ledmands
10-25-2009, 05:13 PM
Robert Bresson's 1959 film Pickpocket was an insight to me about man's nature and value. Michel thought he was above others, and he showed this through his expressionless face. I cannot recall ever seeing him crack a smirk. He is very subdued and seems rigid at all times. His relationships with people are shaky at best, though he seems to try to relate to them. In the pickpocketing business, one must keep one's facial expressions calm and blank, as if it were just another face in the crowd. Michel becomes so adept at this skill that he doesn't change his expression for anyone.
Part of what helps him stay so removed from showing emotion is that he thinks himself one of Friedrich Nietzsche's supermen, men that are superior to the rest of mankind and should be allowed to govern themselves and the rest of the world without restraint. The first time he meets the inspector in the cafe with Jacques, he speaks of supermen that are exceptional and will identify themselves as superior. These men would be allowed to break certain laws when they deem it necessary and would right the world. The inspector argues that they would end up abusing their power and the world would flip, but Michel states that the world is already upside down and these men could right it. It is clear that Michel thinks of himself as a superman, and he obviously has a talent in pickpocketing, but he doesn't use his power for the benefit of man. He steals for his mother, yet he also stole from her. He loves his mother, yet he steals from her for his own gain. There is a contradiction here in that he doesn't wish to feel emotion because that would put him on the same level as everybody else. However, he can't help but feel love for his mother.
Michel's eyes show more emotion than the rest of him. He wants to avoid Jacques because Jacques is a mirror. Jacques is an honest man, and Michel recognizes this. When Jacques is around, Michel must come to terms with himself; knowing that Jacques is making an honest living while he is stealing from people like Jacques is not easy for Michel to face. Nobody likes mirrors, but the people that hate them the most are the people that think of themselves as better than others. When Michel is alone, he can justify his actions, but when his mirror is around, he must look and see that he is really just a petty criminal. He sees that he has emotion, that he cares for Jeanne, though he doesn't want accept it.
It seems to me that Pickpocket is itself a mirror. It gets us to question our motives. If it is necessary to steal to live and dexterous fingers are our only asset, it it okay? Is being better than others justification for taking what we want? Most people would say no, and the film agrees. Michel ends up in jail, the victim of a sting and the horse races. He realizes at the end that openly loving is okay. He gives Jeanne a hug through the cell bars in the last shot, indicating that he is okay with himself as a person. Maybe if love is enough to make Michel, the pickpocket so skilled that he doesn't need a job, realize that everyone has value, then perhaps love really is all we need.
Part of what helps him stay so removed from showing emotion is that he thinks himself one of Friedrich Nietzsche's supermen, men that are superior to the rest of mankind and should be allowed to govern themselves and the rest of the world without restraint. The first time he meets the inspector in the cafe with Jacques, he speaks of supermen that are exceptional and will identify themselves as superior. These men would be allowed to break certain laws when they deem it necessary and would right the world. The inspector argues that they would end up abusing their power and the world would flip, but Michel states that the world is already upside down and these men could right it. It is clear that Michel thinks of himself as a superman, and he obviously has a talent in pickpocketing, but he doesn't use his power for the benefit of man. He steals for his mother, yet he also stole from her. He loves his mother, yet he steals from her for his own gain. There is a contradiction here in that he doesn't wish to feel emotion because that would put him on the same level as everybody else. However, he can't help but feel love for his mother.
Michel's eyes show more emotion than the rest of him. He wants to avoid Jacques because Jacques is a mirror. Jacques is an honest man, and Michel recognizes this. When Jacques is around, Michel must come to terms with himself; knowing that Jacques is making an honest living while he is stealing from people like Jacques is not easy for Michel to face. Nobody likes mirrors, but the people that hate them the most are the people that think of themselves as better than others. When Michel is alone, he can justify his actions, but when his mirror is around, he must look and see that he is really just a petty criminal. He sees that he has emotion, that he cares for Jeanne, though he doesn't want accept it.
It seems to me that Pickpocket is itself a mirror. It gets us to question our motives. If it is necessary to steal to live and dexterous fingers are our only asset, it it okay? Is being better than others justification for taking what we want? Most people would say no, and the film agrees. Michel ends up in jail, the victim of a sting and the horse races. He realizes at the end that openly loving is okay. He gives Jeanne a hug through the cell bars in the last shot, indicating that he is okay with himself as a person. Maybe if love is enough to make Michel, the pickpocket so skilled that he doesn't need a job, realize that everyone has value, then perhaps love really is all we need.