempt to respond to why this feeling of unease may have been provoked while watching Jim in particular:
The movie “Titicut Folies” made me feel awkward and uneasy especially when Jim intensely glares into the camera, almost looking right back at me and reversing the viewer/spectacle standpoints. I was looking at Jim, in complete sympathy, but I was staring at him as if he were completely insane-almost judging him. Than all of a sudden he began to stare at me as if I was now the subject of his judging eyes. Exactly at this point, I began to feel the discomfort of being at the mercy of someone else's glare, which Jim quite possibly felt as the video camera captured his every move. Whether it be a recording device or simply the eyes of another person, the mere notion of being watched seems to have an altering effect on the emotions and attitudes of the person who is being watched. This intimate gaze between the viewer and the spectacle ultimately builds tension and feelings of discomfort, which I seriously believe is connected to the unduly nature that you don't know exactly why or who is watching you and for what purpose. Even though Jim is clearly insane he seems to acknowledge, on some level, that he is being watched-which seemingly affects his behavior. This is particularly noticeable when he shamefully covers his genitalia, indicating his discomfort by the cameras’ presence.
On another note, there seems to be a tactical strategy deployed by Wiseman in terms of similarities/links between frames (possibly for the purpose of conveying a deeper message). Jim, with great concentration, stomps on the floor almost creating an off beat rhythm similar to that of the man playing his trumpet earlier in the courtyard. In a very abstract way this may convey the over-arching message that all the patience in the ward share an artistic ability that is solemnly noticed, possibly because the employees are too concerned with their dysfunctions rather than their abilities. Another example of links or embedded messages between scenes exist in the correlation between what is said in a song playing in the background and the actual mood of the patience. As the song goes "...have you ever been lonely or blue..." ìt quickly becomes evident that there is some deeper meaning behind the song. As we can see here by these two examples, a underlying message or ideology can just as effectively be conveyed with intricate editing techniques as by simply guiding an argument/message with commentary.
Generally speaking, Wiseman seems to discursively frame\edit this film in such a way to purposely provoke certain (desirable) emotions from the audience, possibly to drive home a point that he chooses not to put so bluntly.
