Dreams Are What Le Cinema Is For: Images - 1971

IMAGES 1972lecinemadreams.blogspot.com/2013/09/images-1972.html

At one time or another, everyone has had the experience of waking from a dream feeling, even if only for a second,as though the dream were real. Recently I had one of those dreams where you see yourself, as if in real time,sleeping in bed, conscious of being asleep and dreaming, yet at the same time conscious of being awake, outside ofthe body, and observing. The way these varied states of consciousness peel away only to reveal other, hiddenstates of consciousness, each with a psychological validity that crosses over into reality, is like the chimericalequivalent of a Russian nesting doll. It all happens very swiftly, fleetingly in fact, yet while it’s happening, you harbora tiny fear in your heart that it’s a tossup as to which of these realities is authentic.

This inability to discern what is real and what is imagined is at the core of Robert Altman’s dreamy, trippy, intriguinglyabstruse psychological thriller Images. A movie that takes the fluid dreamscape logic of 3 Women, crosses it withthe volatile psychosexual menace of That Cold Day in the Park, and adds to it all the schizophrenic character-studysubjectivity of Roman Polanski’s Repulsion.

Susannah York as Cathryn

As with Catherine Deneuve’s Carol in Repulsion, when we first meet Susannah York’s Cathryn, she is a woman

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already deep in the throes of mental illness. Cathryn is a schizophrenic, a fact she appears to be at least subtlyaware of (or at least suspects) on some level. Married to her waggish businessman husband Hugh (ReneAuberjonois), the rather solemn Cathryn spends a great deal of her time isolated, as she is an author working on achildren’s book.Altman incorporated In Search of Unicorns, a children’s book Susannah York was writing at the time, into thescreenplay of Images. Published in 1973, York’s somewhat euphuistic fairy tale so perfectly suits the dreamlike toneof Images, it’s hard to believe it wasn't written expressly for the film. York’s melodious voiceover narration ofpassages from the book provides appropriately cryptic counterpoint to the action.As Cathryn endeavors to patch together the narrative fragments of her children’s fantasy, she engages in lengthyinner monologues which have the effect of culling forth shadowy images of her past. A vague and disjointed puzzleof images, sounds, and memories from her past that intrude abruptly and randomly upon her present.

Rene Auberjonois as HughMirrors, lenses, and prisms are a motif Altman employs throughout Images to

convey Cathryn's fractured reality

Cathryn is a woman haunted. Haunted by past infidelities (lovers, both dead and alive, have a nagging way ofreappearing, attempting to resume their dalliances); guilt (she vacillates between being both desirous and fearful ofhaving a child); suspicion (she assigns her own deceitful behavior to her husband); and specifically, the unwelcome,ever-encroaching memories of a lonely childhood. Memories, for reasons left unexplained, she struggles tosuppress. We’re never told specifically what is ailing Cathryn, nor is it made clear what has recently occurred toaccelerate the frequency and intensity of her schizophrenic episodes. What is apparent is that her illness—one thefilm's subjective POV makes us privy to alone—takes the form of a mercurially shifting reality which, at times,appears to be conspiring to betray her.

Dream LoverCathryn's former lover, Rene, (Marcel Bozzuffi of The French Connection)

reappears after having died in a plane crash three years prior

Although I desperately wanted to see this when it was released in 1972, I was just 14-years-old at the time andImages was an R-rated movie playing at one of San Francisco’s “art house” cinemas. A theater, I might add, whosepolicies regarding underage attendance were not as flexible as those of my trusty neighborhood moviehouse, thusnecessitating many attempts on my part to persuade apathetic family members (or mature-looking friends) to

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accompany me. In spite of the thriller being promoted with a very eye-catching poster featuring dual SusannahYorks reflected in the lens of a vintage bellows camera stabbed by a butcher knife (see below), I found not a singletaker. So I only got around to seeing Images at a revival theater sometime in the '80s.Happily, thanks to Susannah York’s brilliantly restless performance; Vilmos Zsigmond’s (Heaven’s Gate) lush andevocative cinematography; the unsettling musical score by John Williams (with Stomu Yamashta); and especially thefilm’s stylistic similarities to the work of Roman Polanski, Images became an instant favorite that was more thanworth the wait.

Fans of Robert Altman will recognize actor Hugh Millias as the bounty hunter inMcCabe & Mrs. Miller. Here he plays Cathryn's libidinous neighbor and former

lover, Marcel

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THIS FILMFew things are more dismal than watching a film that so thoroughly explains, spells out, and underlines (with italics)each and every plot point and narrative twist that you’re left with nothing to ruminate or talk about afterward. Whilethat's a point that can be made about a great many of the movies-by-market-research released these days, no onecould ever say that about a Robert Altman film.In Images, Altman takes the very intriguing tack of asking us to share, exclusively, the increasingly fragmentedperspective of a schizophrenic. A choice whose not-unexpected effect on the viewer is a mounting sense ofdisorientation and unease as it dawns that the entirety of the story is to be told by a disturbingly unreliable narrator.

Cathryn Harrison as Susannah (Marcel's daughter)Images plays fast and loose with the audience's reality as well. Each of the

characters in the film shares the real-life name of one of the actors (Susannah,Rene, Cathryn, Hugh, and Marcel)

And therein lies the beauty of this film for me. As it grows ever more apparent that Cathryn is losing her grip onsanity, Images becomes a thriller which actively engages and challenges you to piece together the puzzle that is thecharacter's life and the film's story as a whole. Reality and hallucination merge imperceptibly without benefit of theusual clichéd cinema vocabulary indicators of dissolves, soft focus, echoes, or slow-motion; so a great deal of theveracity of what occurs is continually called into question.Altman understands that no two people see or experience life in exactly the same way, so he doesn't waste time

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trying to explain to you his personal point of view in his movies. He tells his story, then leaves it to each of us tomake of it what we will. Even his rather brilliant DVD commentaries fail to "explain" things for the moviegoer cravinganswers. Altman is a director who would rather you actively watch one of his films and fully misunderstand it, than topassively sit and be spoon-fed every detail and theme.

Images is one of those films that reveal more details to you each time you watchit.

In this scene, Cathryn works on a puzzle with Susannah, the daughter of a formerlover. The single POV shot shared by the two individuals - Cathryn's adult handoccupying the left of the frame, Susannah's smaller hand the right - hints at the

possibility of Cathryn actually working the puzzle alone, sharing the moment witha hallucination of herself as a young girl. Even the subject of the puzzle is

suspect, as Cathryn continually says that she has no idea what the image is, yetwe know for a fact that it is a puzzle of the very house she is occupying...the

house she spent a great deal of time alone in as a child..

To clarify, I’m no fan of the sort of studied incoherence that put David Lynch on the map (and removed him, just asswiftly), but I do love movies that demand your attention on first viewing, offer plenty of food for thought after, andlater reward repeat viewings with heretofore undiscovered pieces of the puzzle…all laid out for you to find at yourleisure should you just care to look. Such films hold the potential for each revisit to feel like a fresh experience.

PERFORMANCESIt’s been widely reported (and corroborated on the DVD commentary) that due to recent news of her pregnancy and

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concerns about the film’s script, Susannah York wasn’t all that keen on appearing in Images. But if York’sperformance is the work of a woman ambivalent about the film she’s appearing in, then her years studying at theRoyal Academy of Dramatic Arts was clearly time well-spent. Without resorting to ostentatious tics, gestures, andhistrionic displays of madness, York inhabits her character to a chilling degree. Never for a moment are you in doubtthat you are watching a fully, fleshed-out individual, a character comprised of an intelligence, imagination, and inner-life. All of which, under the circumstances of her character's internal disintegration, contain a certain sense ofsadness as we sit in observance of a personality being slowly submerged by mental illness.

Cathryn continually confronts images of herself, whether reflected, remembered, or hallucinatory

Where York particularly excels is in conveying, without words, the vast array of emotions attendant to discoveringone’s mind is operating independent of one’s will. Images compels in giving the distinct impression that somethingCathryn has likely been successful in keeping a lid on for some time, is now starting to slip through her fingers.Susannah York shows the panic, confusion, danger, and even the humor in Cathryn’s loss of psychological ground.Small wonder that York won the Best Actress award at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival for her work in Images.

THE STUFF OF FANTASYI'm not sure why, but for as long as I can remember I have been fascinated by movies dealing with the concept ofduality. From Vertigo, Dead Ringers, Don't Look Now, The Tenant, Persona, and of course, 3 Women; so many ofmy favorite films are psychological thrillers in which the duality of human nature and the fluid quality of reality play apart.

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I'm still one of those who find the inner workings of the human psyche to be a far more terrifying landscape thananything that can be dreamed up by the gore-mongers making horror films today, so I personally consider Altman'sImages to be an exceptionally solid thriller that effectively packs on the atmospheric dread and character-basedtension. The environment Altman designs for his film is one loaded with reflective surfaces, shadowy corners, andinteriors comprised of a Caligari-like assemblage of stairs, railings, rooms, and angled archways. Add to this thenear-constant tinkle of wind chimes, and an eerily deceptive (subjective) soundtrack, and you've got a thriller worthyof both Roman Polanski and Alfred Hitchcock.

Psycho

THE STUFF OF DREAMSThe best movies are journeys. Journeys that transport us to other lives, other times, other lands, and, in the case ofImages, other states of consciousness. Because the written word can so perfectly capture the subtleties of thoughtand emotion, and music is ideal for the conveyance of mood and feeling, what I have always loved about movies ishow they can make real the fantastic. The dream /nightmare phase of existence where reality and illusion mix inways that are not always easy to put into words.

Hidden Behind Her BackThe threat of violence, unexpected and sudden, runs throughout Images

One can describe, both academically and emotionally, what schizophrenia must be like, but in Images RobertAltman finds a visual language capable of conveying a psychological frame of mind. Miraculously, seamlessly,Altman captures a state most of us only know through dreaming: the helpless, floating feeling of reality and fantasyexisting as one, with our being unable to discern where reality ends and fantasy begins. The nightmare of coursewould be to have this be our awake, conscious state. Images brings this nightmare to life in a way refreshinglynaturalistic and devoid of melodrama.Even if you're left unpersuaded by the film as a genre thriller, you can't help but admire Altman's ability to take youinside the consciousness of another person, allowing for the vicarious experiencing of the real world through anentirely alien perspective. Although not one of Robert Altman's most discussed films, Images is a favorite of mine.One that fits neatly into his catalog of character studies of women on the verge.

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Who's watching whom?

'TIS A PUZZLEMENT- Piecing together the fragmentsThe wind chimes signaling a schizophrenic episode.Elements of Cathryn's life can be gleaned from the "monologues" she shares with hallucinated others.Note the address of Hugh's liaison given to her by a well-meaning "friend."Note the soundtrack whenever Cathryn is using the phone (Dial tones? Busy signals? Voices?)Susannah's history/Cathryn's history.Archie, the dog.Malevolence perceived in everyday objects.Windows or mirrors? Any difference?I think it was either Roger Ebert or Pauline Kael who suggests the interpolation of the word "You" during severalconversations where Cathryn references her husband "Hugh."Copyright © Ken Anderson

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