The Structure of the Movie and Film Editing

[ke1024]

14. Jack touches Ennis' ear and cheek by the lake during the reunion. Ennis touches his younger daughter Jenny's ear and cheek at Thanksgiving.

[curt in ny]

Jack reaches for Ennis'right hand in their first encounter in the tent;  Alma reaches for Ennis' right hand to feel the baby kick at the drive-in movie.

[bluehorse]

I wanted to raise another topic I've been thinking about and maybe others can add to it also. Someone a few days ago mentioned the binary structure of the narrative in this movie and I agree. But even more intriguing are the "echos", the pairs of images Ang gives us, sometimes drawing comparisons, sometimes contrasts, that each and together convey much meaning. I'm thinking, for instance, of (and feel free to add to the list):

Michelle, I was just writing on another thread and had this revelation (not sure if it's been discussed before) of another mirroring/echoing of two scenes: Ennis falls to his knees twice (no longer able to stand it). The first time, in the alley after Jack leaves and second, during the last scene at the river with Jack. And both times he crumples out of his fear/desperation of losing Jack for good.

[peteinportland]

I wanted to raise another topic I've been thinking about and maybe others can add to it also. Someone a few days ago mentioned the binary structure of the narrative in this movie and I agree. But even more intriguing are the "echos", the pairs of images Ang gives us, sometimes drawing comparisons, sometimes contrasts, that each and together convey much meaning. I'm thinking, for instance, of (and feel free to add to the list):

Michelle, I was just writing on another thread and had this revelation (not sure if it's been discussed before) of another mirroring/echoing of two scenes: Ennis falls to his knees twice (no longer able to stand it). The first time, in the alley after Jack leaves and second, during the last scene at the river with Jack. And both times he crumples out of his fear/desperation of losing Jack for good.

Yep, and he makes very similar statements in each scene: "What the fuck you looking at?" and "Get the fuck off me."

In the last scene on his knees all of his conversation reflects back on other statements "I'm sorry Jack, I don't think I can stand this anymore."

Jack's reply "It's all right" has also been heard before.

[bluehorse]

(Uh-oh--I'm sorry's and it's all right's. . .where did we ever hear those?!  )

[gnash]

michelle, that "tie thing" around their necks is called a bolo tie. had one in denver, because of BBM, i want one again.

maybe this has been said before:

another echo, one of many, is the way jack says: "so, here i am..."  joe says: "so, here i am..." when he rides up the mountain and shows jack the binoculars... jack says it with the girls in the truck, before the mexican hustler scene.

jack says "it's all right" twice in the SNIT.  he says it again, twice, in the last scene with ennis.  the word "c'mere" is also repeated by jack in the movie, just like ennis' "jack fuckin' twist" is repeated, on the stairs, in the riffle of the river when he loses a pan.

visual echoes include:

carved horses: one in the beginning with ennis in tent, one at the end in jack's bedroom.

the 2 pink salt and pepper shakers and near-empty sugar bowl as opposed to the 2 brown empty beer bottles and full ashtray.

jack is seen dancing with lureen, and again with lashawn -- two times. ennis is seen dancing with cassie -- two times.

two! everything revolves around this number... like yin, yang -- light shirt, dark shirt, entwined.

[gnash]

Dear gnash:

Heath did not take those shirts, Jake did. Jake then put them up for sale on eBay, where they raised $101,000 for a children's charity.
...

oh. didn't heath take a pair of shirts too? i remember somebody saying he had a pair for himself. maybe it was the shirts from another scene, like when they were bloodied... if so, then it's funny, because in the movie he wonders where his shirt went.

oh wow i didn't know jake put them up for sale, that's very cool.... he could match the bidder's price and make the charity doubly happy.

more echo scenes:

-- the pummelling that ennis receives outside the black and blue eagle bar by the roughneck is like the FNIT scene, repeated blows, hard throws. the assualt ennis takes in the dark lighting of that scene somehow reminded me of the sex in the tent -- groans and gasps. it seems like ennis was taking it in the kidneys by that guy... just.. ouch. the way he's held down by the huge marauder, merciless, unable to get away on that icy road.

-- the fireworks going off on the very violent fourth of the july, where he's shown kicking the guy in the face ---- the graphics of starbursts, like fireworks, on the swingset jenny and alma jr. are on when ennis loses his temper and ends up kicking the ash can. (in both scenes, both alma and the girls are present. in the second scene, however, she walks away.)

[michelle]

OMG! Thanks so much everyone! I got chills (still getting them, lol, as I write this) reading all the echoes we all picked up. Yes, twos, everything is about the number two, including Gustavo's score for two guitars! I wish I could quit this movie and get back to my life, but... I can't! Like Jack and Ennis, it just keeps on giving and giving and giving and... (speechless now)

[gnash]

i thought about these while washing dishes:

jack's washing ennis' shirt in the water, naked,,,,, alma's washing ennis' shirt (or something) in the house, clothed.  two times.

alma's washing dishes at monroe's with ennis nearby,,,,,, ennis is washing pans in the river with jack nearby.  two times.


michelle -- hahah, your unbridled excitment gives ME chills   that's cool about the "two guitars" music in the score!!

remember, most of us watch this movie with TWO things too (not only our "eyeballs") -- our minds and our hearts!! 

[deuce]

great thread.  i went on a "dualism jag" myself last week, and came to a new appreciation of the two men's flashback sequences.  (fate of Earl, and the dozy embrace.)  i thought i already had a firm grasp of the meaning of these in the film, but when i compared them to each other, i learned a few new things.

i had already understood, as i think most viewers do even with a single viewing, that the flashbacks significantly drive each character's life.  Ennis refuses to expand his relationship with Jack, because of his flashback-- he lives in fear of society, ultimately in fear of himself; Jack continues his unsatisfactory relationship with Ennis because of HIS flashback-- he remembers the best moment in his life was spent with Ennis, and hopes that maybe just maybe that could happen again.

one thing that was new to me when i took the time to compare them was realizing that the two flashbacks actually *contain* the characters.  Ennis lives his life transfixed by a horrible vision of what might happen, just like his horrible frozen stare as a youth, unable to look away.  Jack lives his life transfixed by a longing for what could happen, for someone he wants to be with all the time, just like young Jack longs for Ennis while watching him ride off.  the flashbacks ARE the characters, writ succinctly.

in contrast:  flashback Ennis is physically transfixed by his father's hand, holding his head and making him look at the body.  flashback Jack is transfixed by his own desire, watching Ennis ride off for the night.  Ennis feels held in place by outside forces he feels he can't control; Jack comes to recognize he is held in place by forces within, a choice he has made, something he has freely given over to.

this helped me realize something i had missed for weeks:  understanding that Jack was just as trapped by hope, unable to move his life forward or past it, as Ennis was trapped by fear.  both caged, standing in place, by opposite emotions, the emotions that most singly define them.

we feel for them, because each of us fear what might happen, and each of us hope for what could happen.

i continue to be amazed by new understandings of this movie-- a month after seeing it!

-- deuce

[tfferg]

Thank you Deuce for this deep insight.
Cheers
Tony

[michelle]

great thread.  i went on a "dualism jag" myself last week, and came to a new appreciation of the two men's flashback sequences.  (fate of Earl, and the dozy embrace.)  i thought i already had a firm grasp of the meaning of these in the film, but when i compared them to each other, i learned a few new things.

i had already understood, as i think most viewers do even with a single viewing, that the flashbacks significantly drive each character's life.  Ennis refuses to expand his relationship with Jack, because of his flashback-- he lives in fear of society, ultimately in fear of himself; Jack continues his unsatisfactory relationship with Ennis because of HIS flashback-- he remembers the best moment in his life was spent with Ennis, and hopes that maybe just maybe that could happen again.

one thing that was new to me when i took the time to compare them was realizing that the two flashbacks actually *contain* the characters.  Ennis lives his life transfixed by a horrible vision of what might happen, just like his horrible frozen stare as a youth, unable to look away.  Jack lives his life transfixed by a longing for what could happen, for someone he wants to be with all the time, just like young Jack longs for Ennis while watching him ride off.  the flashbacks ARE the characters, writ succinctly.

in contrast:  flashback Ennis is physically transfixed by his father's hand, holding his head and making him look at the body.  flashback Jack is transfixed by his own desire, watching Ennis ride off for the night.  Ennis feels held in place by outside forces he feels he can't control; Jack comes to recognize he is held in place by forces within, a choice he has made, something he has freely given over to.

this helped me realize something i had missed for weeks:  understanding that Jack was just as trapped by hope, unable to move his life forward or past it, as Ennis was trapped by fear.  both caged, standing in place, by opposite emotions, the emotions that most singly define them.

we feel for them, because each of us fear what might happen, and each of us hope for what could happen.

i continue to be amazed by new understandings of this movie-- a month after seeing it!

-- deuce

deuce, I'm at the summation stage myself, and yours has to be one of the most insightful posts I have read so far.

[bluehorse]

this helped me realize something i had missed for weeks:  understanding that Jack was just as trapped by hope, unable to move his life forward or past it, as Ennis was trapped by fear.  both caged, standing in place, by opposite emotions, the emotions that most singly define them.

we feel for them, because each of us fear what might happen, and each of us hope for what could happen.

i continue to be amazed by new understandings of this movie-- a month after seeing it!

-- deuce

This is really interesting, I never thought about hope as a fateful trap. . .

[All4one]

But hope is also the final thing that fluttered out of Pandora's box, to make all the bad things tolerable.

 deuce, I too am 'amazed by new understandings' - most of them coming from posts like yours.
While considering how to word my thank you, I realized your insight, as demonstrated in your words will make a simple  'thank you' sufficient. 

[aceygirl]

Jack reaches for Ennis'right hand in their first encounter in the tent;  Alma reaches for Ennis' right hand to feel the baby kick at the drive-in movie.

FWITW, this reminded me that "The Devil's Right Hand" plays when Cassie comes on to Ennis.