The Spiritual and Human Freedom Reflected In Bresson’s Films

Despite the honors and accolades he has garnered for his films, French minimalist and director Robert Bresson is little known in the United States. In his native France, Robert Bresson is well-known for a variety of films, particularly for the original ways in which he portrays concepts. Two of the fourteen films bearing his name are based on Dostoevsky’s works, while the other two are on Georges Bernanos’s works (Ayfre, p 13). His style’s maturity was first evident was encountered in his fourth film in 1950 known as Diary of a Country Priest, and from this, he refined his art in the film until in the 1994 L’Argent. The one thing that has set the works of Bresson from other directors is his persistence of filming things that are only real. Just like he stated in his Notes on Cinematography (p 7), creating does not necessarily means deforming or invention of things or persons, but rather it entails tying new relationships to things and individuals as they are and for what they are. In his artistry, the one obvious thing is the idea is the relationship ties between spirituality and human freedom to ideas portrayed in his films, and this will be the point of focus in this paper as it assesses how this concept has been reflected in his films and ideology. Besides, we also use his aspect of minimalism and how he used it to allow viewers to concentrate on his ideas.

Literature Review

Aesthetic Value of Films

Films are a medium of communication and portrayal of ideas between directors or authors and the audiences. Through time we have seen films used in communicating ideas that are political, religious or that dwell on social aspects. Despite the fact many approach films as a virtual point of entertainment, there is much more to films than actors moving around and using words that keep the entertainment going. Films share same qualities with art, and that is why at times it is often referred to as a form of art and this primarily because it conveys the societies’ values and beliefs that affect the culture for which it is made (Andrew, p 162). Films have special significance in the society because they communicate the values and beliefs to which people are not paying attention, and additionally, they help audiences to reconsider of their place in the world today. In its generic sense, as it will be seen in this paper, films are pervasive forms of communication. Though many people argue that films lack significance because all they do reproduce reality in a mechanical manner, according to Bresson in his Notes on Cinematography (p 2), he explains film as a movement from the exterior to the interior and hence it is about what they are not showing rather than the images we are presented with. With this end in perspective, we now hold the capability of understanding how Robert Bresson used his films to communicate of issues concerning spirituality and human freedom and how he managed these states of affairs in his films.

Understanding Robert Bresson

Not many moviegoers today are familiar with Robert Bresson but he is a name that is recognized by many directors and distinguished critics, and this owed to the fact that many of his films did not conform to the conventional ideas of filmmaking. In making his films, Bresson concentrated on the audience more than what would entertain them, and because of this, his films demanded full attention from the audience. Just By the names of his movies, it easy to understand the message that he was consumed in communicating to his audience. The feelings that this director aimed at were not by any means political remedy or ideological thesis instead he concentrated on the spiritual and freedom essences of the films. Such can be seen in a movie like The Trial of Joan of Arc where he minimized on the images of brutality and turned attention to the audacity as well as the intelligence of Joan’s testimony in her trial before Bishop Cauchon. In most of his works, Bresson insisted on realism in a way that it is subtle, particularly, by avoiding acting (Cunnen, p 38). To him, it was not about using the actors, but instead, he referred to people that he employed in films as models. In his Notes on Cinematography (p 54), he stated that whatever ours see and ears hear are not realistic persona instead it is the real person. Using this perspective, he aimed at making people look without seeing and also listen without hearing. Understanding this idea will help us in understanding his creativity in Diary of a Country Priest. It can hence be said that in creating his films, Robert Bresson created art that involved the audience in creating empathy, through detachment and provoking reflection. The sensibility of any person who creates art is to be decisive in how he passes the information to the audience so that his art can be reflective of the culture for which it is created.

Spirituality in the Films by Robert Bresson

Films are mediums that tend to revel in inconsequential but shares qualities with music in that it has the capability to guide the viewer to the heart of something that carries significance by using metaphors and emotions that go beyond meretricious. How then is this possible? One is might quickly ask; well Bresson attained this by creating a universe that is real whereby everything and person used in the films are granted their integrity, but at the same time, they are wrapped within the same realm full of mystery just as other items (Babin, p 71). Bresson made this possible through the composition of images and the manner that they are presented, and by doing this, he was able to get hold of the subtle uniqueness of the mundane. A perfect example of this to reveal the idea of spirituality by not glorifying the character is in the film The Trial of Joan of Arc. After Joan had admitted her fear of fire, she walked through the streets to where her stake had been erected. Bresson takes the audience from the horrific images or the shrieks of agony and without explanation, as the audience, we are taken to the dog that was approaching the pyre, and after sensing that something is not right, it disappears. We are then shown the pigeons on the rooftop flying away and then the chains that bound Joan empty. If by any chance the audiences are touched by Joan, it is all because of the rhythm of shots during the interrogations that are amplified by the absence of Joan’s pleading voice.

As it can be noted in many of his films, Bresson often integrated the aspect of religion in the message that he was communicating through his films even though he disregarded integration of church in his films. To him, it was not the matter of displaying the physical attributes that as humans we are familiar with, but instead, it was the ideas of spirituality that would coerce to think in the direction of God (Bandy, p 42). Most of his films were about the spiritual aspects of God as a replacement for acknowledging His existence. Utilization of the environment, things and models would, in the end, evoke the thoughts of the audience into assessing the existing spiritual sphere. Bresson as a filmmaker was not approaching religion with a sense of adherence but by analyzing themes and any distress that transcend the mundane of earthly life.

The spirituality style and essence in Bresson’s films are in the form of art which is mainly detached and aims at provoking reflections instead of arousing films directly. A better example of this is in the film À Man Escaped where the plot entails a prisoner of war escaping. In this movie when looked at directly, one would quickly state that the theme relates to escapism, but when analyzed from a minimalistic pint of view, you can see that Bresson was communicating about the mysterious course of attaining salvation. The film opens up with an open with Lieutenant Fontaine who has a face that conceals his attempts of fleeing from the prison vehicle but this futile and in his recapture, he is beaten up by the guards. The film mainly revolves around perseverance, hope, and friendship. The interminable hopes and innate humanity of the prisoners are illustrated in their struggles during the captivity, and this can be easily related to the idea of salvation and what it takes for one to attain salvation. From a religious perspective, attaining salvation is a process that is characterized by challenges that individuals need to overcome and in these trials, it is significant for one not to lose hope because salvation is a reward that comes with freedom our troubles.

In the film, The Diary of a Country Priest is another work that challenges the human perspective of spirituality. The young priest in the film is received with indifference in the French countryside and as the film continues; his hope of changing the souls of the townspeople is deflated when one of his students mocks his interest through his remarks. The movie analyses Christianity perspective of perseverance, faith, and alienation. Using only minimal dialogue and isolated shots, Bresson can represent the harsh reality of humanity in misunderstanding faith in the world today where people view altruism and devotion cynically and distrustfully (Cardullo, p 121). As the movie draws to its end, we are shown an isolated cross that presents ultimate transcending after profound suffering from human cruelty and alienation because of faith.

Lastly is The Trial of Joan of Arc. Just like the two previously mentioned films, the essence of spirituality is illustrated in suffering and perseverance. The Bible is also used in this case to show fidelity to religion, and unlike other movies of Joan of Arc, this has mainly concentrated on the trials, and it is emotionally muted. Bresson in this film associates Joan’s conviction to her spiritual redemption and her presence at the stake where she is being burned reflects the rotten state of humanity engraved in oppression and suffering. But through perseverance in the hands of humans and at the stake, we are shown a dog that is proved to have humanity and the doves flying away to signify purity and spiritual liberation.

Human Freedom in the Films by Robert Bresson

Freedom is another aspect that has been seen in various ways through the works of Bresson, and this is closely related to issues of spirituality. As it is known Bresson once a prisoner in his early life and this is said to have played a vital role in his detaching various qualities from his characters or models for them to act autonomously (Ben-gad, web). Freedom is illustrated as an independent figure in his films portrayed with special sympathy victims, loners and rebels. One of the ways human freedom is encountered in his work is through his rejection of film conventions during his time. In his movies, the heroes are always seen struggling for some liberation, and this is accompanied by uncovering deepest dimensions that are alive in humans. Most of the films today are concerned with the essence of psychology while this was different for Bresson who was mainly intrigued by the physiology of existence. The act of human freedom comes from the way we see and relate to the world and Bresson’s films viewers a way of seeing. Bresson understood the idea that people can see not by annihilating images that present the world but by paying close attention to such pictures and looking at them with utmost clarity (Price, p 269).

The films Balthazar and Mouchette are the best examples in explaining human freedom. Balthazar is a donkey that is living in a life of servitude and is portrayed as a beast of burden that is destined to toil. His existence is exploited, and this paralleled as seen in the life of Marie. Marie, on the other hand, is fascinated with Gerard, a cruel young man who is also a thief living a life of façade. The three shows how the symbol of purity and virtue only leads to despair and hopelessness but in perseverance and not conforming to what the society is molding us into (Pipolo, p 182), we find peace in the end, and that is freedom. Mouchette, on the other hand, is much more like Marie and the donkey who are all too human, and just like the two, he is enslaved in circumstances that he did not choose. His freedom is seen through in the relentless kindness of attending to the helpless and trying to free the mother from the habit of drinking. In Mouchette, Bresson illustrates how humans are fractured souls and profoundly alone always searching for acceptance as a way of attaining freedom, but in most cases what we get is a betrayal.

It can also be said that Bresson advocated for crime as a way of achieving freedom in his films. The films A Man Escape and Pickpocket involves monstration, and this can be found in the idea that Fontaine the protagonist of A Man Escape is working against the government, and though he is portrayed as a war hero, his attainment of freedom is by presenting himself as a criminal. The same idea is also encountered in Pickpocket where the protagonist is portrayed as the gentleman who no one would suspect of being a thief, but he attains his way of living by stealing from others. It can only mean that in these two cases, Bresson communicates freedom can at times be achieved through deception.

Conclusion

Bresson has reflected spirituality and human freedom through his film either by his art of direction or by the themes that he engraved in the storylines. In most cases, these two ideas can be encountered together in the progress of perseverance and hope that later is awarded by freedom or revelation. Concerning his art, we encounter that Bresson separates persons or objects from characters and this shows the broken relationship in the idea of liberty and spirituality. Bresson in his work alone as it has been seen, insisted in freeing himself as well as the mind of the audience from the conventional art of creating and understanding films and through this, he was able to elevate human understanding of spirituality by disconnecting the contemporary ideas of what religion is all about. Therefore, in conclusion, Robert Bresson can be termed as spiritual director in his works who freed himself from ideologies that chained most directors of his time as well as the viewers and respecting the viewers, he was able to reach the audience by letting them take part in his work through revelation.

Works Cited

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Arnheim, Rudolf. Film as art. Berkeley, University of California Press, 2009.

Ayfre, Amedee. The films of Robert Bresson. New York, NY, Praeger, 1970.

Babin, Pierre, and Mercedes Iannone. The new era in religious communication. Minneapolis, Fortress Press, 1991.

Bandy, Mary Lea., and Antonio Monda. The hidden god: film and faith. New York, Museum of Modern Art, 2004.

Ben-gad, Schmuel. “TO SEE THE WORLD PROFOUNDLY: THE FILMS OF ROBERT BRESSON.” To See the World Profoundly: The Films of Robert Bresson, by Shmuel Ben-Gad, 1997, www.crosscurrents.org/bresson.htm. Accessed 23 Mar. 2017.

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Cunneen, Joseph E. Robert Bresson: a spiritual style in film. New York, Continuum International Pub. Group, 2003.

Pipolo, Tony. Robert Bresson: a passion for film. New York, Oxford University Press, 2010.

Price, Brian. Neither god nor master: Robert Bresson and radical politics. Minneapolis, MN, University of Minnesota Press, 2011.