How far does the knowledge of the production process encourage a constant shift between passive and active spectatorship? - Winter's Bone

How far does the knowledge of the production process encourage a constant shift between passive and active spectatorship? 

 

Winter’s Bone, made in 2010, is an independent and low budget film set in rural Missouri. The film follows the life of Ree Dolly who is played by Jennifer Lawrence. The film explores the life of patriarchy and poverty the characters lead whilst they set out to find Ree’s farther, the owner of an illegal meth lab.  

One of the most significant themes throughout the film is the submissive and ridged, traditional gender roles the women adhere to throughout the film. The women are clearly living in a stereotypical patriarchal society, where men dominate and are in charge of general life in this small part of Missouri. Men are always portrayed as being authoritative and a scene which supports this is when we see Teardrop raising a gun to both his partner and Ree, who is his niece. The fact that we see men raising weapons towards family emphasises the fact that the society they live in is extremely dominated by male power. As a result of this the audience is more likely to become active. This is because the events seem real and the fact that the film is based around a controversial topic, I.e. patriarchy and violence towards women and family, the audience become involved and develop opinions and feelings based on these events.  

The linear narrative allows the audience to follow the intense storyline, whilst actively thinking about what's going to happen. The film uses non- actors and is based in a genuine rural community, where real people played parts throughout the film. This not only adds to the neo- realism of the film, but it also allows the film to become more intense and believable due to the events the audience see. Similarly, verisimilitude is often present as the appearance of reality is never disregarded. This is a result of the mise en scene, such as the naturalistic setting and authentic clothing. The fact that the clothing worn throughout the film was brought from second hand shops or borrowed from the local community in the place the film was set, adds authenticity and the appearance of truth. The film itself was shot for only 6 weeks. This little amount of time to make the film benefits the realism of the film, due to the fact that the appearance of truth is emphasised, due to the the non-actors having less time to perfect things, making things more realistic. Additionally, Jennifer Lawrence went to the set of the film a week early in order to study the community and grasp what life was really like. The fact that she lived the life of the people of Missouri makes her performance more authentic. It could be argued that the knowledge of the production process causes the audience to become passive due to the fact they are aware the film is a production, therefore it is less believable. However, in contrast it could also be argued that the knowledge of the production process causes the audience to be active, as a result of them becoming more interested in the believable, real life events. Additionally, this knowledge could again interest the audience further, as they are aware of the lengths the actors and producers went to in order to make the film realistic.  

The use of natural lighting and minimal editing again gives the film an authentic feel. This is because the film gives the sense of real-life events, therefore staged or harsh lighting would ruin this and make it seem like a big production film. Similarly, the minimal makeup that the actors wear again emphasise that this is an independent film, as it shows real looking people, rather than glamorous and expensive looking actors typically seen in Hollywood films. The knowledge of the production enables the audience to believe the film is real, due to the fact the fact that the film seems like real life, with real people, which therefore is believable. Similarly, it could also be said that the audience get so caught up in the realism of the film, that they forget the natural lighting and minimalism is done purposely.  

Overall, it is clear that the knowledge of the film production contributes to whether the audience is passive or active. However, this is dependent on the type of audience and their taste. Generally, it is clear that the audience are more likely to be active with more knowledge of the production process. This is because the film becomes more real and the efforts made become more clear. Despite this, there may always be a partially passive audience as a result of lack of interest of because the film is neo- realistic and isn't a Hollywood production. This knowledge may cause the audience to form an opinion before even watching the film .