This is a film
by Michelangelo Antonioni in the year 1966.
This
film centres on a Mod photographer Thomas. He belongs to the 60’s generation,
where fashion is a cultural statement and profoundly spectacular. Though Thomas
is trendy, he is not radical. He is an individual armed with a camera, through
which he tends to gain control over the pro-filmic space and represent the
perceived as reality. He is critical of his friend Bill’s paintings. For Bill
reality is ambiguous and it takes shape as active viewer interprets it. To
Thomas his perception gives him the hubristic power over the perceived. Nothing
is beyond his comprehension as nothing is beyond his vision. This arrogant
approach comes crushing down on him when he had to interpret a real situation
from the insignificant clues in his photographs. He realises that photograph is
merely a representative medium which disseminates information but does not
record reality. Befuddled, he watches a mimed tennis
match, is drawn into it, picks up the imaginary ball and throws it back to the
two players.
