MAKING THE CONNECTION Thoughts on the Conceptual Evolution of Two Short Films Luke Carstens Declaration I declare that this research report is of my own unaid ed work. It is submitted for the degree of Mast ers of Dramatic Arts in the Universit y of the Witwaters r a n d , Johanne s b u rg . It has not been submitted before for any other de gree or examination in any other university. __________________ Luke Edward Carstens Date______________ Acknowledgments I would like to thank my parents for being, generally, very tolera nt. I am exceedingly grateful to An thony Haenen and Stephen Abbott for their generou s inpu t through o u t the production of the various compone n t s of this project ; and to my supervisor Jan e Taylor for her invalua b l e insight s . And fina lly, thank God? it is over. Abstract T h is disse r t a t i on examin e s the conce p t u al devel op ment s of two of the write r?s short films. The re sea rch consi st s of sev eral compon en t s: films produce d betwe en 2004 ? 2005, incl uding comme n taries that provide description and analyse of the techniq ue s and proce sse s used in the product io n of the works; and a writt en compone n t that explores some the concep tu al backgroun ds and interpretat ions of the films prese n te d. Contents INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER ONE : Memory Games 3 Recollection The Memory Palace The Nail Fetish Down the Rabbit-hole Beware the Andalusian Dog ? it bites The Final Amnesia CHAPTER TWO : Voices from the Other Side 34 Contact Self-Abandon Ghosts The Sound of Black Privacy APPENDIX 59 Mind Out of Joint Screenplay Dialtone Screenplay BIBLIOGRAPHY 90 1 Introduction The aim of this project is to analyse and interpret the conceptual backgrounds for two of the films that I have produced as a student. The written component of this study , which is deriv ed from th e practical work, necessitates that as I write this paper I assume the role of spectator and interpreter of my own work. I have inclu ded a DVD of the films Mind Out of Joint and Dialtone as well as the screen play s for both films. I believ e that this will provide a better perspective of not only the conceptu al processes, but also the changes (omissions and compromises) that occurre d during the shootin g and edit in g of these films. ******************* In his essay, The Death of the Author, Roland Barthes expounds on what he believes to be the dire, innate ramificat ions of co nsidering the author when reviewing a text. ?To give a text an Auth or,? he suggest s, ?i s to impose a limit on that text.? When viewed from the perspective of the author, he argues, th e text becomes tangled up in the complex ities of that author?s culture and history and philosophy. Barthes asserts that the author should rather be considered as no more than an agen cy through which a particu lar story is told. Therefore, a story does not spring from the author; instead, the auth or acts as an intermediary, relatin g and performing the story, as it already exists. 2 Stephen King, that bastion of popular li terature, reitera t es Barthes thoughts when he describes the stories he writes as ?fossils? or ?relics?, part of an undiscovered pre-existing world, and King himself is merely an excavator of these buried treasures. Comi ng up with new story ideas certainly does feel lik e digging to me, not the deli cate type of scapping and brushing that King?s archeaological metoph or suggests though, but rather the type of hard labour required to dig a hole big enough and d eep enough to trap a wild animal. While reflec ting on the conceptual proc esses of the films I discuss here, I find it difficu lt to separat e the final project from the multit u des of ideas, wild creatures all, some very grand indeed , but most of them small and nuanced, that have absorb my mind, pullin g me in stran ge and unexpect ed direct ion s. I have discovered that every idea has its source in other ideas, and that the process of creating somethin g ?new? is really a process of making mental connec t ion s out of the ?old?. I do no t know whether or not stories exist regardless of a person?s (an author?s, a writer? s, a film mak er? s) contribu t ion, but what has become increasingly appare n t to me is that one story alway s begins with another. 3 Memory Games 4 It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards. Lewis Carro l l 5 Recollection A s I r e m e m b e r i t , t h e p r e m i s e f o r Mind Out of Joint h a d i t s u n l i k e l y o r i g i n s i n a u n i v e r s i t y p r o d u c t i o n o f t h e m u s i c a l r e v u e Berlin to Broadway , a t r i b u t e t o t h e c o m p o s e r K u r t W e i l l . T h e f i l m ? s o r i g i n s , i n t r u t h , h a d n o t h i n g t o d o w i t h t h e m u s i c a l e x c e p t f o r t h e f a c t t h a t o n e o f t h e p r o d u c t i o n ? s c a s t m e m b e r s w a s a b l i n d a c t o r . A n d i t w a s t h i s a c t o r ? s p e r f o r m a n c e i n o n e s p e c i f i c s c e n e t h a t s e t o f f t h e i m a g i n a t i v e c h a i n - r e a c t i o n t h a t r e s u l t e d i n Mind Out of Joint . T h e s c e n e w a s s e t i n a N e w Y o r k G h e t t o , t h e m u s i c a l n u m b e r a b o u t t h e s t i f l i n g s u m m e r t e m p e r a t u r e s . I t d i c t a t e d t h a t t h e a c t o r s f a n t h e m s e l v e s w i t h t h e i r h a n d s t o s t a y c o o l . A n a c t i o n t h a t s e e m s s i m p l e e n o u g h , b u t f o r t h e b l i n d a c t o r i t p o s e d a d i s t i n c t p r o b l e m . H e h a d b e e n b l i n d s i n c e b i r t h a n d h a v i n g n e v e r s e e n s o m e o n e f a n t h e m s e l v e s , h e h a d n o p o i n t o f r e f e r e n c e , n o m e m o r y t o b a s e h i s o w n g e s t u r e o n a n d , n o d o u b t , h a d t o b e c o a c h e d i n t h e a c t i o n b y h i s d i r e c t o r . W h a t r e s u l t e d w a s a n a c t i o n m o r e s u g g e s t i v e o f b e c k o n i n g t h a n t h a t o f f a n n i n g . I t o c c u r r e d t o m e t h a t , t h e i r r e c o l l e c t i o n o f t h e g e s t u r e ( b y s u b c o n s c i o u s r e c a l l ) a l l o w e d t h e o t h e r a c t o r s t o p e r f o r m i t i n a w a y t h a t t h e a u d i e n c e p e r c e i v e d a s c o r r e c t . H e r e w a s t h e p l a y o f m e m o r y ? b e t w e e n t h e a u d i e n c e ? s e x p e c t a t i o n a n d t h e a c t o r ? s r e c i p r o c a t i o n . B u t , h a v i n g n o m e m o r y , t h e b l i n d a c t o r ? s g e s t u r e w a s i n c o n g r u o u s . T o f a n o n e s - s e l f , t h e n , i s a l e a r n t a c t i o n ? a m e m o r y a c t . 6 T h e b l i n d a c t o r ? s p r e d i c a m e n t , i t s e e m e d t o m e , w a s r e m i n i s c e n t o f t h a t o f a n a m n e s i a c ? s . W i t h o u t t h e a b i l i t y t o s e e , n o a m o u n t o f c o a c h i n g c o u l d h e l p t h e a c t o r t o t r u l y g r a s p t h e a c t i o n . H e c o u l d o f c o u r s e b e c o m e v e r y g o o d a t i t , b u t i t s q u i n t e s s e n c e w o u l d a l w a y s e l u d e h i m . S i m i l a r l y , a n a m n e s i a c , t o l d a b o u t h i s o r h e r p a s t m a y e v e n t u a l l y c o m e t o c l a i m t h o s e i n s t a n c e s , t h a t h i s t o r y , a s t h e i r o w n . B u t w i t h n o r e c o l l e c t i o n , h o w c o u l d t h e y p o s s i b l y c o m e t o c o m p r e h e n d t h e w e i g h t o f t h o s e e x p e r i e n c e s , a n d t h e i m p a c t t h a t t h o s e e v e n t s h a v e h a d o n t h e m ? H o w , w i t h o u t t h i s k n o w l e d g e , c o u l d t h e y k n o w t h e m s e l v e s ? M e m o r y , i t s e e m s , i s f u n d a m e n t a l t o t h e f o r m a t i o n a n d m a i n t a i n i n g o f s e l f - i d e n t i t y i . I n d e e d , J o h n L o c k e , i n An E s sa y Con cerning Hu man Understanding ( 1 6 9 0 , B o o k I I , C h a p t e r 2 7 ) , f a m o u s l y a r g u e d f o r t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f t h e s e l f w i t h m e m o r y . A s a p p o s e d t o D e s c a r t e s , w h o l o c a t e d t h e s e l f i n t h e i m m e d i a t e d e l i b e r a t e a c t o f t a k i n g t h o u g h t ? " I t h i n k , t h e r e f o r e I a m " , L o c k e p r o p o s e d t h a t t h e f o u n d a t i o n s o f t h e s e l f w e r e t o b e f o u n d i n t h e e x t e n s i o n o f c o n s c i o u s n e s s b a c k w a r d i n t i m e : ? A s f a r a s [ ] c o n s c i o u s n e s s c a n b e e x t e n d e d b a c k w a r d s t o a n y p a s t a c t i o n o r t h o u g h t , s o f a r r e a c h e s t h e i d e n t i t y o f t h a t per son ii ; i t i s t h e s a m e self iii n o w i t w a s t h e n ; a n d ? t i s b y t h e s a m e self w i t h t h i s p r e s e n t o n e t h a t n o w r e f l e c t s o n i t , t h a t t h a t a c t i o n w a s d o n e . ( L o c k e 3 0 2 ) A p e r s o n ? s i d e n t i t y , i n L o c k e ? s v i e w , c o m p r i s e s a l l o f t h e i r p e r s o n a l h i s t o r y , a l l t h a t t h e y c a n r e m e m b e r . A s a r e s u l t , p a s t e x p e r i e n c e s , 7 t h o u g h t s , o r a c t i o n s t h a t t h e p e r s o n d o e s n o t r e m e m b e r o r c a n n o t r e c a l l d o n o t f o r m p a r t o f h i s o r h e r i d e n t i t y . I d e n t i t y a n d s e l f h o o d , f o r L o c k e , h a v e n o t h i n g t o d o w i t h c o n t i n u i t y o f t h e b o d y . S e l f h o o d c o n s i s t s e n t i r e l y i n c o n t i n u i t y o f m e m o r y . A p e r s o n w h o r e m e m b e r s n o t h i n g o f h i s o r h e r p a s t l i t e r a l l y h a s n o i d e n t i t y . Mind out of Joint i s t h e v a g u e r e c o l l e c t i o n s , t h e d i s p a r a t e t r a c e s , o f a n a m n e s i a c ? a m a n ( p l a y e d b y A n d r e w T u r n e r ) , a s L o c k e w o u l d h a v e i t , w h o i s w i t h o u t a n i d e n t i t y . T h e r e i s n o d i a l o g u e i n t h e f i l m s o t h e m a n r e m a i n s n a m e l e s s , d e n i e d e v e n t h i s i d e n t i t y m a r k e r . I n t h e s c r e e n p l a y I c a l l h i m L e s , a n d s o w i l l c o n t i n u e t o c a l l h i m t h a t h e r e . O r i g i n a l l y , I c o n c e i v e d o f L e s a s a d e t e c t i v e - a n o i r p r i v a t e e y e , w h o i s i n v e s t i g a t i n g h i m s e l f , t r y i n g t o p i e c e t o g e t h e r h i s p a r t i n s o m e f a r - r e a c h i n g c o n s p i r a c y . E a r l y s t o r y l i n e s h a d L e s t r y i n g t o t r a c k d o w n t h e p e r s o n w h o h a d k i l l e d h i m ? a n i n v e s t i g a t i o n i n t o h i s o w n m u r d e r iv. L a t e r , h o w e v e r , h a v i n g r e f l e c t e d o n t h e p r e d i c a m e n t o f t h e b l i n d a c t o r a n d , c o n s e q u e n t l y o n t h e r o l e m e m o r y m i g h t p l a y i n t h e f o r m a t i o n o f i d e n t i t y , I c a m e t o e n v i s i o n L e s a s a m a n i n v e s t i g a t i n g h i m s e l f w h e n h e l o s e s h i s m e m o r y a f t e r s u f f e r i n g a b r a i n t r a u m a ; c o l l e c t i n g e v i d e n c e i n a d e s p e r a t e a t t e m p t t o r e c o v e r a s e m b l a n c e o f s e l f h o o d . The Memory Palace A t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e f i l m L e s , l i t e r a l l y , c a r r i e s h i s m i n d , i n t h e f o r m o f a b o x , o n h i s b a c k . T h e b o x i s a p r i n t e r ? s t r a y o f s o r t s , c o n t a i n i n g m e m o r y o b j e c t s - t h e b a s i s o f a l l h i s m e m o r i e s a n d t h e r e f o r e h i s 8 i d e n t i t y . T h e c h o i c e t o l i t e r a l i z e a n d e x t e r n a l i z e h i s m i n d w a s , i n p a r t , d e t e r m i n e d b y a s u r r e a l a e s t h e t i c t h a t p e r v a d e s t h e e n t i r e f i l m ( w h i c h I ? l l d i s c u s s i n m o r e d e p t h l a t e r ) , b u t t h e k e y t o t h e i m a g e w a s t h e c l a s s i c a l E u r o p e a n c o n c e p t o f a ? m e m o r y p a l a c e ? . I n The Memor y Palace of Matteo Ri c c i , h i s t o r i a n J o n a t h a n S p e n c e t e l l s t h e s t o r y o f a 1 6 t h c e n t u r y J e s u i t m i s s i o n a r y , w h o , i n u n d e r t a k i n g t o b r i n g C h r i s t i a n i t y t o t h e p e o p l e o f C h i n a , i n t r o d u c e d t h e m t o a m e m o r y t e c h n i q u e t h a t h a d b e e n i n u s e i n t h e W e s t s i n c e t h e d a y s o f a n c i e n t G r e e c e v. I n 1 5 9 6 , M a t t e o R i c c i w r o t e A Treati se on Mnemoni c s ; a s h o r t b o o k o n t h e a r t o f m e m o r y , w h i c h h e w r o t e o u t i n C h i n e s e a n d p r e s e n t e d a s a g i f t t o L u W a n g a i , t h e i n f l u e n t i a l g o v e r n o r o f t h e J i a n g x i P r o v i n c e . I n i t h e d e s c r i b e d t h e m e m o r y p a l a c e : a n i m a g i n a r y b u i l d i n g o n e w o u l d c o n s t r u c t i n t h e i r m i n d a n d a p p o i n t w i t h m n e m o n i c d e v i c e s ? m e m o r y i m a g e s a n d o b j e c t s . I t i s a s t r u c t u r e f o r o r g a n i z i n g k n o w l e d g e . " T o e v e r y t h i n g t h a t w e w i s h t o r e m e m b e r , w r o t e R i c c i , w e s h o u l d g i v e a n i m a g e ; a n d t o e v e r y o n e o f t h e s e i m a g e s w e s h o u l d a s s i g n a p o s i t i o n w h e r e i t c a n r e p o s e p e a c e f u l l y u n t i l w e a r e r e a d y t o c l a i m i t b y a n a c t o f m e m o r y " ( S p e n c e 2 ) . R e c o l l e c t i o n , t h e n , b e c o m e s a p r o c e s s o f A b b y Me mor y Syst e m, and imag e s to be us ed in the Abby Me mor y Syste m Fro m Johann es Rombe r c h , Congestorium Artificiose Memorie, e d. Of Veni ce, 1533. Rombe r c h ? s syst e m is a type of the palac e syste m. The imag e lis t is remi n i s c e nt of a printe r ? s tra y . 9 m o v i n g t h r o u g h t h e r o o m s i n t h e s t r u c t u r e a n d r e l a t i n g t h e o b j e c t s a n d i m a g e s c o n t a i n e d t h e r e i n w i t h t h e i n f o r m a t i o n o n e d e s i r e s t o r e c a l l . T h e s i z e o f t h e m e m o r y p a l a c e o n e w o u l d b u i l d , R i c c i s a i d , w a s r e l a t i v e t o t h e a m o u n t o f i n f o r m a t i o n o n e w a n t e d t o r e m e m b e r . A n a m b i t i o u s p r o j e c t , c a l l i n g f o r t h e r e c o l l e c t i o n o f g r e a t q u a n t i t i e s o f k n o w l e d g e , m i g h t d e m a n d a n e l a b o r a t e c o n s t r u c t i o n c o n s i s t i n g o f s e v e r a l h u n d r e d b u i l d i n g s . F o r s m a l l e r p r o j e c t s , h o w e v e r , l e s s g r a n d i o s e s t r u c t u r e s w o u l d b e m o r e a p p r o p r i a t e , " s u c h a s a t e m p l e c o m p o u n d , a c l u s t e r o f g o v e r n m e n t o f f i c e s , a p u b l i c h o s t e l , o r a m e r c h a n t s ? m e e t i n g l o d g e . " A n d i f o n e w a n t e d t o s t a r t s m a l l e r s t i l l , o n e c o u l d h o u s e t h e i r m e m o r y i m a g e s a n d o b j e c t s i n t h e i n t i m a c y o f a s i n g l e r o o m o r m e r e l y t h e c o r n e r o f a r o o m - " o r a n a l t e r i n a t e m p l e , o r e v e n s u c h a h o m e l y o b j e c t a s a w a r d r o b e o r a d i v a n , " o r p e r h a p s a p r i n t e r ? s t r a y ( S p e n c e 1 ) . W i t h t h e p r o l i f e r a t i o n o f w r i t t e n t e x t s a n d t h e r e l a t i v e a c c e s s i b i l i t y o f i n f o r m a t i o n t h r o u g h b o o k s , n e w s p a p e r s , t e l e v i s i o n , a n d o t h e r e l e c t r o n i c m e d i a , t h e c o n c e r t e d p r a c t i c e o f c o n s t r u c t i n g m e m o r y p a l a c e s h a s b e c o m e a l l b u t d e f u n c t . W e m a y t h o u g h , b e c o n s t r u c t i n g s i m i l a r s t r u c t u r e s i n o u r m i n d s , u n a w a r e o f t h e m e c h a n i c s o f o u r r e c o l l e c t i o n s . R i c c i ? s s y s t e m o f d e l i b e r a t e l y o r g a n i z i n g m e m o r i e s a n d k n o w l e d g e m a y h e l p t o d e f i n e t h e m n e m o n i c p r o c e s s e s t h a t o u r b r a i n s p e r f o r m a u t o m a t i c a l l y . A s w e l i v e a n d i n t e r a c t w i t h t h e w o r l d a r o u n d u s , o u r e x p e r i e n c e s a r e s o r t e d a n d s t o r e d a s m e m o r i e s t h a t w e c a n a c c e s s l a t e r . W e c o n s t r u c t m e n t a l s t r u c t u r e s , c o n t i n u o u s l y b u i l d i n g p a l a c e s ( o r p r i n t e r ? s t r a y s ) o f m e m o r y t h a t w e c a n c a r r y w i t h u s . 10 T h e Lover s . W h e n w e a r e f i r s t i n t r o d u c e d t o L e s w e f i n d h i m w a l k i n g t h r o u g h t h e v e l d w i t h h i s m i n d / m e m o r y o n h i s b a c k . I t i s a b u r d e n , a d i f f i c u l t h i s t o r y t h a t w e i g h s h i m d o w n . S o m e t h i n g o n t h e g r o u n d g l i m m e r s , a t t r a c t i n g h i s a t t e n t i o n . A n o p e n f l i c k - k n i f e l i e s h a l f c o v e r e d i n t h e g r a s s , g l i n t i n g i n t h e s u n l i g h t . H e p i c k s i t u p , s t u d i e s i t . I t i s a n e w m e m o r y o b j e c t ? a r e m i n d e r , p e r h a p s , o f a v i o l e n t p a s t . I n d e e d , m o s t o f t h e o b j e c t s i n L e s ? s m e m o r y b o x c a r r y w i t h t h e m a d i s q u i e t i n g s e n s e o f d i s c o r d . L a t e r , a s h e w a l k s d o w n a n i n n e r - c i t y s t r e e t , t h e c a m e r a f o c u s e s o n t h e s e p a r a t e c o m p a r t m e n t s i n t h e p r i n t e r ? s t r a y , a n d w e a r e p r o j e c t e d i n t o t h e m e m o r i e s ( i n e x p l i c a b l e , a t f i r s t h o w e v e r , i n t h e i r d i s c o n t i n u i t y ) a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e o b j e c t s h o u s e d i n s i d e . T h e f i r s t c o m p a r t m e n t c o n t a i n s k e y s o f v a r i o u s s h a p e s a n d s i z e s . I m m e d i a t e l y , w e c u t t o L e s s t a n d i n g i n a c o r r i d o r . H e p l a c e s a k e y i n a l o c k , l o o k s a r o u n d f u r t i v e l y . A m o m e n t l a t e r h e r e m o v e s t h e k e y a n d k n e e l s s o t h a t h e c a n p e e r t h r o u g h t h e k e y h o l e . W h a t h e s e e s i s a ? p r i m a l s c e n e ? o f s o r t s ? a n i n t i m a t e m o m e n t L e s (Andre w Turne r) disc ove rs the remna n t s of a violen t past. 11 Nki s i nkondi (Koz o ) Kongo Cabi n a Befor e 1900 Wood , iron h.67 . 5 c m b e t w e e n t w o l o v e r s t h a t l a t e r o n c o m e s t o i n v a d e h i s f a n t a s i e s a n d h a u n t h i s d r e a m s . T h e s e c o n d c o m p a r t m e n t c o n t a i n s p h o t o g r a p h s o f a w o m a n . T h e y f l i c k e r l i k e o l d f i l m r u s h e s , r o u g h l y a n i m a t i n g h e r c h a n g i n g e x p r e s s i o n s a s h e r h a p p y s m i l e f a d e s a n d i s r e p l a c e d w i t h a l o o k o f d i s b e l i e f . T h e s i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h e s e m o m e n t s i s l a t e r c l a r i f i e d w h e n L e s ? s m e m o r y i s r e s t o r e d t o h i m , b u t i n i t i a l l y t h e y a p p e a r a s r a n d o m , d i s c o n n e c t e d e v e n t s . T h i s i s a d e l i b e r a t e s t r a t e g y , d e v i s e d t o d r a w t h e v i e w e r i n t o L e s ? s w o r l d , w h e r e t h e t e n u o u s l i n k s b e t w e e n m e a n i n g a n d m e a n i n g l e s s n e s s h a v e a l l b u t c o l l a p s e d . The Nail Fetish T h e t h i r d c o m p a r t m e n t c o n t a i n s a t o t e m i n t h e s h a p e o f a d o u b l e - h e a d e d d o g . I t i s a s i g n i f i c a n t l e a d i n L e s ? s s e a r c h , a f o r e b o d i n g , s h a d o w y o b j e c t t h a t p e r s i s t e n t l y c r o p s u p a m o n g s t h i s ? e v i d e n c e ? . A f e a r s o m e d i s p l a y o f n a i l s a n d s p i k e s h a s b e e n h a m m e r e d i n t o t h e b o d y o f t h e f i g u r e . I t i s a 12 n a i l f e t i s h i n t h e t r a d i t i o n o f t h o s e p r o d u c e d b y t h e K o n g o p e o p l e s o f e a s t a n d c e n t r a l A f r i c a vi . T h e s e f e t i s h e s a r e c a l l e d m in ki s i ( s i n g . nki s i ) , a n u n t r a n s l a t a b l e t e r m , w h i c h i s t h e s a m e n a m e f o r t h e r i t u a l s i n w h i c h t h e o b j e c t s a r e u s e d . Minki s i r i t u a l s a r e p e r f o r m e d f o r a v a r i e t y o f r e a s o n s ; t h e s e i n c l u d e d e a l i n g w i t h p r o b l e m s o f c o n f l i c t i n t h e c o m m u n i t y , t h e f t , a n d d i s e a s e , a s w e l l a s i n c r e a s i n g s e x u a l p r o w e s s a n d p r o s p e r i t y ( P h i l l i p s 2 4 4 ) . T o d a y , t h e m o s t r e c o g n i s e d m in k i s i ( f e t i s h e s ) f a l l u n d e r a s u b c a t e g o r y c a l l e d nkondi , w h i c h t r a n s l a t e d m e a n s ? h u n t e r ? . T h e p u r p o s e o f nkondi i s t o r e v e a l a n d h u n t d o w n u n i d e n t i f i e d w r o n g d o e r s ( P h i l l i p s 2 4 6 ) . T h e nki s i t h a t L e s c a r r i e s w i t h h i m i s a s t y l i s e d r e n d i t i o n o f a nkondi t y p e c a l l e d ? K o z o ? , t h e d o u b l e - h e a d e d d o g ? a r e v e r e d r e t r i b u t i v e f e t i s h . D o g s , a c c o r d i n g K o n g o b e l i e f , a r e i n t e r m e d i a r i e s b e t w e e n t h e l i v i n g a n d t h e d e a d , a n d a s a r e s u l t b e t w e e n t h e s e e n a n d t h e u n s e e n . I n f a c t , d o g s a r e s a i d t o h a v e ? f o u r e y e s ? , a p a i r f o r t h i s w o r l d a n d a p a i r f o r t h e n e x t , a n d t h i s i s r e f l e c t e d i n t h e f e t i s h e s t w o - h e a d e d f o r m . I t i s b e l i e v e d t h a t t h e L a n d o f t h e d e a d l i e s ? a c r o s s t h e w a t e r ? o r ? i n t h e f o r e s t ? , w h i c h i n a c t u a l f a c t i s w h e r e b u r i a l g r o u n d s a r e t o b e f o u n d . W i l d a n i m a l s t h a t l i v e ? o u t t h e r e ? , b e y o n d t h e b o u n d a r i e s o f t h e v i l l a g e , a r e b e l i e v e d t o b e t h e l i v e s t o c k o f t h e d e c e a s e d . D o g s , h o w e v e r , l i v e i n t h e v i l l a g e , b u t u n l i k e o t h e r d o m e s t i c a n i m a l s t h e y a r e n o t e a t e n . T h e y T h e styl is e d Koz o fro m Mind Out of Joint. Seve r a l dif fe re n t siz e d fet i s hes were made for va rious parts of t h e fil m . 13 a s s i s t t h e h u n t e r s i n k i l l i n g g a m e ( t h e a n i m a l s o f t h e d e a d ) i n t h e f o r e s t ( t h e d o m a i n o f t h e d e a d ) , a n d s o , a r e s e e n t o h a v e a p r i v i l e g e d s t a t u s t h a t a l l o w s t h e m t o n a v i g a t e t h e b o u n d a r i e s b e t w e e n t h e l i v i n g a n d t h e d e a d a n d t h e r e f o r e t o a c t a s m e d i a t o r s ( P h i l l i p s 2 2 4 ) . E a c h o n e o f t h e n a i l s a n d s p i k e s i n t h e b o d y o f K o z o , a t t e s t t o a b i t t e r g r i e v a n c e . T h e a m o u n t o f n a i l s a n d s p i k e s t h a t c o v e r a nki s i n kondi i n d i c a t e t h e e x t e n t t o w h i c h i t h a s b e e n u s e d a n d t h e r e f o r e , h o w e f f e c t i v e i s h a s b e e n i n r e m e d y i n g t h e g r i e v a n c e s o f i t s u s e r s . T h e e x a m p l e o f K o z o i n L e s ? s p o s s e s s i o n h a s a m a s s e d a n i m p o s i n g c o l l e c t i o n o f i r o n , d e m o n s t r a t i n g i t s e m i n e n c e a n d u s a g e . W h e n w e a r e f i r s t i n v i t e d t o l o o k a t t h e f e t i s h i n s i d e L e s ? s m e m o r y b o x , w e a r e p r e s e n t e d w i t h a c o r r e s p o n d i n g i m a g e o f a m a n h a m m e r i n g n a i l s i n t o t h e f e t i s h ? s b o d y . T h i s i s t h e o r i g i n a l o w n e r o f t h e t o t e m , a n d h i s a c t i v e a b u s e vii o f i t i s a p r e - e m p t i v e p r o p h e t i c s t r i k e a g a i n s t t h o s e r e s p o n s i b l e f o r h i s e v e n t u a l d e m i s e . A s m e n t i o n e d b e f o r e , K o z o i s a r e t r i b u t i v e f e t i s h . T h e f i g u r e ? s f u n c t i o n i s t o t r a v e r s e t h e b o r d e r s b e t w e e n t h e t w o w o r l d s o f " i n v i s i b l e c a u s e s a n d v i s i b l e e f f e c t s " , i n o r d e r t o h u n t d o w n t h o s e i n d i v i d u a l s r e s p o n s i b l e f o r m a l a d i e s a f f e c t i n g t h e c o m m u n i t y o r t h e p e r p e t r a t o r s o f c r i m e s ( P h i l l i p s 2 4 4 ) . U n b e k n o w n s t t o L e s i n h i s a m n e s i a c c o n d i t i o n , t h e d i s o r d e r o f h i s m i n d a n d m e m o r y i s i n e x t r i c a b l y l i n k e d t o a c r i m e o f h i s o w n . S o , h i s i n n o c e n t i n v e s t m e n t i n t h i s p a r t i c u l a r f e t i s h a s a p o s s i b l e c l u e t o h i s p a s t , i s a l s o , i r o n i c a l l y , l e a d i n g h i m t o h i s o w n r e v e l a t o r y u n m a s k i n g a s a m a l e f a c t o r . I n Mind Out of Joint , d e v i a t i n g s l i g h t l y f r o m t h e t r a d i t i o n a l e t h n o g r a p h i c s y m b o l i s m o f nki s i nkondi , t h e f e t i s h m e d i a t e s t h e d i v i d e s b e t w e e n t h e 14 a m n e s i a c s t a t e a n d t h a t o f t o t a l r e c a l l , a s w e l l a s t h e d i v i d e s b e t w e e n r e a l i t y a n d d r e a m . T h e s e s t a t e s , h o w e v e r , a r e i n t r i c a t e l y a n d p e r p l e x i n g l y b o u n d t o g e t h e r i n t h e f i l m , s o t h a t t h e n a r r a t i v e f l o w i s a b s t r a c t e d . T h e v i e w e r i s c o n f r o n t e d w i t h w o r l d s w i t h i n w o r l d s , d i f f e r e n t p e r c e p t i o n s o f r e a l i t y w i t h i n d i f f e r e n t r e a l i t i e s a n d s t e a d i l y c o l l a p s i n g b o u n d a r i e s t h a t a r e m e a n t t o d i f f e r e n t i a t e t h e m , c a u s i n g r e a l i t y , f a n t a s y a n d m e m o r y t o b l e e d i n t o e a c h o t h e r . T h i s c o n s t i t u t e s a n e n o r m o u s n a r r a t i v e h a e m o r r h a g e ? a g a p i n g w o u n d i n t h e b o u n d a r y b e t w e e n w h a t i s r e a l , w h a t i s i m a g i n e d a n d w h a t i s r e m e m b e r e d , w h i c h t h r e a t e n s t o c o l l a p s e a l l d i s t i n c t i o n . W i t h i n t h i s c o m p l i c a t e d m i l i e u , K o z o a c t s a s a s y m b o l i c ? g u i d e d o g ? , l e a d i n g t h e v i e w e r , w h o g r a p p l e s b l i n d l y w i t h t h e d i s r u p t e d n a r r a t i v e f o r m , t o w a r d s t h e p r o m i s e o f a m e a n i n g f u l r e s o l u t i o n . Down the Rab bit -hole O n c e t h e f i l m h a s e s t a b l i s h e d t h e w o r k i n g s o f L e s ? s m e m o r y b o x , f a t e o r p e r h a p s K o z o , w o r k i n g p s y c h i c a l l y f o r t h e m a n t h a t L e s h a s i n f a c t a l r e a d y k n o c k e d d o w n a n d k i l l e d w i t h h i s m o t o r c a r , i n t e r j e c t s a n d L e s h i m s e l f i s i n e x p l i c a b l y s t r u c k d o w n . H i s i n j u r i e s m a y o r m a y n o t h a v e b e e n c a u s e d b y a p o t p l a n t t h a t f a l l s f r o m a w i n d o w l e d g e ? i t i s i r r e l e v a n t , t h e t w o i n c i d e n t s s i m p l y o c c u r a t t h e s a m e t i m e viii. W o u n d e d , L e s l i e s i n t h e s t r e e t , c l u t c h i n g a t h i s b l e e d i n g h e a d . A ? s t e p p e d o u t ? t e c h n i q u e , w h e r e b y t h e s a m e m o v i n g i m a g e i s l a i d o v e r i t s e l f b u t d e l a y e d b y a f e w f r a m e s , c r e a t e s a b l u r r i n g e f f e c t t h a t p r o d u c e s s p e c t a t o r e m p a t h y w i t h L e s ? s d a z e d c o n d i t i o n . T h e i m a g e f a d e s t o b l a c k 15 b e f o r e a s e a r c h l i g h t s w e e p s a c r o s s t h e p i c t u r e , i l l u m i n a t i n g t h e d e p t h s o f a d a n k t u n n e l . T h i s m a r k s L e s ? s d e s c e n t d o w n t h e a l l e g o r i c a l ? R a b b i t - H o l e ? , i n t o a n e t h e r w o r l d p e p p e r e d w i t h p r o m i s i n g m e m e n t o m o r i , b u t e s s e n t i a l l y d e v o i d o f t h e a n c h o r i n g a t t r i b u t e s o f m e m o r y . W h e n s p e a k i n g o f t h e n e t h e r w o r l d a t t h e b o t t o m o f t h e ? R a b b i t - H o l e ? , I a m o f c o u r s e a l l u d i n g t o L e w i s C a r r o l l ' s c l a s s i c c h i l d r e n ? s b o o k , Ali ce ' s Adventures in Wonderland . A l i c e ? s f a l l i n t o t h e s u r r e a l i s t i c l a n d o f n o n s e n s e a n d c h a o s i s m i r r o r e d i n L e s ? s p l u n g e i n t o t h e c o n f u s i o n t h a t t r a n s p i r e s w i t h t h e o n s e t o f h i s a m n e s i a . A l i c e q u i c k l y b e g i n s t o s t r u g g l e w i t h m e a n i n g a n d o r d e r i n s i d e t h e s t r a n g e , d e s t a b i l i s e d ( a n d d e s t a b i l i s i n g ) n e w r e a l m i n w h i c h s h e f i n d s h e r s e l f . A s s h e f a l l s " d o w n , d o w n , d o w n " w h a t s e e m s t o b e a n a b s u r d l y d e e p w e l l , s h e p o n d e r s w h e t h e r " c a t s e a t b a t s " o r ? b a t s e a t c a t s ? , i m m e d i a t e l y p r e s e n t i n g u s w i t h t h e n o n s e n s e t h a t a r i s e s f r o m a t t e m p t i n g t o d e t e r m i n e a s e c u r e m e a n i n g i n W o n d e r l a n d . T h e u n c e r t a i n t y a n d c o n s t a n t l u n a c y o f W o n d e r l a n d q u i c k l y b e g i n s t o a f f e c t A l i c e ? s y o u n g m i n d , a n d a s a n u n a v o i d a b l e r e s u l t s h e b e g i n s t o q u e s t i o n h e r o w n i d e n t i t y : D e a r , d e a r ! H o w q u e e r e v e r y t h i n g i s t o d a y ! A n d y e s t e r d a y t h i n g s w e n t o n j u s t a s u s u a l . I w o n d e r i f I ? v e b e e n c h a n g e d i n t h e n i g h t ! L e t m e t h i n k : wa s I t h e s a m e w h e n I g o t u p t h i s m o r n i n g ? I a l m o s t t h i n k I c a n r e m e m b e r f e e l i n g d i f f e r e n t . B u t i f I ? m n o t t h e s a m e , t h e n e x t q u e s t i o n i s , ? W h o i n t h e w o r l d a m I ? ? A h , t h a t ? s t h e g r e a t p u z z l e ! ( C a r r o l l 3 7 ) 16 S h e f e e l s e s t r a n g e d f r o m b o t h f r o m h e r b o d y a n d f r o m h e r m i n d , s h e t h i n k s t h a t s h e m i g h t p o s s i b l y h a v e c h a n g e d i n t o s o m e b o d y e l s e , a n d a t t e m p t s t o v e r i f y h e r i d e n t i t y b y t r y i n g t o s o l v e m a t h s p r o b l e m s , t e s t s o f h e r m e m o r y , a n d s c h o o l l e s s o n s t o s e e i f s h e s t i l l k n o w s t h e t h i n g s s h e h a s b e e n t a u g h t . B u t , s h e s i m p l y c a n n o t reme m ber t h e l o g i c a n d o r d e r o f a l l t h a t s h e h a s l e a r n t ( G r e e n a c r e 3 8 1 ? 3 8 2 ) . A l i c e ? s ? g r e a t p u z z l e ? i s t h e s a m e o n e L e s s t r u g g l e s t o d e c i p h e r . H e t o o i s a c u t e l y a f f e c t e d b y t h e u n c e r t a i n t y a n d i n s t a b i l i t y o f m e a n i n g i n a w o r l d t h a t h e d o e s n o t r e c o g n i s e ; a n d , h e i s i n d e e d , a l s o changed . W h e n L e s i s p r e s e n t e d o n t h e o t h e r s i d e o f t h e ? r a b b i t - h o l e ? , h e c a r r i e s w i t h h i m t h e l i t e r a l s c a r s o f h i s p a s t ( a t h i n , h e a l e d o v e r w o u n d r u n n i n g u p b e h i n d h i s e a r ) , h i s m e m o r y b o x , h o w e v e r , i s g o n e . A t t h i s p o i n t t h e f i l m ? s e m p h a s i s s h i f t s t o L e s ? s i n v e s t i g a t i o n o f h i m s e l f . A n u n s e t t l i n g s e n s e o f c o n f u s i o n , a b s u r d i t y , a n d t h e t h r e a t o f d e a t h p e r v a d e t h e s e s c e n e s . I n h i s s e a r c h , L e s i s c o n f r o n t e d b y i m a g e s o f s i n g u l a r p e c u l i a r i t y ? t w o i d e n t i c a l v a c u u m c l e a n e r s w i t h h u m a n f a c e s p r o t r u d i n g f r o m t h e i r s i d e s a n d a t u b e f u l l o f b l o o d s l u n g b e t w e e n t h e i r m o u t h s ; a t r a i l o f d i r t l e a d i n g t o a n d d i s a p p e a r i n g b e n e a t h a c l o s e d d o o r ; a p l a n t , i t s r o o t s e x p o s e d b y w a t e r e r o s i o n , i n a b a t h t u b ; s o i l w a s h i n g d o w n t h e d r a i n . T h e s e i m a g e s a r e d e s i g n e d t o b e s u b t l y d i s q u i e t i n g a n d a r e m e a n t t o b e s u g g e s t i v e o f h o w t h e s i n i s t e r a n d d i s t u r b i n g t h i n g s w e l i k e t o r e p r e s s ( l i k e t o for get ) c a n b e i n s c r i b e d i n o u r e n v i r o n m e n t s , o f t e n s h u t u p b e h i n d c l o s e d d o o r s . L a t e r i n t h e f i l m , i n a d r e a m m o n t a g e L e s h a s a f t e r r e c o v e r i n g a s m a l l b u n d l e o f m e m o r y o b j e c t s , v a g u e p i e c e s o f t h e m e m o r i e s w e h a v e b e e n 17 p r i v y t o a r e f u r t h e r m u d d l e d , a n d m i x e d i n w i t h L e s ? s s e x u a l f a n t a s i e s . H i s d r e a m i s i n t r u d e d u p o n b y o t h e r w o r l d l y v o i c e s t h a t s p e a k i n h a l f s e n t e n c e s a n d c r y p t i c w h i s p e r s , a l w a y s g i v i n g t h e i m p r e s s i o n t h a t t h e y w i l l p o t e n t i a l l y a n s w e r a l l h i s q u e s t i o n s . B u t t h e v o i c e s a r e h i s o w n , m u r m u r s o f t h e e x p l a n a t i o n s t h a t a r e i n f a c t l o c k e d a w a y i n s i d e h i s o w n h e a d . H e r e , t h e b o u n d a r i e s b e t w e e n m e m o r y , d r e a m a n d r e a l i t y a r e a t t h e i r m o s t f r a g i l e ? a t o n e p o i n t t h e m e m o r y / d r e a m / f a n t a s y o f t h e l o v e r s h a v i n g s e x i n f r i n g e s o n r e a l i t y , o c c u p y i n g t h e s p a c e a b o v e L e s ? s b e d . H i s b i z a r r e w o r l d o f p a r t - s l e e p , p a r t - w a k i n g a n d p a r t - m e m o r y ix i s e v o c a t i v e o f t h e s u r r e a l a e s t h e t i c o f C a r r o l l ? s b o o k . A t t h e e n d o f C a r r o l l ? s s t o r y , w h e n w o k e n - u p b y h e r s i s t e r , A l i c e d e c l a r e s t h a t h e r p a s s a g e t h r o u g h W o n d e r l a n d h a d b e e n " s u c h a c u r i o u s d r e a m ! " x ( C a r r o l l 1 6 2 ) . T h i s i s c e r t a i n l y a v e r y i m p o r t a n t s t a t e m e n t i n t h a t i t a s s o c i a t e s h e r e x p e r i e n c e s w i t h t h o s e o f t h e s u r r e a l i s t s ( Z a r r e l l o ) . B e l i e v i n g , a s t h e y d i d , i n t h e s u p e r i o r i t y o f u n i n h i b i t e d i m a g i n a t i o n a n d t h e v a l u e o f d r e a m s o v e r r e a l i t y , t h e s u r r e a l i s t s w o u l d h a v e b e e n w e l l a t h o m e i n t h e W o n d e r l a n d o f A l i c e ? s r e v e r i e . C o n s i d e r i n g A n d r e B r e t o n ? s d e f i n i t i o n o f s u r r e a l i s m : " P u r e p s y c h i c a u t o m a t i s m , b y w h i c h a n a t t e m p t i s m a d e t o e x p r e s s [ ? ] t h e t r u e f u n c t i o n o f t h o u g h t . T h e d i c t a t i o n o f t h o u g h t , i n t h e a b s e n c e o f a l l c o n t r o l e x e r c i s e d b y t h e r e a s o n a n d o u t s i d e a l l a e s t h e t i c o r m o r a l p r e o c c u p a t i o n s " , a n d h i s Da li ? s ?Al ic e ? fol i o rei te r at es the surr ea l is t fas c inat ion with Lewi s Carr o l l ?s fant a s ti c ima g e r y . S a l v a do r Dali ? D o w n the Rabb i t Hole ? 1969 He liogra v u re 16x10 c m 18 c o n t e n t i o n t h a t " s u r r e a l i s m r e s t s o n t h e b e l i e f i n t h e h i g h e r r e a l i t y o f c e r t a i n h i t h e r t o n e g l e c t e d f o r m s o f a s s o c i a t i o n , i n t h e o m n i p o t e n c e o f t h e d r e a m , i n t h e d i s i n t e r e s t e d p l a y o f t h o u g h t " ( C u r t i s 1 5 ) , t h e r e i s , w i t h o u t d o u b t , a p o w e r f u l c o r r e l a t i o n b e t w e e n C a r r o l l ? s W o n d e r l a n d a n d t h e s u r r e a l i s t i d e a l . W h e n r e f l e c t i n g o n t h e n a r r a t i v e ? s s t r a n g e e v e n t s , p e c u l i a r c h a r a c t e r s , a n d g e n e r a l a b s u r d i t y , i t i s q u i t e c l e a r t h a t A l i c e ? s a d v e n t u r e h a s a l l t h e i n t r i n s i c w o r t h o f a s u r r e a l i s t d r e a m , " b e c a u s e i t i s o n e " ( Z a r r e l l o ) . A n d , l i k e A l i c e ? s " c u r i o u s d r e a m " , L e s ? s d r e a m i s a p o r t a l t o a d i f f e r e n t r e a l i t y , o n e t h a t i s u n b o u n d f r o m t h e s e c u r i t y o f s t a b i l i s i n g l o g i c o r r e a s o n . T h e r e s h o u l d b e l i t t l e d o u b t t h a t Mind Out of Joint w a s b o r n o u t o f a f a s c i n a t i o n w i t h s u r r e a l i s t a e s t h e t i c s . I s s u e s o f m e m o r y , t r a n s f o r m a t i o n , d e a t h , d r e a m s a n d t h e s h i f t i n g s t a t u s o f r e a l i t y a r e u n q u e s t i o n a b l y o f c e n t r a l c o n c e r n t o t h i s f i l m , a s t h e y a r e t o s u r r e a l i s m . T h e n a r r a t i v e w a s p r o d u c e d t h r o u g h a d e l i b e r a t e p s y chi c automati s m , a n d a l t h o u g h t h e i n t e n t i o n w a s n o t t o d e s c r i b e a d r e a m , t h e f i l m ? s f o r m b e n e f i t s f r o m a v i s u a l a n d s t r u c t u r a l s e n s i b i l i t y c o m p a r a b l e t o t h a t o f d r e a m s . T h e i m a g e s a n d s c e n a r i o s t h a t m a k e u p t h e f i l m h a v e t h e i r f o u n d a t i o n s l o o s e l y g r o u n d e d i n t h i n g s t h a t I m y s e l f h a v e s e e n o r e x p e r i e n c e d , t h e s o u r c e b e i n g , i n a m a n n e r o f s p e a k i n g , a w e l l o f m e m o r i e s . F i l t e r e d t h r o u g h m y s e n s i b i l i t i e s a n d a r r a n g e d i n t h e f i l m a s t h e y a r e , i m a g e s a n d s c e n a r i o s b e c o m e r e c o n s t i t u t e d , m u c h i n t h e s a m e w a y a s t h e p s y c h e r e c o n s t i t u t e s t h e m e m o r i e s a c c u m u l a t e d d u r i n g t h e d a y a s d r e a m s ? t h u s c o r r e s p o n d i n g w i t h s u r r e a l i s t p r a c t i c e . I n a d d i t i o n , t h e f i l m w a s i n f l u e n c e d , a c t i v e l y , b u t n o t a l w a y s c o n s c i o u s l y , b y a l i t a n y o f e a r l y e x p e r i m e n t a l f i l m s a n d i t a b o u n d s w i t h i m a g e r y t h a t e v o k e s 19 E u r o p e a n a v a n t - g a r d e f i l m s o f t h e 1 9 2 0 s a n d e a r l y 1 9 3 0 s , n o t l e a s t L u i s B u ? u e l ' s s u r r e a l i s t m a s t e r p i e c e Un Chien Andalou ( 1 9 2 8 ) . Beware the Andalusian Dog ? it bites xi I n 1 9 2 5 , a f t e r s t u d y i n g i n M a d r i d w h e r e h e m e t a n d b e f r i e n d e d S a l v a d o r D a l i , B u ? u e l t r a v e l l e d t o P a r i s w i t h v a g u e a m b i t i o n s o f b e c o m i n g a n a r t i s t . H e r e c o g n i s e d h i s t r u e c a l l i n g , h o w e v e r , a f t e r s e e i n g F r i t z L a n g ? s Destiny ( 1 9 2 1 ) a n d f o u n d e m p l o y m e n t i n t h e f i l m i n d u s t r y a s a n a s s i s t a n t t o t h e a c c l a i m e d F r e n c h d i r e c t o r , J e a n E p s t e i n . B u ? u e l ' s a p p r e n t i c e s h i p w i t h E p s t e i n t h o u g h w a s b r i e f . H e w a s f i r e d s h o r t l y a f t e r w o r k i n g o n E p s t e i n ? s Fall of the House of U sher b e c a u s e o f h i s u n w i l l i n g n e s s t o w o r k w i t h E p s t e i n ? s o w n m e n t o r , A b e l G a n c e . A s l i g h t r e s u l t e d f r o m B u ? u e l ' s d i s l i k e f o r G a n c e ? s w o r k , a n d t h e f a c t t h a t h e f o u n d G a n c e p r e t e n t i o u s . I n a t e l l i n g s t a t e m e n t , E p s t e i n w a r n e d a g a i n s t t h e w a y w a r d n e s s o f B u ? u e l ' s " s u r r e a l i s t i c t e n d e n c i e s " ( B u ? u e l 8 8 - 9 0 ) I n h i s a u t o b i o g r a p h y , e n t i t l e d My La st S i gh , B u ? u e l d e s c r i b e s h o w , w h i l e v i s i t i n g S a l v a d o r D a l i a t h i s h o u s e i n F i g u e r a s , h e t o l d D a l i a b o u t a d r e a m h e h a d h a d i n w h i c h a t h i n c l o u d " s l i c e d t h e m o o n i n h a l f , l i k e a r a z o r b l a d e s l i c i n g t h r o u g h a n e y e . " D a l i i m m e d i a t e l y c o u n t e r e d w i t h a d e s c r i p t i o n o f a d r e a m o f h i s o w n i n w h i c h h e h a d s e e n a h a n d c r a w l i n g w i t h a n t s . " A n d w h a t i f w e s t a r t e d r i g h t t h e r e a n d m a d e a f i l m ? " D a l i a s k e d . A n d w i t h t h a t t h e y s e t a b o u t w r i t i n g t h e s c r i p t f o r Un Chien Andalou ? " a n e n c o u n t e r b e t w e e n t w o d r e a m s " ( B u ? u e l 1 0 3 - 1 0 4 ) . B y a l l 20 a c c o u n t s , i t w a s a n e f f o r t l e s s , h a p p y j o i n t c o l l a b o r a t i o n i n w h i c h t h e r e w a s n e v e r t h e s l i g h t e s t d i s a g r e e m e n t , a n d t h e y f i n i s h e d t h e s c r i p t i n l e s s t h a n a w e e k . B u ? u e l w o r k e d q u i c k l y o n c e t h e s c r i p t w a s c o m p l e t e d , s h o o t i n g t h e f i l m o v e r a p e r i o d o f t w o w e e k s o n a s m a l l b u d g e t h e w a s a b l e t o e l i c i t f r o m h i s m o t h e r xii . B u ? u e l a n d D a l i ? s a p p r o a c h i n w o r k i n g t o g e t h e r o n t h e s c e n a r i o w a s t o p i t c h s h o c k i n g i m a g e s o r e v e n t s a t e a c h o t h e r : " O u r o n l y r u l e w a s v e r y s i m p l e : n o i d e a o r i m a g e t h a t m i g h t l e n d i t s e l f t o a r a t i o n a l e x p l a n a t i o n o f a n y k i n d w o u l d b e a c c e p t e d . W e h a d t o o p e n a l l t h e d o o r s t o t h e i r r a t i o n a l a n d k e e p o n l y t h o s e i m a g e s t h a t s u r p r i s e d u s , w i t h o u t t r y i n g t o e x p l a i n t h e m " ( B u ? u e l 1 0 4 ) . S o t h e i m a g e o f a n e y e b e i n g s l i c e d t h r o u g h w i t h a r a z o r b l a d e i s f o l l o w e d b y t h e i m a g e o f a m a n , w e a r i n g a n u n ? s h a b i t , r i d i n g a b i c y c l e . T h i s i n t u r n i s f o l l o w e d b y o t h e r s e e m i n g l y r a n d o m i m a g e s : a n t s c r a w l i n g o u t f r o m t h e i n s i d e o f a h o l e i n t h e p a l m o f a h a n d ( a s t i g m a t a ? ) , a n a r m p i t , a s e a u r c h i n , a c r o w d g a t h e r e d a r o u n d a s e v e r e d h a n d l y i n g i n t h e m i d d l e o f t h e r o a d , a s e x u a l a s s a u l t d u r i n g w h i c h t h e a s s a i l a n t g o e s t h r o u g h g h o u l i s h t r a n s f o r m a t i o n ? h i s e y e s r o l l e d b a c k i n h i s h e a d , b l o o d d r i p p i n g f r o m t h e s i d e o f h i s m o u t h ( l i k e a z o m b i e c r e a t u r e i n a G e o r g e R o m e r o f i l m ) , t h e a s s a i l a n t t a k i n g u p r o p e s a n d d r a g g i n g p i a n o s l o a d e d w i t h s t r a n g e c a r g o a c r o s s t h e r o o m a s t h e w o m a n h i d e s b e h i n d h e r b e d a n d d e f e n d s h e r s e l f w i t h a t e n n i s r a c k e t . . . . T h e r e i s n o d i s c e r n a b l e s t o r y l i n e . A s y n o p s i s o f t h e f i l m t h e n , i s m e r e l y a r e c o u n t o f n o n s e n s i c a l s h o t s a n d s c e n a r i o s . 21 Un Chi e n Andalou T h e randomn e s s of shots and scena r i os defy rat i o na l expl a na t i on. 22 But still , we try to make sense of it all, to order the logic of the images and events so that the ir narrative purpose migh t somehow become apparent. Indeed, the film tends to draw the viewer in by making use of man y of the codes and convent i on s of narrat i ve film ? the use of expressi v e close- u p s an d establ ish i ng lon g shot s, and the consci ou s avoi dan ce of ?arti sti c techni que s?. It is a strate gy, Davi d Curt is argue s, that di verges signif ican tl y from th e approach of avant-garde films that came before it: " [Bu?uel] treats his subj ect as though he we re maki ng a popular thriller, pre senting just enoug h ?continuity? and ?th eme ? ? the ple asant bourgeois heroine , the recurring strip e d box , the physiognomical re semblance betwe en vari ous men (are the y the same man?) ? to reinfo rce the illusi on of rationality. This strengthens the impa ct of the ext raordinary plot. " (Curtis 22) S o , o p p o s e d t o t h e t e c h n i q u e s o f e a r l i e r D a d a f i l m s , w h i c h w e r e d e p e n d a n t o n i l l o g i c a l , n o n - n a r r a t i v e a n d a b s t r a c t d e v i c e s , B u ? u e l e m p l o y e d " c o n v e n t i o n a l c i n e m a t o g r a p h y , o p t i c a l r e a l i s m a n d n a r r a t i v e t o i n v i t e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , i n o r d e r t o m a k e t h e m i s a p p r o p r i a t i o n a n d r u p t u r e o f t h e s e t e c h n i q u e s a l l t h e m o r e s h o c k i n g " ( C o o k 1 1 4 ) . I n l i g h t o f t h i s , t h e o p e n i n g s e q u e n c e w i t h i t s a p p a r e n t l y c a n d i d i m a g e s , t h e m a n ( B u ? u e l h i m s e l f ) , t h e b a r o q u e b a l c o n y , t h e ? r o m a n t i c ? f u l l m o o n , p r o d u c e s a s e n s e o f i n n o c e n c e , l u l l i n g t h e v i e w e r i n t o c o n v e n t i o n a l p a t t e r n s o f s e e i n g . A n d , i t i s t h i s v e r y s e n s e o f i n n o c e n c e t h a t m a k e s t h e m a n ? s p e r v e r s e d e e d ? h i s s l i c i n g t h r o u g h o f a w o m a n ? s e y e w i t h t h e r a z o r b l a d e ? e s p e c i a l l y a w f u l ( C u r t i s 2 2 ) . B e s i d e s t h i s s e q u e n c e ? s a b i l i t y t o s h o c k ( w h i c h i t s t i l l d o e s a f t e r a l m o s t s e v e n t y y e a r s ) , J e a n V i g o s u g g e s t s t h a t i t a l s o p r o v i d e s a k e y t h a t h e l p s t o p a r t l y d e c i p h e r t h e r e s t o f t h e f i l m , o r a t l e a s t a l l o w s t h e v i e w e r t o 23 b e t t e r a c c e p t t h e i r r a t i o n a l i t y o f t h e n a r r a t i v e p r o g r e s s i o n . I n h i s r e v i e w o f t h e f i l m i n Ver s un cin ? ma so cial V i g o w r i t e s : " O u r c o w a r d i c e , w h i c h l e a d s u s t o a c c e p t s o m a n y o f t h e h o r r o r s t h a t w e , a s a s p e c i e s , c o m m i t , i s d e a r l y p u t t o t h e t e s t w h e n w e f l i n c h f r o m t h e s c r e e n i m a g e o f a w o m a n ? s e y e s l i c e d i n h a l f b y a r a z o r . I s i t m o r e d r e a d f u l t h a n t h e s p e c t a c l e o f a c l o u d v e i l i n g a f u l l m o o n ? S u c h i s t h e p r o l o g u e : i t l e a v e s u s w i t h n o a l t e r n a t i v e b u t t o a d m i t t h a t w e w i l l b e c o m m i t t e d , t h a t i n t h i s f i l m w e w i l l h a v e t o v i e w w i t h s o m e t h i n g m o r e t h a n t h e e v e r y d a y e y e " ( V i g o 7 5 ? 7 6 ) . J a c q u e s B r u n i u s e c h o e s V i g o ? s s e n t i m e n t s w h e n h e s u g g e s t s t h a t t h e b r u t a l i m a g e o f t h e d e s t r u c t i o n o f t h e e y e , " i n t i m a t e s t h a t p e o p l e h o p i n g t o h a v e t h e i r r e t i n a d e l i c i o u s l y t i c k l e d b y a r t i s t i c p h o t o g r a p h y h a v e p i c k e d t h e w r o n g f i l m " ( B r u n i u s 9 9 ) . T h e l i t e r a l a s s a u l t o n t h e e y e i s e m b l e m a t i c o f B u ? u e l ? s i n t e n t t o f i g u r a t i v e l y a s s a u l t t h e c o n s e r v a t i v e w a y s o f s e e i n g a n d e a s y c o n t e n t m e n t o f t h e a u d i e n c e w h o s e s u b s t i t u t e " s c r e e n - e y e " h e i s d e l i b e r a t e l y a t t a c k i n g ( R e e s 4 6 ) . T h e f i l m m u s t , t h e r e f o r e , b e v i e w e d f r o m a n a l t e r n a t i v e p e r s p e c t i v e . Mind Out of Joint ? s i n t e n t i o n a l l y e v o c a t i v e v i s u a l s t y l e f u n c t i o n s p a r t l y a s h o m a g e t o t h e a e s t h e t i c s o f Un Chien Andalou , b u t i t a l s o a t t e m p t s , i n a s i m i l a r w a y t o B u ? u e l ? s f i l m , t o p r o v o k e a n a l t e r n a t i v e p e r s p e c t i v e i n o r d e r t o c h a l l e n g e i t s a u d i e n c e ? s p e r c e p t i o n s . T h e f i l m o p e r a t e s a s w h a t I h a v e d e s c r i b e d a s a disrupted narrati ve ? t h e n a r r a t i v e s t i l l f u n c t i o n s a s s u c h , m a i n t a i n i n g t h e c o n c i l i a t o r y t e c h n i q u e s o f m a i n s t r e a m n a r r a t i v e c i n e m a , b u t m u c h o f i t h a s b e e n a b s t r a c t e d o r n e g a t e d i n o r d e r t o r e i n f o r c e a n u n s e t t l i n g s e n s e o f d i s l o c a t i o n . F o r t h e m o s t p a r t , t h e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f t h e f i l m i s m a r k e d b y a d e t a c h e d 24 p r a c t i c a l i t y , b r o u g h t o n i n n o s m a l l m e a s u r e b y a p l a i n l a c k o f r e s o u r c e s . H o w e v e r , t h e r e s u l t s o f t h i s p r a c t i c a l a p p r o a c h t e n d t o c h a l l e n g e t h e a r t i s t i c a b s t r a c t i o n t h a t h a s b e e n c o n s c i o u s l y b u i l t i n t o t h e f i l m , r e i t e r a t i n g t h e p l a y b e t w e e n t h e c o m f o r t o f c o n v e n t i o n a l c o n s t r u c t i o n a n d t h e s u r p r i s e i n t e r j e c t i o n o f u n c o n v e n t i o n a l e l e m e n t s . W h i l e t h e n a r r a t i v e p r o g r e s s i o n i s f a i r l y s t r a i g h t f o r w a r d , t h e d i s r u p t i v e i n c l u s i o n o f a p p a r e n t l y d i s a s s o c i a t e d e v e n t s a n d t h e p a r a l l e l i n g o f m i s m a t c h e d t e m p o r a l i t i e s w h i c h e f f e c t i v e l y f r a c t u r e s t h e c o n t i n u i t y o f s p a c e a n d t i m e , r e s u l t s i n a n a e s t h e t i c a p p r o a c h t h a t n o t o n l y t h r o w s i n t o q u e s t i o n t h e c e r t a i n t y o f s e e i n g , b u t o f c o u r s e , t h e c e r t a i n t y o f r e m e m b e r i n g . I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e s i m i l a r i t i e s i n n a r r a t i v e t e c h n i q u e s , o r p e r h a p s m o r e a c c u r a t e l y n o n - n a r r a t i v e t e c h n i q u e s ( d e l i b e r a t e a b s t r a c t i o n t e n d s t o w o r k a g a i n s t s t o r y d e v e l o p m e n t ) , t h e r e a r e a l s o c o r r e s p o n d i n g i m a g e s a n d s c e n a r i o s t h a t h i g h l i g h t Un Chien Andalou ? s i n f l u e n c e o n Mind Out of Joint . T h e s e i n c l u d e s c e n e s w h e r e s p a c e a n d t i m e a r e d i s l o c a t e d t h r o u g h t h e g e o g r a p h i c a l m i s p l a c e m e n t o f l o c a t i o n s i n r e l a t i o n t o e a c h o t h e r ? i n Un Chien Andalou , t h e s a m e b e d r o o m d o o r l e a d s a l t e r n a t e l y o n t o a s t r e e t , a p a r k a n d a b e a c h , a n d i n Mind Out of Joint t h e l o v e r s i n h a b i t t h e s p a c e a b o v e L e s ? s b e d ; a s w e l l a s t h e e p i s o d e s i n b o t h f i l m s i n w h i c h p e d e s t r i a n s a r e s t r u c k d o w n b y m o t o r c a r s . H o w e v e r , c o r r e l a t i o n s l i k e t h e s e w e r e n o t a l w a y s c o n s c i o u s d e c i s i o n s . T h e p o w e r f u l i m a g e r y o f B u ? u e l ? s f i l m p e r v a d e d f i l m m a k i n g f r o m t h e v e r y f i r s t , a n d h a s l e f t a n i n d e l i b l e m a r k o n f i l m h i s t o r y a s w e l l a s o n m a n y a n a s p i r a n t f i l m m a k e r . A f t e r a l l , Un Chien Andalou r e m a i n s o n e o f t h e m o s t r e n o w n e d s h o r t f i l m s e v e r m a d e ? s o o n e r o r l a t e r , a n y o n e e v e n 25 p a r t i a l l y i n t e r e s t e d i n c i n e m a h i s t o r y a n d p r a c t i c e s e e s i t , a n d v e r y l i k e l y a n u m b e r o f t i m e s . C o n s e q u e n t l y , e v e n t h o u g h I w a s c o n s c i o u s o f Un Chien Andalou ? s i n f l u e n c e w h i l e m a k i n g Mind Out of Joint , i t w a s o n l y m u c h l a t e r t h a t t h e c o r r e l a t i o n b e t w e e n c e r t a i n i m a g e s b e c a m e a p p a r e n t t o m e ? a d e m o n s t r a t i o n o f t h e s u b l i m i n a l p o w e r o f B u ? u e l a n d D a l i ? s v i s i o n xiii . O f t h e i m a g e s m o r e o b v i o u s l y l i n k e d a c r o s s t h e f i l m s , t h e e n c u m b e r i n g p i a n o s o f Un Chien Andalou a n d t h e l o a d e d m e m o r y / m i n d b o x i n Mind Out of Joint a p p e a r t o h a v e a p a r t i c u l a r l y s t r o n g r e l a t i o n s h i p . I n b o t h f i l m s , t h e r e m n a n t s o f r e m e m b e r e d e x p e r i e n c e s a n d f i x a t i o n s , b o r n o u t o f f a n t a s y a n d a s k e w e d m e m o r y p r o c e s s , a r e p r e s e n t e d i n t h e f o r m o f b u r d e n s . J a c q u e s B r u n i u s s t a t e s t h a t i t i s q u i t e s i m p l e t o r e c o g n i s e t h a t a t t h e p o i n t i n Un Chien Andalou w h e r e t h e y o u n g m a n i s s e t t o s e x u a l l y a s s a u l t t h e g i r l , w h a t h e h a u l s b e h i n d h i m w i t h e x t r a o r d i n a r y e f f o r t a t t h e e n d o f t w o r o p e s , " f r o m t h e l i g h t e s t t o t h e h e a v i e s t o b j e c t s ? c o r k s , m e l o n s , p r i e s t s , p i a n o s f i l l e d w i t h d o n k e y - c a r r i o n , " a r e t h e r e p r e s s e d l e e s o f h i s f o r m a t i v e m e m o r i e s ( B r u n i u s 1 0 0 ) . J e a n V i g o a f f i r m s t h i s n o t i o n w h e n h e e x c l a i m s : " T w o g r a n d p i a n o s , s t u f f e d w i t h c o r p s e s a n d e x c r e m e n t ? o u r p a t h e t i c s e n t i m e n t a l i t y ! " ( V i g o 7 6 ) xiv S i m i l a r l y , a s e s t a b l i s h e d e a r l i e r i n t h i s c h a p t e r , t h e b o x t h a t L e s c a r r i e s o n h i s b a c k i n Mind Out of Joint c o n t a i n s t h e m e m o r y o b j e c t s t h a t h a v e s h a p e d h i s i d e n t i t y . B u t , w h i l e B u ? u e l a n d D a l i u s e t h e i m a g e o f t h e p i a n o s a n d t h e i r c a r g o f o r t h e e x p r e s s p u r p o s e o f i n d u c i n g s h o c k a n d r e v u l s i o n , a n d t h e n d i s c a r d i t i n f a v o u r o f a d d i t i o n a l r a n d o m i m a g e s , L e s ? s m e m o r y / m i n d b o x a n d i t s e v e n t u a l d i s a p p e a r a n c e a r e c e n t r a l t o t h e n a r r a t i v e o f Mind Out of Joint . 26 W o r k i n g t h r o u g h a n u m b e r o f m y o w n f i x a t i o n s w i t h Un Chien Andalou w a s c e r t a i n l y a m a j o r c o n t r i b u t i n g f a c t o r i n t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f Mind Out of Joint , b u t t h i s i n t e r t e x t u a l i t y s h o u l d n o t b e c o n f u s e d i n a n y w a y w i t h a l a c k o f p e r s o n a l v i s i o n . T h e f i l m s a r e c l e a r l y d i f f e r e n t i n m a n y a s p e c t s . Mind Out of Joint h a s a v e r y s t r o n g , v e r y d e t e r m i n e d n a r r a t i v e a r c , w h e r e a s Un Chien Andalou i s a l m o s t c o m p l e t e l y r a n d o m , m e r e l y o f f e r i n g u p t h e po s s i b i lit y o f n a r r a t i v e s t r u c t u r e , b u t a l w a y s r e j e c t i n g i t i n f a v o u r o f u n m i t i g a t e d i r r a t i o n a l i t y . A n d t h e r e f o r e , b e s i d e s b e e n r e v e l a t o r y a s i t i s i n f o r m , Un Chien Andalou d o e s n o t o f f e r a n y n a r r a t i v e r e v e l a t i o n s ( u n l e s s y o u c o n s i d e r a l a c k o f s t o r y r e v e l a t o r y ) , w h i l e t h e o u t c o m e o f Mind Out of Joint i s v e r y d e f i n i t e l y a b o u t r e v e a l i n g t h e n a r r a t i v e p r o g r e s s i o n . T h e f i l m ' s f i n a l r e v e l a t i o n s s t r i v e t o m a k e s e n s e ? t h e v i e w e r i s s u p p o s e d t o r e r u n t h e p l o t i n t h e i r h e a d , m a k i n g s e n s e o f t h e i n i t i a l s c e n e s i n t e r m s o f t h e e n d e p i p h a n y . A n d , w h i l e t h e s e r e v e l a t i o n s t r y t o p r o v i d e s o m e s o r t o f c l a r i t y t o t h e l o a d ( a v e r i t a b l e b o x f u l l , a p r i n t e r ? s t r a y p e r h a p s ) o f c o n f l i c t i n g d e t a i l s , t h e u l t i m a t e o b j e c t i v e o f Mind Out of Joint , l i k e s o m a n y m y s t e r y f i l m s , i s t o o p e n u p t o r e - v i e w i n g a n d w i t h t h a t , r e - i n t e r p r e t a t i o n . The Final Amnesia O n c e L e s i s c o m p l e t e l y s u b m e r g e d i n h i s a m n e s i c c o n d i t i o n , w a k i n g a n d s l e e p i n g b e g i n t o t a k e o n t h e s a m e b e w i l d e r i n g a t t r i b u t e s . W e f i n d h i m r e a d i n g a b o o k , p e r h a p s s e a r c h i n g t h e r e f o r a k e y t o u n l o c k h i s m e m o r i e s ? a p i e c e o f k n o w l e d g e t o p r i c k h i s s u b c o n s c i o u s . T h e r e i s 27 n o t h i n g t h e r e , h o w e v e r , o n l y t h e r e a f f i r m a t i o n o f h i s m i n d ? s d i s l o c a t i o n . I n s t e a d , h e h a p p e n s u p o n a b u s i n e s s c a r d , s t u c k b e t w e e n t h e p a g e s o f h i s b o o k , f o r t h e m e c h a n i n i t i a n s Tesla & Sons xv , a n d i n a l a s t - d i t c h a t t e m p t t o r e c o v e r h i s m e m o r y a n d h i s s a n i t y h e s e e k s t h e i r p r o f e s s i o n a l h e l p . I n t h e m e c h a n i n i t i a n s ? w a i t i n g r o o m L e s w a i t s w i t h t w o o t h e r p a t i e n t s . T h e i r a i l m e n t s h a v e b e e n c o r r e c t e d b y g r o t e s q u e m e c h a n i c a l d e v i c e s ? o n e m a n i n h a l e s a i r t h r o u g h a g a s - m a s k o f s o r t s w h i c h i s a t t a c h e d t o a b e l l j a r w i t h a p l a n t i n i t , t h e o t h e r w e a r s a n e l a b o r a t e d p a i r o f g l a s s e s w i t h s e v e r a l l e n s e s w h i c h h e s l i d e s a n d p u l l s t o c o r r e c t h i s f o c u s . T h e d e v i c e s h a v e t h e c o u n t e r e f f e c t s o f r e c t i f y i n g t h e w e a r e r ? s d e f e c t s a n d a t t h e s a m e t i m e r e n d e r i n g t h e m f a r m o r e p r o m i n e n t . L e s f e e l s o u t o f p l a c e , n o t s u r e o f h i s p r o s p e c t s o f f i n d i n g r e m e d y h e r e , b u t i n a w o r l d o f s u c h g r o s s a n d a b s u r d e x a g g e r a t i o n i t m a y b e t h e b e s t p l a c e t o s t a r t l o o k i n g . E v e n t u a l l y , L e s g e t s t o c o n s u l t w i t h o n e o f t h e m e c h a n i n t i a n s ; t h e p l a q u e o n t h e d e s k a n n o u n c e s t h a t t h e c o n s u l t a n t i s E u g e n e T e s l a xvi . I n t h e l i s t o f d r a m a t i s p e r s o n a e a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e s c r e e n p l a y I d e s c r i b e T e l s a a s " a n a l c h e m i s t o f s o r t s " , a m y t h i c a l c h a r a c t e r , w h o , m u c h l i k e K o z o , p o s s e s s e s p r i v i l e g e d k n o w l e d g e a n d a b i l i t y t h a t a l l o w s h i m i n s i g h t i n t o t h i n g s o t h e r w o r l d l y . H e s i t s b e h i n d h i s d e s k , t y p i n g u p a r e p o r t o n a n o l d t y p e w r i t e r , t h e s o u n d o f e a c h k e y s t r o k e r e v e r b e r a t i n g v i o l e n t l y i n t h e s m a l l o f f i c e a s h e t y p e s t h e w o r d s ? The Final Amnesia . H e r e a g a i n , B u ? u e l h a u n t s t h e s c e n e , n o t t h r o u g h a n a s s o c i a t i o n w i t h a n y o f h i s f i l m s , b u t i n f a c t m o r e d i r e c t l y . I n t h e o p e n i n g c h a p t e r o f h i s a u t o b i o g r a p h y , B u ? u e l c o m m e n t s o n t h e n a t u r e o f r e c o l l e c t i o n . H e s p e a k s o f h i s m o t h e r ? s i l l n e s s a n d h e r c o n s e q u e n t m e m o r y l o s s w i t h a 28 m i x e d s e n s e o f d r e a d a n d r e s i g n a t i o n a t t h e l i k e l i h o o d o f t h e s i m i l a r d e t e r i o r a t i o n o f h i s o w n m e m o r y : I c a n o n l y w a i t f o r the final amnesia xvii , t h e o n e t h a t c a n e r a s e a n e n t i r e l i f e , a s i t d i d m y m o t h e r ? s . . . . Y o u h a v e t o b e g i n t o l o s e y o u r m e m o r y , i f o n l y i n b i t s a n d p i e c e s , t o r e a l i z e t h a t m e m o r y i s w h a t m a k e s o u r l i v e s . L i f e w i t h o u t m e m o r y i s n o l i f e a t a l l , j u s t a s a n i n t e l l i g e n c e w i t h o u t t h e p o s s i b i l i t y o f e x p r e s s i o n i s n o t r e a l l y a n i n t e l l i g e n c e . O u r m e m o r y i s o u r c o h e r e n c e , o u r r e a s o n , o u r f e e l i n g , e v e n o u r a c t i o n . W i t h o u t i t , w e a r e n o t h i n g . ( B u ? u e l 4 - 5 ) B u ? u e l ? s p o i g n a n t a n d d i s t u r b i n g s e n t i m e n t s s h o w c o n c e r n f o r t h e s a m e f u n d a m e n t a l i s s u e s t h a t L o c k e o u t l i n e d i n h i s E s sa y Con cerning Hu man Understanding . A n d s o w e r e t u r n t o t h e c o r e p r o b l e m s t h a t p r e s e n t t h e m s e l v e s a s t h e e n q u i r y i n t o t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n m e m o r y a n d i d e n t i t y : w h a t s e n s e o f e x i s t e n c e , w h a t s e n s e o f l i v e d e x p e r i e n c e , w h a t s e n s e o f s e l f , c a n b e s u s t a i n e d w i t h o u t m e m o r y a n d i t s r o l e i n a n c h o r i n g o u r t e m p o r a l i t y ? T e s l a c o n t e m p l a t e s t h e s e v e r y q u e s t i o n s , b u t o f c o u r s e h e h a s n o d e f i n i t i v e a n s w e r s . W h a t h e d o e s h a v e , h o w e v e r , i s a f a n t a s t i c s o l u t i o n t o L e s ? s i m m e d i a t e m e m o r y p r o b l e m . H e p r e s e n t s L e s w i t h The Olfactor y Memor y Machine . A n e x t r a o r d i n a r y c o n t r a p t i o n t h a t c o n s i s t s o f a b o x w i t h a c r a n k i n g h a n d l e p r o t r u d i n g f r o m o n e s i d e a n d a r u b b e r t u b e p r o t r u d i n g f r o m a n o t h e r . T h e t u b e i s i n s e r t e d i n t o L e s ? s n o s e a n d h i s 29 e y e s a r e c o v e r e d w i t h a p a i r o f c o m p l e t e l y d a r k e n e d g o g g l e s , i n d u c i n g a v i s u a l d e p r i v a t i o n t h a t a l l o w s h i s o l f a c t o r y o r g a n s t o d o m i n a t e . T h e m a c h i n e i s m e a n t t o t r i g g e r r e c o l l e c t i o n b y s t i m u l a t i n g t h e s e n s e o f s m e l l , f o r " n o t h i n g i s m o r e m e m o r a b l e t h a n a s m e l l . . . . S m e l l s d e t o n a t e s o f t l y i n o u r m e m o r y l i k e p o i g n a n t l a n d m i n e s h i d d e n u n d e r t h e w e e d y m a s s [ t h e u n d e r g r o w t h ] o f y e a r s . H i t a t r i p w i r e o f s m e l l a n d m e m o r i e s e x p l o d e a l l a t o n c e " ( A c k e r m a n 3 ) . L e s b e g i n s t o t u r n t h e c r a n k i n g h a n d l e , a n d w e s e e t h e i n n e r w o r k i n g s o f t h e c o n t r a p t i o n - a f a n s p i n s , a d r o p o f l i q u i d ( s c e n t e d o i l p e r h a p s o r l u b r i c a n t t o s m o o t h t h e r u s t y w o r k i n g s o f L e s ? s b r a i n ) r u n s d o w n a p i e c e o f s t r i n g - f i n a l l y e x p l a i n i n g t h e m y s t e r i o u s s e r i e s o f i m a g e s i n t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e f i l m . L e s ? s c o n s c i o u s n e s s i s t h r u s t b a c k w a r d s i n t i m e . C o m p l e x v i s i o n s o f h i s p a s t a c t i o n s " l e a p o u t f r o m t h e u n d e r g r o w t h , " ( A c k e r m a n ) r e v e a l i n g , a t l a s t , t h e i d e n t i t y t h a t s e e m e d l o s t f o r e v e r . A w o m a n k n i t s , h e r h a n d s d e x t e r o u s l y w o r k i n g a p a i r o f k n i t t i n g n e e d l e s . S h e i s t h e s a m e w o m a n w h o a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e f i l m p l a c e d o n t h e w i n d o w s i l l t h e m a l e v o l e n t p o t p l a n t t h a t e f f e c t i v e l y d i s l o c a t e d L e s ? s m e m o r y . H e r k n i t t i n g n o t o n l y p e r p e t u a t e s h e r d o m e s t i c i m a g e , e s t a b l i s h e d w i t h h e r b e a u t i f i c a t i o n o f t h e w i n d o w s i l l w i t h t h e p l a n t a n d L e s opera t i n g the Olfactory Memory Machine . 30 t h e n h e r v a c u u m i n g o f t h e l i v i n g r o o m c a r p e t , b u t a l s o p r o v i d e s a m e t a p h o r f o r t h e k n i t t i n g t o g e t h e r o f L e s ? s f r a g m e n t e d m e m o r i e s a n d t h e s u b s e q u e n t t y i n g u p o f t h e n a r r a t i v e . W h e n h e a v y f o o t f a l l s f r o m u p s t a i r s u p s e t a b a l l o f w o o l b e s i d e h e r , i t s u n r a v e l i n g s e t s u p a n o t h e r m e t a p h o r , t h a t o f t h e u n r a v e l i n g o r u n k n o t t i n g o f t h e s t o r y - t h e d e n o u e m e n t . I n t h i s c l i m a c t i c p a r t o f t h e f i l m , t h e d i s p a r a t e s n i p p e t s o f m e m o r i e s f r o m t h e r e s t o f t h e f i l m a r e s t r u n g t o g e t h e r i n c h r o n o l o g i c a l o r d e r , p r o v i d i n g a p r o g r e s s i v e u n f o l d i n g o f t h e e v e n t s t h a t f i n a l l y l e n d s s e n s e t o t h e m . W e a r e r e i n t r o d u c e d t o t h e m o m e n t w h e n L e s s t a n d s i n t h e c o r r i d o r , h o l d i n g a k e y i n t h e l o c k o f a d o o r , c o n t e m p l a t i n g w h e t h e r t o u n l o c k i t . E v e n t u a l l y h e d e c i d e s a g a i n s t i t , o p t i n g r a t h e r t o k n e e l d o w n a n d p e e r t h r o u g h t h e k e y h o l e . H e s e e s t h e l o v e r s , s h a r i n g a t e n d e r m o m e n t xviii . T h i s i s t h e p o i n t a t w h i c h t h e o r i g i n a l p r e s e n t a t i o n o f t h i s m e m o r y b r o k e o f f , l e a v i n g i t s m e a n i n g a n d p u r p o s e u n c l e a r . N o w , h o w e v e r , t h e e p i s o d e i s c o m p l e t e d . T h e l o v e r s h e a r L e s a t t h e d o o r . H e f l e e s , a n d i n h i s m a d d a s h t o e s c a p e h e a c c i d e n t a l l y k n o c k s a p e d e s t r i a n d o w n w i t h h i s c a r . H e i s s h o c k e d a n d d i s o r i e n t a t e d , a n d i n h i s p a n i c h e c h o o s e s t o r u n i n s t e a d o f h e l p , b u t n o t b e f o r e h e f i n d s t h e a c c u s a t o r y nki s i n kondi i n t h e s t r e e t b e s i d e h i s v i c t i m ? a m e m e n t o m o r i i n t h e m o s t a c c u r a t e M e me n t o mor i 31 s e n s e . A n d s o L e s ? s m e m o r y i s r e s t o r e d t o h i m , b u t t h i s s u c c e s s i s o v e r w h e l m e d b y t h e i r o n i c n a t u r e o f h i s r e c o v e r e d k n o w l e d g e . T h e t h i n g s h e h a s s t r i v e d s o l o n g a n d h a r d t o r e m e m b e r a r e e x a c t l y t h o s e t h a t h e w o u l d w a n t t o f o r g e t , a n d " n o t h i n g f i x e s a t h i n g s o i n t e n s e l y i n t h e m e m o r y , " a s M i c h e l d e M o n t a i g n e k e e n l y o b s e r v e s , " a s t h e w i s h t o f o r g e t i t . " 32 Notes i Of cours e, social and cult ural identi ties are also heavily reliant on me mo ry . Definin g peo ples - co mmu nities and cult ures - is always an articulati on of trad itio n, belie f and shared history . i i Before dis cus sing his prin ciple of personal identity, Locke fin ds it neces sary firs t to define the par a me ters of what a person might be, de scribing one as: ??a thi nki ng intel ligen t being, that ha s reason and reflection, and can consider itse l f as itsel f, the sa me think ing thing in di ffe r ent ti mes and places; which it does only by that co ns cio usness, which is ins epar able fr om th ink ing, an d as it see ms to me essen tial to it?? (Locke 302). iii L ocke ar gues that whenever a person uses their senses to, ?see, hear, smell, taste, feel, me di tate, or will anything,? they recognise the fact tha t they are indee d usi ng their senses. ?T hus it is al ways as to our pr esent se nsations and perceptions: an d by this ever yone is to hi ms el f that whi ch he calls self? (Locke 302) . i v T hese are not new ideas. In Rudolph Mat ??s noir classic, D.O.A (1950), Edmo nd O?Br ien play s a sma ll town ins urance sales man attend ing a conven tio n in San Francisco, who, after a night out on the town, discover s that he has been fa tally poisoned wi th a slow releasin g toxin, and begins his deat h- watch throu gh the city? s dark underbelly in an atte mpt to fin d his mur der er (Hirs ch 173) . And, in Ala n Parker?s Angel Heart ( 1987) Mickey Rourke plays detective Harr y Angel, hired to track down the enigma tic and mur der ous Johnny Favourite, onl y to discover that he and Fav our ite are in fa ct the sa me pers on. v In antici patio n of Chinese inquir ies into the evol uti on of the ? me mory palace? sy stem, Ricci as cri bed the idea of me mory trainin g to the anc ie nt Greek poe t Si mo nides (Spence 2) . Frances Yates, in descr ibing the fir st of three Latin sour ces fo r the classical ar t of me mo ry , gives an acc ount of the event that is said to have sugges t ed to the poet the pr inci ples of the art of me mory . As the story goes, Si mon ides wa s called upon to recite a poe m in honour of the hos t of a large banq uet gat hering, a noble ma n by the na me of Sc opas. Si mo nides, however, include d in his pr ais e a pas sage hono uring th e de migods Cast er and Pollux. Scopas, taking offence, spite fully ins tr ucted the poet to be paid only hal f the sum agreed for his servi ces and that the twi n gods to who m he had devo ted hal f the poe m s hou ld pay the balanc e. Later , a message ar rived, in for mi ng Si monides that two men were waitin g to talk to hi m outside. Si mo nides excus ed hi msel f and left, but foun d no one ther e. Just then, the gr eat hall? s roof collaps ed killi ng Scopas and ever yone else in atte ndance. The bod ies of those killed we re so obl iter ate d that even their relatives coul d not recog niz e the m. Si mo n ides, ho wever , coul d re me mber the precise or der and locat ion in which th ey had been sitting, an d as he recalled the m one by one the ir bodies co uld be ident i fie d (Yates 1-2) . v i The Kong o ar e compr is ed of those peop le who speak the Kik ong o la nguage. Wi th a popu latio n of roughly three mi l lio n, they ar e dis tr ibuted a mong the republics of Angola, Zaire and Congo (Philli p s 244). v ii A nkisi and its power s are ar oused throu gh abus ive treat ment of it. So, ?by dr ivi ng nails int o it, co mpar in g it unfavo ur ably to a lump of wood, and threate ning to thr ow it away in the bush? the spir it represented by the fetis h is provoke d int o action (Phill ips 246). v iii Here we see, very simply , the power of montage. Juxtap os ing these shots makes the m literally and figur atively collide. It is fro m this figurative collisi on tha t new meaning is pr oduced (Hay ward 79) . i x Eug?ne Iones co?s thoughts on me mo r y are particularly sy mpa thetic of Les?s condition: ?The light o f me mor y, or rather the light th at me mo ry lends to thin gs, is the palest li ght of al l. . . . I am not quite sure whether I am dr ea mi ng or reme mb ering, whether I have lived my li fe or drea me d it. Just as drea ms do, me mor y make s me pro fou ndl y awar e of the unreality , the evanescence of the wor ld, a fle eting i ma ge in the movin g wa ter.? (Iones co 190) x Les, too, is woken up at the end of his narr ative. He wakes up to the fac ts about his misd eed, and his own ?true? natur e. x i Jean Vigo pp7 6 xii All my fi l ms have been made pos sible, either entir ely of par tial ly, but witho ut fa il, thr oug h the invest me nt of my parents . To a certain ext ent th is has come, as was the case with Bu ?uel? s mo ther? s invest me nts , in the for m of money . Mor e oft en though, the y have fr eely invested their ti me, as well as those other under valued co mmo d ities, their concer n and sympa thy . To any student sett ing ou t in the 33 notor iously costly fil m fiel d, I woul d reco mme nd that they seek out generous pa tr ons ? pre ferab ly people who li ke the m. Possibly their parents. x iii Perhaps this has some thi ng to do wit h the fact that the sou rce of Bu?uel and Dali? s ima ges lies in dr ea ms ? the ima ges lod ge so effect ively in the subconsci ous as a result of their unc ons cious or igi ns. x iv J. H. Mathe ws challe nges this ty pe of analy sis of Un Chien Andalou, sugges t ing that while interpretatio ns of this sort are of course dis cr etiona l, that in fac t an atte mp t to uphold any one reading of the fil m ulti mately exposes two fla ws of which no surr ealist could ever be accus ed. Mathews argu es that the desire to sup por t one deduct ion excl usively , de mo nstrates the need to consider the fil m in suc h a way as to render the ir rational con tent that it pr esents, more rational, and ther efore more palata ble . And, in addit i on to this, the neurotic nece ss ity to punt a rational exp la nation co unter acts a sty le of sur realist hu mour that is di stincti vely radical, one of the mos t dis ti nguish ing qua lities of a fil m ir relevantly entitle d, An Andalusian Dog. For Mathews, by negating th is essential ele me nt, the reac h and capacity of the scene that is being scrutinized so inten tly is unduly res tricted (Mathews 87). xv T he addr ess on the card for Tesla & Sons locates the m in Wonderville ? a bar ely dis guised nod to Alice once agai n. xvi I chos e the na me Tes la wi t h the idea tha t the co mp any of mec hain itia ns is in so me way related to Nikola Tes la ( 1856 ?19 43) , the fa me d A merican electr ic al eng ineer and invent or wh o deve lope d the first alternatin g-curr ent induction mot or, as well as seve r al for ms of oscillator s, the tesla coil, and a wireless gu ida nce sys te m for ships , and who re mains a fav or ite sub ject of science fict ion writes because of conti nued speculati on ov er several fan tas tical de vice s he supp osedly invente d and the allege d conspiracy that has kept the m under wraps. xvii My italics x vi ii Les ?s relations hip to the lover s re mai ns unclear, but wha t is appar ent is his infa tuati on with the wo ma n, which opens up ma ny alternative readings, inc lud in g the pos sibil it y that Les and the wo ma n are the ms elves lov ers and this is his dis covery of her betray al. A far more si nis ter possibil i ty is that Les is simply a voy eur . 34 Voices from the Other Side 35 The marriage of reason and nightmare which has dominated the 20 th century has given birth to an ever more ambiguous world. Across the communications landscape move the spectres of sinister technologies and the dreams that money can buy. J. G. Ballard, Introduc t i o n to the French edition of Crash , 1974 36 Contact ? I h e a r , I h e a r ! ? e x c l a i m e d D o m P e d r o I I a s h e l e a p t o u t o f h i s c h a i r . T h e B r a z i l i a n e m p e r o r ? s c r y o f a m a z e m e n t a t A l e x a n d e r G r a h a m B e l l ? s d e m o n s t r a t i o n o f t h e t e l e p h o n e a t t h e U . S . C e n t e n n i a l E x p o s i t i o n i n 1 8 7 6 1 s o u n d e d t h e s y m b o l i c u n i v e r s a l u n b l o c k i n g o f o u r a u r a l f a c u l t i e s . I n d e e d , i n o u r m o d e r n i t y , o u r c e a s e l e s s e x p a n s i o n , t h e t e l e p h o n e i s o u r e a r a n d w e a r e d e a f w i t h o u t i t . I t i s a n e x t e n s i o n o f o u r s e l v e s , a n d a p o i n t o f c o n t a c t w i t h o u r w o r l d . M a r s h a l l M c L u h a n h a s e v e n g o n e s o f a r a s t o s u g g e s t t h a t t h e e n h a n c e m e n t o f e a r a n d v o i c e p r e c i p i t a t e d b y t h e t e l e p h o n e c o n s t i t u t e s a k i n d o f e x t r a s e n s o r y p e r c e p t i o n ( M c L u h a n 2 8 9 ) . T h e t e l e p h o n e h a s b e c o m e p a r t o f o u r m e n t a l c o m p o s i t i o n , s u t u r e d i n t o o u r c o n s c i o u s n e s s , a n d t h r o u g h i t w e h e a r v o i c e s . T h i s e n c o u n t e r w i t h v o i c e s f r o m t h e o t h e r s i d e i s a s t r a n g e e n g a g e m e n t i n d e e d . T h e y a r e d i s e m b o d i e d , b u t e x c e e d i n g l y p r e s e n t , a b l e t o c o m m u n i c a t e a l l m a n n e r o f i d e a a n d t h o u g h t a c r o s s t h e v a s t n e s s o f t h e g l o b e , d i r e c t l y i n t o o u r h o m e s w i t h n e a r - i m m e d i a c y . A n d b e c a u s e o f t h e i n c o r p o r e a l i t y o f t h e t e l e p h o n i c v o i c e , t h e t r a d i t i o n a l p r i n c i p l e s o f a f a c e - t o - f a c e d i a l o g u e d o n o t a p p l y . W h e n c o n v e r s i n g b y t e l e p h o n e , o n e i s c o m p l e t e l y c u t o f f f r o m t h e v i s u a l c u e s t h a t a r i s e f r o m p h y s i c a l e x c h a n g e a n d a s s i s t i n t h e c o n v e y a n c e o f m e a n i n g : ? T h e r e i s n o f l a s h i n g g l a n c e t o ? r e g i s t e r ? [ ? ] w r a t h ; n o c u r l i n g l i p t o b e t o k e n s c o r n ; n o t w i n k l i n g e y e t o s u g g e s t w h i m s i c a l i t y ; n o n e o f t h e c h a r m o f p e r s o n a l p r e s e n c e t h a t m i g h t g i v e s u b s t a n c e t o a n a t t e n u a t e d a r g u m e n t o r p o w e r t o f e e b l e r e t o r t . T h e v o i c e m u s t d o i t a l l ? ( P e t e r s 1 9 8 ) 2 . 37 A s a c o n s e q u e n c e o f t h i s v i s u a l a b s e n c e , t h i s ? b l i n d n e s s ? , t h e t e l e p h o n e c o u l d v e r y w e l l b e c o n s i d e r e d i m p a i r e d . B u t i t s s e n s o r y s e l e c t i v e n e s s c o u l d a l s o b e i t s s t r o n g e s t a t t r i b u t e ? a d i s e n g a g e m e n t w i t h t h e e y e t h a t e f f e c t i v e l y s t i m u l a t e s a r e e n g a g e m e n t w i t h t h e i m a g i n a t i o n w h i c h r e - e m p h a s i s e s v e r b a l e x p r e s s i o n . H e r e , c o n t a c t i s a c h i e v e d b y s p e a k i n g t o t h e ? m i n d ? s e y e ? . S a n d y S t o n e s u g g e s t s t h a t i t i s n o t m e r e l y v o i c e s t h a t a r e t r a n s m i t t e d t h r o u g h t h e w i r e , ? o t h e r t h i n g s a r e s e n t r i g h t a l o n g w i t h t h e m : A g e n c y , I c o n , B o d i e s , D e s i r e ? ( S t o n e 4 0 0 ) . U n s h a c k l e d f r o m p h y s i c a l i t y , t h e p o s s i b i l i t i e s f o r e x p r e s s i o n b e c o m e i n f i n i t e a n d t h e b o d i l e s s s u b j e c t i s o p e n e d u p t o w o n d r o u s n e w w a y s o f connectin g . I n t h e s h o r t f i l m Dialtone , J o h n n y ( K i e r o n V a n R o o y e n ) , t h e f i l m ? s p r o t a g o n i s t , l o n g s f o r c o n t a c t . H e use s t h e p h o n e ? u t i l i s i n g i t s c o n n e c t i v e f u n c t i o n a n d e x p l o i t i n g t h e b o d i l e s s a n o n y m i t y i t p r o v i d e s ? p l a c i n g a c a l l t o a s e x c h a t - l i n e . I n t h e e n s u i n g c o n v e r s a t i o n h e h a s w i t h t h e d i s e m b o d i e d f e m a l e v o i c e o n t h e o t h e r e n d , J o h n n y b e g i n s t o a r t i c u l a t e h i s d e s i r e s a n d g i v e v o i c e t o h i s f a n t a s i e s . T h e f i l m i s p r i m a r i l y a n e n q u i r y i n t o t h e r o l e t h a t s p o k e n l a n g u a g e p l a y s i n t h e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f a s e x u a l s t a t e ; h o w s p e e c h , p a r t i c u l a r l y s p e e c h d i s e m b o d i e d b y t h e i n t e r v e n t i o n o f t e c h n o l o g y ( i n t h i s c a s e t h e t e l e p h o n e ) , e n c o u r a g e s t h e m e n t a l r e f i g u r i n g o f b o d i e s , w h e r e t h e i d e n t i t i e s o f t h e s u b j e c t s o n e i t h e r e n d o f t h e l i n e a r e i n c o n s t a n t f l u x . T h e f i l m b e g i n s w i t h a v o i c e , s p o k e n o v e r a b l a c k s c r e e n ? a d i s e m b o d i e d v o i c e t o b e g i n a m e d i t a t i o n o n d i s e m b o d i m e n t . ? I t h i n k 38 a b o u t y o u c o n s t a n t l y , ? t h e v o i c e s a y s , ? a b o u t m a k i n g l o v e t o y o u . ? 3 L a t e r w e d i s c o v e r t h a t t h i s i s J o h n n y ? s v o i c e , a n d t h i s i s a d e s p e r a t e i n n e r d e s i r e m a d e a u d i b l e . T h e o b j e c t o f t h i s d e s i r e r e m a i n s o b s c u r e , b u t b e c a u s e a s c e n e i n w h i c h J o h n n y s u r r e p t i t i o u s l y w a t c h e s a y o u n g w o m a n a s t h e y r i d e o n t h e b u s t o g e t h e r f o l l o w s t h i s v o i c e - o v e r , o n e c o u l d p o s s i b l y a s s u m e t h a t h e i s t a l k i n g t o h e r . I s t h i s a s n i p p e t o f a t e l e p h o n e c o n v e r s a t i o n ? P e r h a p s . I f s o , t h e c o n f u s i o n o v e r i t s m e a n i n g a n d r e l a t i o n t o w h a t w e a r e s e e i n g i s m o s t c e r t a i n l y p r o d u c e d b y i t s i n c o m p l e t e n e s s ? f o r t h e t e l e p h o n e b y i t s v e r y n a t u r e s p l i t s a ? c o n v e r s a t i o n i n t o h a l v e s t h a t m e e t o n l y i n t h e c y b e r s p a c e o f t h e w i r e . ? W i t h o u t t h e o t h e r h a l f o f t h e d i a l o g u e t h e c o m m u n i c a t i o n r e m a i n s c r y p t i c ( P e t e r s 1 9 9 ) . M a r k T w a i n c o n t e m p l a t e s t h i s v e r y p e c u l i a r i t y i n h i s s h o r t s k i t A Telephoni c Conver sation : C o n s i d e r t h a t a c o n v e r s a t i o n b y t e l e p h o n e - - w h e n y o u a r e s i m p l y s i t t i n g b y a n d n o t t a k i n g a n y p a r t i n t h a t c o n v e r s a t i o n - - i s o n e o f t h e s o l e m n e s t c u r i o s i t i e s o f m o d e r n l i f e ? W i t h o u t a n s w e r i n g , I h a n d e d t h e t e l e p h o n e t o t h e a p p l i c a n t , a n d s a t d o w n . T h e n f o l l o w e d t h a t q u e e r e s t o f a l l t h e q u e e r t h i n g s i n t h i s w o r l d - - a c o n v e r s a t i o n w i t h o n l y o n e e n d o f i t . Y o u h e a r q u e s t i o n s a s k e d ; y o u d o n ' t h e a r t h e a n s w e r . Y o u h e a r i n v i t a t i o n s g i v e n ; y o u h e a r n o t h a n k s i n r e t u r n . Y o u h a v e l i s t e n i n g p a u s e s o f d e a d s i l e n c e , f o l l o w e d b y a p p a r e n t l y i r r e l e v a n t a n d u n j u s t i f i a b l e e x c l a m a t i o n s o f g l a d s u r p r i s e o r s o r r o w o r d i s m a y . Y o u c a n ' t m a k e h e a d o r t a i l o f t h e t a l k , b e c a u s e y o u 39 Johnny (K i e r o n V a n R o o y e n ) make s the call. n e v e r h e a r a n y t h i n g t h a t t h e p e r s o n a t t h e o t h e r e n d o f t h e w i r e s a y s . ( T w a i n ) E v e n t h o u g h d i a l o g u e , a s i t o c c u r s o n t h e t e l e p h o n e , i s e x t o l l e d f o r i t s s e n s e o f i m m e d i a t e p r e s e n c e , t h e c o n n e c t i o n o f i t s t w o h a l v e s t a k e s p l a c e i n a r e m o v e d , v i r t u a l n o - m a n ? s - l a n d . A p a r a n o i d i n h i s o r h e r a n x i e t y m i g h t s e e t h i s p l a c e a s a s u s p i c i o u s ? b l a c k h o l e ? : ? I t ? s b a d t o h e a r m y s e l f t a l k o n a n y o c c a s i o n . I t ? s w o r s e t o t a l k i n t o a n e m p t y b l a c k h o l e , w i t h o u t t h e c o m f o r t a n d g u i d e o f a r e s p o n s i v e f a c e b e f o r e m e ? ( P e t e r s 1 9 8 ) 4 . B u t f o r t h o s e u n a f r a i d t o p a r t a k e i n t h e p l e a s u r e s o f v i r t u a l e m b o d i m e n t , t h e r e m o t e e l e c t r i c a l s p a c e t h a t t h e t e l e p h o n e t a p s i n t o c a n a l s o b e a t a n t a l i s i n g n e w r e a l m o f s e x u a l f a n c y . Self-Abandon J o h n n y ? s f o r a y i n t o t h e e r o t i c e n v i r o n m e n t b e t w e e n r e c e i v e r s i s s h a k y a t f i r s t . H e h a s t o f i n d h i s f e e t ? n o t a n e a s y u n d e r t a k i n g w h e n 40 y o u a r e d i s e m b o d i e d ? a s h e n a v i g a t e s t h e v a g u e t e r r a i n . W h e n h i s c o n n e c t i o n f i n a l l y g o e s t h r o u g h , J o h n n y i s n e r v o u s a n d c i r c u m s p e c t . T h e w o m a n w h o a n s w e r s h i s c a l l , o n t h e o t h e r h a n d , i s c o m p o s e d a n d a r t i c u l a t e , j u s t a s o n e w o u l d e x p e c t f o r m a p r o f e s s i o n a l . S h e i n t r o d u c e s h e r s e l f a s L i n d i , a n d i m m e d i a t e l y t r i e s t o e l i c i t a s e x u a l r e a c t i o n : ? I ? v e b e e n w a i t i n g f o r y o u , j u s ? f a n t a s i s i n g o u t l o u d , a n ? , a h h h h , I c o u l d u s e a w e l l - h u n g m a n ? ? B u t J o h n n y i s w e a r y o f t h e i m p r e s s i o n h e i s p r o j e c t i n g a n d h e w a n t s t o p u t t h e p i c t u r e , w h i c h s h e m i g h t h a v e i n h e r h e a d o f h i m , s t r a i g h t . ? I ? m n o t j e r k i n g o f f o n t h e p h o n e r i g h t n o w , ? h e a s s u r e s h e r , f u l l y a w a r e o f t h e l i m i t l e s s m a n i f e s t a t i o n s a v a i l a b l e i n c y b e r s p a c e , a n d t r y i n g d e s p e r a t e l y t o m a i n t a i n c o n t r o l o v e r h i s o w n b o d y . T h e t e l e p h o n e i s a d e v i c e o f ? c o n t r o l a n d u n c o n t r o l ? . W h i l e t h e d i s t a n c e i n h e r e n t i n t e l e p h o n i c i n t e r a c t i o n i s a f o r m o f p r o t e c t i o n , a n e m o t i o n a l d e f e n c e t h a t a l l o w s o n e t o l i t e r a l l y s a v e f a c e , t h e i m m e a s u r a b l e p o s s i b i l i t i e s , i n c l u d i n g t h o s e o f i n t i m a c y a n d e m o t i o n a l v u l n e r a b i l i t y t h a t e m e r g e t h r o u g h a r t i c u l a t i o n s o f w a n t s a n d n e e d s a n d a c t s o f c o n f e s s i o n , c o n s t a n t l y t h r e a t e n t h e s u b j e c t ? s r e s t r a i n t ( H a n s o n 4 4 ) . I n t h e b e g i n n i n g , J o h n n y i s a t p a i n s t o s i d e s t e p t h e o b j e c t o f p h o n e s e x . H e e x p l a i n s t o L i n d i t h a t h e d o e s n ? t u s u a l l y d o s t u f f l i k e t h i s a n d a s k s h e r i f i t d o e s n ' t g i v e h e r t h e c r e e p s t o h a v e a l l these g u y s c a l l i n g h e r . H e r e , J o h n n y i n a d v e r t a n t l y r e v e a l s h i s o w n p r e j u d i c e a n d p r e c o n c e p t i o n s o f t h e t y pe o f p e o p l e w h o c a l l c h a t l i n e s ; h e b e l i e v e s t h a t h e i s n o t l i k e t h e m . T h i s i s a n o t h e r w a y f o r h i m t o k e e p c o n t r o l , a n d , i r o n i c a l l y , k e e p h i s d i s t a n c e . H e i s o b v i o u s l y m i s s i n g t h e p o i n t . P h o n e s e x r e q u i r e s t h e r e l i n q u i s h m e n t o f c o n r o l t o a l l o w f o r t h e f r e e f l o w o f d e s c r i p t i o n a n d n a r r a t i v e ? m a i n t a i n i n g t e l e p h o n i c c o n t r o l i n 41 t h i s i n s t a n c e i s l i k e t a l k i n g i n t o a m i r r o r ; y o u h a v e a n a f f i n i t y f o r e v e r y t h i n g b e i n g s a i d , b u t i t i s n o t a l l t h a t m u c h f u n . T h e c h a r a c t e r s i n N i c h o l s o n B a k e r ? s p h o n e - s e x n o v e l , Vo x ( t h e m o s t i n f l u e n t i a l t e x t i n m y c o n c e p t i o n o f Dialtone , b u t u t i m a t l y f a r r e m o v e d ) , d o n o t s u f f e r f r o m c o n t r o l i s s u e s . T h e i r s i s a g i v e a n d t a k e r e l a t i o n s h i p , w h e r e s t o r i e s a n d f a n t a s i e s a r e f r e e l y e x c h a n g e d . J i m a n d A b b y c a l l a n a d u l t p a r t y - l i n e , a n d s o m e h o w , a m o n g s t t h e l e w d c h a t t e r , d i s c o v e r t h a t t h e y l i k e e a c h o t h e r ? s v o i c e s . T h e y r e t r e a t t o t h e ? f i b e r - o p t i c a l ? b a c k r o o m ? ? f o r a m o r e i n t i m a t e o n e - o n - o n e t a l k . T h e r e s u l t i n g c o n v e r s a t i o n m a k e s u p t h e e n t i r e n o v e l . J i m l i v e s i n a c i t y o n A m e r i c a ? s w e s t c o a s t , A b b y i n o n e o n t h e e a s t c o a s t ; s e p a r a t e d l i t e r a l l y b y t h e s p a n o f t h e c o n t i n e n t a s w e l l a s t h e a n o n y m i t y a f f o r d e d b y t h e p h o n e , t h e y e n g a g e e a s i l y i n e r o t i c n a r r a t i o n s , e n t e r i n g v i c a r i o u s l y i n t o e a c h o t h e r ? s s c e n a r i o s a n d a s s u m i n g s h i f t i n g r o l e s . T h e c a l l i s a m e e t i n g o f l i k e m i n d s . B o t h A b b y a n d J i m a r e i n t e l l i g e n t , a r t i c u l a t e , a n d i n s i g h t f u l , a n d o f c o u r s e h a v e a p e n c h a n t f o r a u t o e r o t i c i s m . A b b y i s a v i r t u o s o s e x u a l r a c o n t e u s e , t u r n e d o n p r e d o m i n a n t l y b y h e r o w n c a p a c i t y t o t i t i l l a t e . J i m ? s d e s i r e i s t o b e p r i v y t o t h e d e s i r e s ? o f w o m a n . H e i s a c e r e b r a l p e e p i n g t o m , ? g e t t i n g o f f ? o n p e e k i n g i n o n w o m a n ? s t h o u g h t s r a t h e r t h a n t h e i r s h o w e r s , a n d A b b y h a s j u s t t h e i m a g e f o r h i m ? s h e d e s c r i b e s h o w s h e m a s t u r b a t e s in the shower , a n d w h a t s h e t h i n k s o f w h e n s h e d o e s s o . ? I t ? s a m i r a c l e , ? J i m a n n o u n c e s , ? a t e l e p h o n e c o n v e r s a t i o n I w a n t t o h a v e . I lo ve t h e t e l e p h o n e . ? A b b y l i k e s i t t o o . S h e s a y s t h a t i t h a s p o w e r , b e y o n d i t s b a s i c c o n n e c t i v i t y , c a p a b l e o f m a k i n g o n e belie ve ; 42 s h e r e f e r s t o t h e c h i l d ? s g a m e o f t a l k i n g i n t o a t o y p h o n e a n d i m a g i n i n g a n o t h e r ? s p r e s e n c e o n t h e o t h e r e n d 5 , i n t i m a t i n g t h a t t h e d e v i c e ? s f o r m a n d f u n c t i o n h a s a n i n t r i n s i c q u a l i t y t h a t e n c o u r a g e s t h e p l a y o f f a n t a s y . A t t i m e s , J i m a n d A b b y ? s r e c i p r o c i t y t r a n s e n d s s i m p l e e r o t i c i s m . M a u n d e r i n g t a l e s t h a t s e t o u t t o a r o u s e , d e v i a t e i n t o c o n g e n i a l d e t a i l s o f t h e i r e v e r y d a y l i v e s ; h e d e s c r i b e s t h e v i e w f r o m h i s w i n d o w , ? I c a n s e e a s t r e e t l i g h t w i t h l o t s o f s p i k e h o l e s i n i t , f r o m u t i l i t y w o r k e r s ? I m e a n a w o o d e n t e l e p h o n e p o l e w i t h a s t r e e t l i g h t o n i t . . . . T h e s t r e e t l i g h t i s p h o t o - a c t i v a t e d , a n d w a t c h i n g i t c o m e o n i s r e a l l y o n e o f t h e m o s t b e a u t i f u l t h i n g s ; ? ( 9 ) a n d t h e y i m p a r t l y r i c a l o b s e r v a t i o n s o n m o d e r n i t y ; s h e s a y s o f p o p s o n g s t h a t s i m p l y f a d e - o u t i n s t e a d o f e n d i n g o n a c h o r d , ? [ i t ? s ] a k i n d o f a r t i s t i c s l o p p i n e s s , t h i s a t t e m p t t o i m p l y t h a t o h y e a h , w e ? r e a b u n c h o f e n d l e s s l y c r e a t i v e f o l k s w h o j a m a l l n i g h t , a n d t h e b a d o l d r e c o r d p r o d u c e r f i n a l l y h a s t o t u r n d o w n t h e v o l u m e o n u s j u s t s o w e d o n ? t f i l l t h e w h o l e a l b u m w i t h o n e m o n s t e r s o n g . . . . ? ( 2 7 ) . B y g r o u n d i n g h i s c h a r a c t e r s i n t h e p a t h o l o g i e s o f d a y - t o - d a y l i v i n g , B a k e r e f f e c t i v l y u p s e t s t h e b o u n d s o f s e x u a l d e s i r e a n d i s a b l e t o e x p a n d o n h i s o w n i m p r e s s i o n s o f t h e i d i o s y n c r a s i e s o f m o d e r n s o c i e t y . T h e r e c o m e s a p o i n t i n t h e n o v e l w h e n o n e r e a l i s e s t h a t J i m a n d A b b y a r e s i m p l y u s i n g t h e t e l e p h o n e a n d e a c h o t h e r a s d e v i c e s t h a t s a f e g u a r d t h e m f r o m t h e a w k w a r d n e s s o f p h y s i c a l i n t e r a c t i o n , a n d i n t h i s , B a k e r e x p o s e s a n o d d s o r t o f p r i d e h a r b o r e d b y h i s c h a r a c t e r s , w h i c h i s r e a l l y t o b l a m e f o r t h e i r i s o l a t e d l i v e s . O f c o u r s e w i t h a l l t h e c o m p l i c a t i o n s o f e m b o d i m e n t ? w h e r e y o u a r e l o c a t e d , w h a t y o u l o o k 43 l i k e , w h a t y o u w e a r , h o w y o u s t a n d a n d w a l k a n d s i t - i t i s f a r e a s i e r t o p i c k u p t h e p h o n e t h a n i t i s a c t u a l l y t o m e e t p e o p l e f a c e - t o - f a c e . I n a w a y , Vo x r e v e a l s t h e b i z z a r e ( d i s ) c o n n e c t i o n s o f o u r c o n t e m p o r a r y e x i s t a n c e , h o w , t h r o u g h t e c h n o l o g y , p e o p l e h a v e a c h i e v e d a p e c u l i a r s e n s e o f r e m o t e i n t i m a c y . B a c k t o J o h n n y ? s c a l l . H e a s k s L i n d i w h a t s h e i s d o i n g a n d s h e s a y s t h a t s h e i s a t h o m e l y i n g o n h e r q u e e n s i z e b e d , w e a r i n g n o t h i n g b u t a t a u p e c o l o u r e d c a m i s o l e . T h e s e a r e c l a i m s i m p o s s i b l e t o v e r i f y ; t h e l i k e l i h o o d i s t h a t s h e i s i n t h e m u n d a n e s e t t i n g o f a n o f f i c e o r s t u d y , a p l a c e m o r e c o n d u c i v e t o w o r k r a t h e r t h a n p l a y . R o b e r t A l t m a n i l l u s t r a t e s t h i s i d e a o f dis - lo cation w o n d e r f u l l y i n h i s f i l m Short Cut s ( 1 9 9 3 ) . J e n n i f e r J a s o n L e i g h p l a y s a w o m a n s u p p l e m e n t i n g t h e f a m i l y i n c o m e b y w o r k i n g a s a p h o n e s e x o p e r a t o r w h o s p i n s g r a p h i c s e x f a n t a s i e s t o s t r a n g e r s o v e r t h e p h o n e w h i l e a t t h e s a m e t i m e c h a n g i n g h e r b a b y ? s d i a p e r 6 . L i n d i , n o d o u b t , o p e r a t e s t h e s a m e w a y , a b l e t o a t t e n d t o J o h n n y ? s f a n t a s i e s w i t h o u t i m p o s i n g h e r o w n r e a l i t y . A n d , a s J o h n n y s t a r t s t o r e l a x , s o h e b e g i n s t o b u y i n t o t h e i l l u s i o n . T h e v i e w e r n e v e r g e t s t o s e e t h e r e a l L i n d i , b u t i n s t e a d s e e s h e r a s J o h n n y i m a g i n e s h e r ; a f l u r r y o f f r a g m e n t e d c l o s e - u p s a s s p e c i f i c d e t a i l s a r e d e s c r i b e d ? a h a n d , a l e g , a b r e a s t . L i n d i i s m e d i a t e d t h r o u g h t h e m a c h i n e . O n e c a n n o t h e l p t h i n k i n g t h a t i f i t w e r e n o t f o r t h e t e l e p h o n e , s h e w o u l d n o t e x i s t a t a l l . T e c h n o l o g y m e d i a t e s b e t w e e n t h e ? r e a l ? w o r l d , J o h n n y ? s w o r l d , a n d t h e ? g h o s t ? t h a t i s L i n d i . H e r v o i c e i s a l w a y s p r e s e n t , a n a r r a t o r o f t h e i m a g e s o n v i e w , b u t s h e i s a l w a y s h e a r d t h r o u g h t h e t e l e p h o n e r e c e i v e r m a k i n g h e r 44 s e e m d i s t a n t ; o r p e r h a p s c o n t a i n e d . W e k n o w , o r a t l e a s t w e b e l i e v e , t h a t s h e i s o n t h e o t h e r e n d o f t h e l i n e , b u t s h e i s a l s o in side t h e d e v i c e a n d , i n t h e m a n n e r o f c e r t a i n s c h i z o p h r e n i c m a n i f e s t a t i o n s , J o h n n y ? s ( o u r ) h e a d . I n a p a p e r e n t i t l e d S p l it Su b je ct s , Not Atom s ; or , Ho w I Fell in Lo ve w ith My Pro sthesi s , S a n d y S t o n e r e l a t e s a n i n c i d e n t i n w h i c h s h e w a s f o r t u n a t e e n o u g h t o a t t e n d a l e c t u r e b y w o r l d f a m o u s p h y s i c i s t S t e v e n H a w k i n g . A t f i r s t , t h e a u d i t o r i u m h a v i n g b e i n g p a c k e d t o c a p a c i t y , S t o n e h a d r e s i g n e d t o l i s t e n t o t h e t a l k o v e r t h e u n i v e r s i t y ? s P A s y s t e m , b u t a f t e r e a s i l y w e a v i n g h e r w a y p a s t c a m p u s s e c u r i t y , s h e f o u n d h e r s e l f i n t h e f r o n t r o w o f t h e l e c t u r e t h e a t r e . A f t e r a f e w m o m e n t s o f l i s t e n i n g t o H a w k i n g ? s l e c t u r e , S t o n e r e a l i s e d t h a t t h e r e w o u l d h a v e b e i n g n o d i f f e r e n c e t o h e a r i n g H a w k i n g t a l k o v e r t h e P A s y s t e m a n d h e a r i n g h i m i n p e r s o n . S t o n e d e s c r i b e s H a w k i n g ? s p r e s e n c e a s t h e p e r f e c t i l l u s t r a t i o n o f b o d y - a n d s e l f - d i v i s i o n t h r o u g h c o m m u n i c a t i o n t e c h n o l o g y . H a w k i n g h a s a m y o t r o p h i c l a t e r a l s c l e r o s i s a n d i s c o n s e q u e n t l y c o n f i n e d t o a w h e e l c h a i r u n a b l e t o m o v e a n y p a r t o f h i s b o d y e x c e p t h i s f i n g e r s . T o t a l k , H a w k i n g u s e s a s p e c i a l l y d e s i g n e d , a r t i f i c i a l s p e e c h d e v i c e . S o , w h e t h e r s p e a k i n g o v e r a P A s y s t e m o r ? i n p e r s o n ? , H a w k i n g i s a l w a y s m e d i a t e d t h r o u g h t e c h n o l o g y . T h e q u e s t i o n t h i s r a i s e s f o r S t o n e i s : ? W h e r e e x a c t l y i s S t e v e n H a w k i n g ? ? ? I n a n i m p o r t a n t s e n s e , H a w k i n g d o e s n ? t s t o p b e i n g H a w k i n g a t t h e e d g e o f h i s v i s i b l e b o d y . T h e r e i s t h e o b v i o u s p h y s i c a l H a w k i n g , v i v i d l y o u t l i n e d b y t h e w a y o u r s o c i a l c o n d i t i o n i n g t e a c h e s u s t o s e e a p e r s o n a s a p e r s o n . B u t a s e r i o u s p a r t o f H a w k i n g e x t e n d s i n t o t h e 45 b o x i n h i s l a p . ? J u s t a s a p l a s t i c p r o s t h e s i s s u b s t i t u t e s f o r a n a m p u t e e ? s m i s s i n g l i m b , H a w k i n g ? s s p e c i a l l y d e s i g n e d , a r t i f i c i a l s p e e c h d e v i c e s u b s t i t u t e s f o r h i s m i s s i n g v o i c e , b u t m o r e t h a n t h a t , i t a c t s a s a n e x t e n s i o n ? e x p a n d i n g H a w k i n g ? s p r e s e n c e s o a s t o m a k e h i s e d g e s s e e m i n g l y i n t a n g i b l e 7 ( S t o n e 3 9 4 ? 3 9 5 ) . Ghosts H a w k i n g ? s s i t u a t i o n i s o b v i o u s l y v e r y d i f f e r e n t f r o m t h a t o f a p e r s o n s p e a k i n g o v e r t h e p h o n e . H i s b o d y i s c o m p l e t e l y i n c a p a b l e o f e x p r e s s i o n , a n d s o , h i s i n t e l l e c t , t r a p p e d i n s i d e t h e u n r e s p o n s i v e s o m a , c a n only b e l i b e r a t e d v i a t e c h n o l o g i c a l i n t e r v e n t i o n . F o r u s , t h e t e l e p h o n e i s s i m p l y a c o n v e n i e n c e , b u t i n t h e d e v i c e ? s i n v i s i b l e p r o j e c t i o n s , i t s t e m p o r a l a n d s p a t i a l d i s p l a c e m e n t o f t h e s u b j e c t , o r m o r e a c c u r a t e l y t h e s e l f , t h e t e l e p h o n e - u s e r b e c o m e s , l i k e H a w k i n g , d i s e m b o d i e d . J u d i t h S . D o n a t h p r o p o s e s t h a t , i n t h e p h y s i c a l w o r l d t h e b o d y p r e s e n t s a ? c o m p e l l i n g a n d c o n v e n i e n t ? e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f t h e b o u n d a r i e s o f i d e n t i t y . T h e s e l f ( t h e s o u l , o n e ? s e s s e n c e ) h a s a n i n n a t e w h o l e n e s s , f o r a l t h o u g h t h e s e l f m a y b e i n t r i c a t e a n d c h a n g e a b l e o v e r t i m e , t h e b o d y a l w a y s a c t s a s i d e n t i t y ? s m a i n s t a y . O n t h e t e l e p h o n e , h o w e v e r , a s i n c y b e r s p a c e , t h i n g s a r e v e r y d i f f e r e n t . R a t h e r t h a n a n e n c o u n t e r o f r e a l , p h y s i c a l m a t t e r , a l l i n t e r a c t i o n i s a n e x c h a n g e o f i n f o r m a t i o n . ? I n f o r m a t i o n s p r e a d s a n d d i f f u s e s ; t h e r e i s n o l a w o f t h e c o n s e r v a t i o n o f i n f o r m a t i o n . T h e i n h a b i t a n t s o f t h i s i m pal pa ble s p a c e a r e a l s o d i f f u s e , f r e e f r o m t h e b o d y ? s u n i f y i n g a n c h o r ? ( D o n a t h 2 9 ) . O u r t e c h n o l o g y s e e k s t o b r i d g e t h e d i s t a n c e b e t w e e n u s , b u t i n t h e p r o c e s s w e b e c o m e m e n t a l 46 s p e c t r e s i n t h e m e c h a n i c s o f o u r o w n m a c h i n e s . O n t h e p h o n e , a s w i t h a l l e m e r g i n g c o m m u n i c a t i o n t e c h n o l o g i e s , w e a r e r e n d e r e d g h o s t l y . C h a r l e s H o r t o n C o o l e y , w r i t i n g i n 1 9 0 2 , e x p o u n d s h i s p e r c e p t i o n o f a l l c o m m u n i c a t i o n a s a p s y c h i c a l u n d e r t a k i n g , i n w h i c h p h y s i c a l p r e s e n c e i s i r r e l e v a n t ; a c o n c e p t t h a t i s i m p r e s s i v e l y i n l i n e w i t h t h e c u r r e n t e v o l u t i o n o f c o m m u n i c a t i o n s y s t e m s . A c c o r d i n g t o C o o l e y , t h e b o d y i n i t s e l f i s n o t n e c e s s a r i l y t h e b e a r e r o f a n i n d i v i d u a l ? s p e r s o n a l i t y ; ? W h a t , f o r i n s t a n c e , ? h e a s k s , ? c o u l d t h e m o s t e l a b o r a t e k n o w l e d g e o f h i s w e i g h t s a n d m e a s u r e s , i n c l u d i n g t h e a n a t o m y o f h i s b r a i n , t e l l u s o f t h e c h a r a c t e r o f N a p o l e o n ? ? ( 1 2 1 ) . I n s t e a d , f o r C o o l e y , t h e a t t r i b u t e s o f p e r s o n a l i t y a r e t o b e f o u n d i n o u r u n c o n s c i o u s c o m m u n i c a t i o n s , t h e w a y w e m i g h t r e a d a n e x p r e s s i o n o n a f a c e o r m a k e s e n s e o f t h e t i m b r e o f a v o i c e ? h e d e s c r i b e s t h e s e a s ? g h o s t e x p r e s s i o n s ? ( 1 1 3 ) . T h e r e a l i t i e s o f s o c i e t y , C o o l e y a r g u e s , a r e w h a t p e o p l e g l e a n f r o m e a c h o t h e r , w h e t h e r t h i s b e i n p e r s o n , o v e r t h e p h o n e , o r i n w r i t i n g , a n d b u i l d i n t o m e n t a l i m a g e s : ? t h e i m a g i n a t i o n s t h a t p e o p l e h a v e o f o n e a n o t h e r a r e t h e solid fact s o f s o c i e t y ? ( 1 2 1 ) . B y t h i s r e a s o n i n g t h e n , t e l e p h o n e c o n v e r s a t i o n s w i t h a p e r s o n , p h o t o g r a p h s , l i t e r a r y d e s c r i p t i o n s , a n d f a n t a s i e s o f t h e m , c a n e v o k e t h e i r p r e s e n c e b e t t e r t h a n a n y p h y s i c a l i n t e r a c t i o n . I n d e e d , w i t h t h e i n t e r v e n t i o n o f c o m m u n i c a t i o n s m e d i a o u r i n s t i n c t i v e ? g h o s t e x p r e s s i o n s ? b e c o m e s e p a r a b l e f r o m t h e r e s t r a i n t s o f o u r b o d i e s , a n d t h i s i n C o o l e y ? s v i e w e n a b l e s c o m m u n i c a t i o n s w i t h t h e d e a d ( P e t e r 1 8 6 ) . 47 T o f u r t h e r i l l u s t r a t e h i s c a s e C o o l e y a s s e r t s t h a t , b e c a u s e o f t h e i r c u l t u r a l d i s s e m i n a t i o n b y w a y o f c o m m u n i c a t i o n s m e d i a , f i g u r e s s u c h a s R o b e r t L o u i s S t e v e n s o n , C o l o n e l N e w c o m e , R o m o l a , H a m l e t ? t h e d e p a r t e d ; t h e p u r e l y i m a g i n e d ; o r i n d e e d c o n c e p t s o f g o d s a n d o t h e r s u p e r n a t u r a l b e i n g s , a r e m o r e r e a l t h a n p e o p l e w h o h a v e y e t t o l o s e t h e i r c o r p o r e i t y a n d t h e r e f o r e s h o u l d b e g i v e n s t a t u s a s p re sent i n s o c i e t y . ? W h a t , i n d e e d , w o u l d s o c i e t y b e , o r w h a t w o u l d a n y o n e o f u s b e , ? h e a s k s , ? i f w e a s s o c i a t e d o n l y w i t h c o r p o r e a l p e r s o n s a n d i n s i s t e d t h a t n o o n e s h o u l d e n t e r o u r c o m p a n y w h o c o u l d n o t s h o w h i s p o w e r t o t i p t h e s c a l e s a n d c a s t a s h a d o w ? ? ( 1 2 3 ) C o m m u n i c a t i o n s m e d i a , t h e n , a c t a s p o r t a l s t o a n o t i o n a l s p a c e , a n a l t e r n a t i v e w o r l d t h a t e x i s t s a l o n g s i d e o u r o w n a n d c o n t a i n s t h e s p e c t r a l f r a g m e n t s o f a l l t h e p o s s i b l e ? i m a g i n a t i o n s ? o f h u m a n i n t e r a c t i o n , a n d w h i c h p e r i o d i c a l l y i n t e r s e c t s w i t h o u r o w n ' r e a l ' w o r l d . T h e ? s e m i o t i c g h o s t s ? o f W i l l i a m G i b s o n ? s s h o r t s t o r y The Gerns ba c k Continuum i n h a b i t j u s t s u c h a u n i v e r s e p a r a l l e l t o o u r o w n . T h e ? c o n t i n u u m ? i s a s p a t i o t e m p o r a l s e q u e n c e c o m p r i s e d o f t h e m u l t i t u d e s , f r o m t h e m o s t l o g i c a l t o t h e m o s t e x t r a o r d i n a r y , o f p o s s i b l e m a n i f e s t a t i o n s o f t h e p r e s e n t i m a g i n a b l e . T h e ? g h o s t s ? t h a t Ama zing Stor ie s Quarterly one of Hugo Gernsba c k ? s many publications. Fly i ng mach i n e s, like ?spa c e c ra f t ? on the cover, take on a life of their own insid e The Gernsback Continuum. 48 o c c u p y t h i s s p a c e a r e d e f i n e d b y t h e m e d i a i m a g e r y a n d s o u n d s t h a t s a t u r a t e o u r c u l t u r e . T h e s t o r y ? s n a r r a t o r , a p h o t o g r a p h e r c o n t r a c t e d t o p h o t o g r a p h e x a m p l e s o f a r t d e c o a r c h i t e c t u r e a l o n g N o r t h A m e r i c a ? s w e s t c o a s t , n o t o n l y t a k e s a j o u r n e y a c r o s s A m e r i c a , b u t a l s o a j o u r n e y i n t o t h e c o l l e c t i v e i m a g i n a t i o n s o f a f o r g o t t e n , b u t n o t f u l l y e l i m i n a t e d , p u b l i c l i f e . V i a a c o m b i n a t i o n o f h i s o w n i m p e n d i n g m e n t a l c o l l a p s e a n d a m p h e t a m i n e - i n d u c e d p s y c h o s i s , t h e n a r r a t o r i n a d v e r t e n t l y p e n e t r a t e s t h e ? m e m b r a n e o f p r o b a b i l i t y ? t h a t s e p a r a t e s t h e r e a l w o r l d f r o m t h e c o n t i n u u m , a n d b e g i n s t o h a v e h a l l u c i n a t i o n s ? i n i t i a l l y c a t c h i n g g l i m p s e s o f i m p o s s i b l e f l y i n g m a c h i n e s l i k e t h o s e t h a t a p p e a r e d i n e a r l y t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y H u g o G e r n s b a c k p u l p f i c t i o n s t o r i e s . U n e a s y a b o u t h i s v i s i o n s a n d w o r r i e d a b o u t h i s a p p a r e n t s l i p i n t o d e m e n t i a , t h e n a r r a t o r d r i v e s t o T u c s o n w h e r e h e g e t s i n t o u c h w i t h M e r v K i h n , a ? f r e e - l a n c e j o u r n a l i s t w i t h a n e x t e n s i v e l i n e i n T e x a s p t e r o d a c t y l s , r e d n e c k U F O c o n t a c t e e s , b u s h - l e a g u e L o c h N e s s m o n s t e r s , a n d t h e T o p T e n c o n s p i r a c y t h e o r i e s i n t h e l o o n i e r r e a c h e s o f t h e A m e r i c a n m a s s m i n d ? ( 8 4 ) . H e i s , i n s h o r t , a t a b l o i d h a c k , b u t M e r v i s a l s o a n e x p e r t o n t h e ? c o n t i n u u m ? p h e n o m e n o n a n d q u i c k l y d e t e r m i n e s t h a t o u r n a r r a t o r h a s s l i p p e d t h r o u g h t h e p e r m e a b l e b a r r i e r t h a t s e p a r a t e s o u r w o r l d f r o m t h e a l t e r n a t i v e u n i v e r s e s t h a t i n t e r s e c t w i t h i t . I n s i d e h e i s i n c l i n e d t o b e h a u n t e d b y b i t s o f d e e p c u l t u r a l i m a g e r y l i k e t h e e n o r m o u s t w e l v e - e n g i n e d f l y i n g - w i n g l i n e r h e s e e s o n t h e o u t s k i r t s o f B o l i n a s o r t h e z e p p e l i n d o c k s a n d m a d n e o n s p i r e s h e s e e s i n h i s r e a r - v i e w m i r r o r o f t h e T u c s o n t h a t n e v e r w a s , a l l o f w h i c h h a v e s e p a r a t e d f r o m t h e c o l l e c t i v e i m a g i n a t i o n a n d t a k e n o n a l i f e o f t h e i r o w n . S t r a n g e t h i n g s p r e v a i l o u t s i d e t h e f r a g i l e 49 s t o c k a d e s o f n o r m a l i t y . B y c o n j u r i n g u p t h e s e m a n i f e s t a t i o n s , a n d i n a n a p p r o p r i a t e l y C o o l e y - e s q u e m a n n e r , t h e ? c o n t i n u u m ? i n v i t e s c o m m u n i o n w i t h t h e d e a d , t h e h i s t o r i c a l , a n d t h e i m a g i n a r y . L i n d i i s a s e m i o t i c g h o s t , a f r a g m e n t o f t h e ? M a s s D r e a m ? ? a c u l t u r a l l y r e n d e r e d , i m a g i n a r y s e m b l a n c e o f s e x , i n h a b i t i n g a p a r a l l e l u n i v e r s e b e t w e e n t e l e p h o n e r e c e i v e r s . H e r p r e s e n t a t i o n i n Dialtone , r e v e a l e d i n q u i c k s n i p p e t s a s a l i g h t s w e e p s o v e r h e r , i l l u m i n a t i n g p a r t s o f h e r b o d y f o r f l e e t i n g m o m e n t s b e f o r e p e t e r i n g i n t o s h a d o w , i l l u s t r a t e s t h e t r a n s i e n t n a t u r e o f h e r v a g u e l y d e f i n e d t e l e p h o n i c p r e s e n c e a n d i d e n t i t y . I t i s t h i s i n s t a b i l i t y o f i d e n t i t i e s t h a t i s a t t h e v e r y h e a r t o f t h e t e l e p h o n e ? s s t r a n g e n e s s . B e c a u s e o n l y v o i c e s c a n t r a v e l t h r o u g h t h e w i r e , t h e t e l e p h o n e r e l i e s c o m p l e t e l y o n t h e e x c h a n g e o f d e s c r i p t i o n a n d n a r r a t i v e , w h i c h i n t u r n e n c o u r a g e s ? a p o l y m o r p h o u s p l a y o f b o d i e s a n d i d e n t i t i e s ? ( H a n s o n 3 6 ) . The Sound of Black A s L i n d i b e g i n s t o d e s c r i b e h e r s e l f i n t h e p a r t i c u l a r s e x f a n t a s i s t p a r l a n c e , s h e a l l u d e s t o t h e c o l o u r o f h e r s k i n . ? Y o u ? r e b l a c k ? ? J o h n n y a s k s , a l i t t l e s u r p r i s e d a t t h i s r e v e l a t i o n . T h e s l i p p e r y L in d i?s vagu ely defin e d telep h on ic presen ce, frag me n ted by shado w 50 e l e c t r o n i c v o i c e h a s c o n v e y e d o n l y s o m u c h a s h a s b e e n s a i d , a n d h e h a s a s s u m e d t h a t s h e i s w h i t e . S i n c e b o d i e s o v e r t h e p h o n e a r e u n s e e n , s k i n c o l o u r o b v i o u s l y r e m a i n s u n s e e n 8 . S o r a t h e r t h a n t h e d i s p l a y o f b o d i e s c o n v e y i n g r a c e , t h e s e d e t a i l s c a n o n l y b e i m p a r t e d a s a s s u r a n c e s ? t h e p a r t i e s i n v o l v e d m u s t g i v e t h e i r Word 9 . T h e c o m m u n i c a t i o n o f r a c e b e c o m e s e n t i r e l y a b o u t t h e o r a l p r o m p t s t h a t i d e n t i f y t h e i n t e r l o c u t o r w i t h a s p e c i f i c r a c i a l g r o u p ? i s s u e s o f d i s c l o s u r e , i n t i m a t i o n , a s s u m p t i o n , i d i o m , a n d a c c e n t ( H a n s o n 3 7 ) . T h e p h o n e s e x p a r t i c i p a n t n e e d s t o h a v e a n ear f o r r a c e , b u t t h e s e v e r b a l c u e s a r e o f t e n d i f f i c u l t t o i n t e r p r e t , a n d b e c a u s e o f t h i s , t h e r e a r e v a s t p o s s i b i l i t i e s f o r d e c e p t i o n a n d c o n f u s i o n . J o h n n y s a y s t o L i n d i , ? s ? j u s t . . . . y o u d o n ? t s o u n d b l a c k . ? H e b e l i e v e s t h a t h e h a s m i s s e d t h e v e r b a l c u e s t o h e r c o l o u r . L i n d i r e s p o n d s b y a s k i n g , ? W h a t d o e s b l a c k s o u n d l i k e ? ? 1 0 W i t h t h e u n r e s t r i c t e d s o c i a l i z i n g o f a l l g r o u p s i n o u r s o c i e t y , d i f f e r e n c e s i n a c c e n t s a n d s p e e c h p a t t e r n s a r e l e s s r e c o g n i z a b l e . O f t e n , t h e o n l y c u e s t o r a c e a r e p h y s i c a l , a n d t h e ? b l i n d ? t e l e p h o n e c a n n o t d r a w a d i s t i n c t i o n . F o r J o h n n y , t h e d i s c l o s u r e o f L i n d i ? s e t h n i c i t y i s i n c i d e n t a l . H e u r g e s h e r t o g o o n d e s c r i b i n g w h a t s h e i s d o i n g , a n d s h e i m m e d i a t e l y b e g i n s t o s e t o u t t h e i m a g e r y o f t h e i r i l l u s o r y s e x u a l e n c o u n t e r . A c t u a l p h y s i c a l s e x i n c o r p o r a t e s a l l t h e s e n s e s a t o n e ? s d i s p o s a l ? t a s t e , t o u c h , s i g h t , h e a r i n g , a n d p o s s i b l y a n i n t i m a t e p s y c h i c p e r c e p t i o n . P h o n e s e x o p e r a t o r s , k n o w i n g l y o r n o t , d i s t i l t h e e n t i r e e x p e r i e n c e o f e n g a g e m e n t d o w n t o a u d i t o r y s t i m u l u s . L i n d i ? s m o a n s a n d h a r r i e d b r e a t h i n g a r e f a b r i c a t e d i n o r d e r t o i n t e n s i f y t h e s e n s a t i o n s s h e i s d e s c r i b i n g t o J o h n n y . S a n d y S t o n e p o i n t s o u t t h a t t h i s ? c o m p r e s s i o n ? o f a l l s e n s o r y p e r c e p t i o n i n t o a u d i o - f u n c t i o n 51 a l o n e , i s a r e i n v e n t i o n o f t h e a r t o f r a d i o d r a m a . ( S t o n e 3 6 9 ) I n d e e d , r a d i o p l a y s h a v e a s i m i l a r i m p e t u s t o p h o n e s e x . B o t h f o r m s s e e k t o f u e l t h e i m a g i n a t i o n t h r o u g h a u r a l s t i m u l i o n l y ( ? t h e v o i c e m u s t d o i t a l l ? ) , b u t s u c c e e d w h e n t h e y g e n e r a t e r e a l p h y s i o l o g i c a l r e a c t i o n s i n t h e i r l i s t e n e r s , w h e t h e r t h i s i s s e x u a l s t i m u l a t i o n , f e a r , s a d n e s s , o r j o y . R a d i o ? s ( a n d b y p r o x y , t h e v o i c e ? s ) a b i l i t y t o c r e a t e r e a l r e a c t i o n s i s i m p r e s s i v e l y i l l u s t r a t e d b y t h e f r e n z y p r o d u c e d b y t h e 1 9 3 8 d r a m a t i s e d b r o a d c a s t o f H . G . W e l l s ? c l a s s i c s c i e n c e f i c t i o n f a n t a s y , War of the Worlds . O r s o n W e l l e s a n d ? T h e M e r c u r y T h e a t r e o n t h e A i r ? p r o d u c e d t h e b r o a d c a s t , w h i c h a c c o r d i n g t o r e p o r t s , ? D i s r u p t e d h o u s e h o l d s , i n t e r r u p t e d r e l i g i o u s s e r v i c e s , c r e a t e d t r a f f i c j a m s a n d c l o g g e d c o m m u n i c a t i o n s s y s t e m s . ? A f t e r W e l l e s h a d g i v e n a n a r r a t i v e p r e a m b l e , t h e m o c k b r o a d c a s t b e g a n w i t h a b a n a l , a c c u r a t e w e a t h e r r e p o r t , i m m e d i a t e l y l u l l i n g t h o s e w h o m i g h t h a v e t u n e d i n l a t e i n t o a c c e p t i n g t h a t w h a t t h e y w e r e h e a r i n g w a s s i m p l y a n e w s b r o a d c a s t . A m u s i c p r o g r a m m e t h e n p r o c e e d e d f o r a b r i e f t i m e , b u t w a s i n t e r r u p t e d b y a " f l a s h " b u l l e t i n a b o u t r e p o r t s o f e x p l o s i o n s o c c u r r i n g a t r e g u l a r i n t e r v a l s o n t h e p l a n e t M a r s . N e w s b u l l e t i n s a n d s c e n e b r o a d c a s t s f o l l o w e d , d i s p a t c h e d i n t h e s a m e m a n n e r i n w h i c h p r e v i o u s r a d i o b r o a d c a s t s h a d c a r r i e d r e p o r t s o f g e n u i n e e v e n t s , w i t h c o v e r a g e o f t h e i m p a c t o f a m e t e o r i n a f i e l d a n d t h e d i s c o v e r y t h a t t h e m e t e o r c o n t a i n e d b i z a r r e t e n t a c l e d c r e a t u r e s w h i c h h a d b e g u n k i l l i n g p o l i c e o f f i c i a l s a n d c u r i o u s o n l o o k e r s . A l t h o u g h t h e r e p o r t e d ? o c c u r r e n c e s ? w e r e o f t h e m o s t e x t r a o r d i n a r y n a t u r e , t h e p r o g r a m m e m a n a g e d t o s p a r k t h e 52 i m a g i n a t i o n a n d g e n e r a t e b e h a v i o u r a l a n d e m o t i o n a l r e a c t i o n s t h r o u g h o u t t h e b r o a d c a s t r e g i o n . T h e p r o g r a m m e ? s s t y l e w a s c o n v i n c i n g l y r e a l i s t i c e n o u g h t o p r o d u c e r e a l a l a r m a n d p a n i c , e v e n t h o u g h t h e s h o w w a s a n n o u n c e d a n d p r e s e n t e d a s a r a d i o p l a y . I t f r i g h t e n e d p e o p l e b e c a u s e t h e y a s s u m e d t h a t w h a t t h e y w e r e l i s t e n i n g t o w a s a n a u t h e n t i c e v e n t , n o t a n i n v e n t e d o n e . R e c o g n i z i n g t h e r a d i o p l a y a s a n a c t u a l o c c u r r e n c e n e c e s s i t a t e d r e a l a c t i o n a n d p e o p l e r e a c t e d a s i f t o a g e n u i n e e m e r g e n c y a n d n o t t o w h a t w a s s i m p l y a s c a r y s t o r y . T h e p l a n n e d r e b r o a d c a s t s o f War of the Worlds w e r e c a n c e l l e d . I t w a s d e c i d e d t h a t t h e p r o g r a m m e ? s v e r i s i m i l i t u d e w a s a d a n g e r o u s m i s r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f t h a t m o d e o f c o m m u n i c a t i o n , a n d t h a t t h e n a r r a t i v e w a s d i s t u r b i n g i n l i g h t o f t h e g r o w i n g t h r e a t o f r e a l i n v a s i o n f r o m E u r o p e . P h o n e s e x , o f c o u r s e , h a s b e e n a c c u s e d o f s i m i l a r d i s t o r t i o n s ; i t i s u n f a i r l y b a n d e d t o g e t h e r w i t h o b s c e n e c a l l s , w h i c h e x p l o i t t h e t e l e p h o n e ? s p r i v a t e f u n c t i o n a n d t r a n s g r e s s c u s t o m a r y t e l e p h o n i c d e c o r u m ; a n d c r i t i c i s e d f o r i t s o v e r e m p h a s i s o n a u t o e r o t i c i s m , a n d i t s g e n e r a l c o m m o d i f i c a t i o n o f s e x . B u t a l l m e d i a h a v e t h e i r s h o r t c o m i n g s , a n d r e s t r i c t i n g t h e m t e n d s t o f a n p e o p l e ? s c u r i o s i t y a n d d e s i r e f o r t h e m . W h e n a l l i s t a k e n i n t o c o n s i d e r a t i o n , t h e t e l e p h o n e r e m a i n s a c o n v e n i e n t a n d c o m p a r a t i v e l y s e c u r e a n d b e n i g n o u t l e t ( a n d , i n d e e d , i n l e t ) f o r s e x u a l i m p u l s e s . Privacy 53 A s L i n d i c o n t i n u e s h e r g r a p h i c d e s c r i p t i o n s , p r o g r e s s i v e l y w o r k i n g h e r s e l f u p t o a f r e n z y , J o h n n y b e c o m e s d i s t r a c t e d b y a d o o r s t a n d i n g a j a r o n t h e o t h e r s i d e o f t h e l i v i n g r o o m . H e i s t o r n , w a n t i n g t o s t a y o n t h e l i n e a s L i n d i ? c l i m a x e s ? , b u t c o n c e r n e d a b o u t b e i n g d i s c o v e r e d i n t h e a c t . T h e d o o r w i n s o u t . H e e x c u s e s h i m s e l f m i d w a y t h r o u g h h e r g r o a n i n g r e f r a i n , a n d c r o s s e s t h e l i v i n g r o o m . H e s l o w l y , q u i e t l y c l o s e s t h e d o o r , a n d b e l i e v i n g t h a t w i t h i t s h u t h i s p r i v a c y i s s e c u r e , r e t u r n s t o t h e i l l i c i t c a l l . H e t h i n k s t h a t t h e t h r e a t t o h i s p r i v a c y w i l l c o m e ( i f i t c o m e s a t a l l ) f r o m s o m e w h e r e w i t h i n h i s ? r e a l ? , i m m e d i a t e g e o g r a p h y , e r r o n e o u s l y n e g l e c t i n g t h a t v a s t s p a c e b e y o n d t h e t e l e p h o n e r e c e i v e r . I n F r a n c i s F o r d C o p p o l a ? s , The Conver sation , H a r r y C a u l ( G e n e H a c k m a n ) , a s u r v e i l l a n c e e x p e r t a n d m a s t e r w i r e - t a p p e r , a l s o b e l i e v e s t h a t b y s h u t t i n g h i m s e l f u p i n s i d e ( p h y s i c a l l y a n d e m o t i o n a l l y ) h e w i l l p r o t e c t h i s p r i v a c y . H e t r i p l e l o c k s h i s a p a r t m e n t d o o r a n d , m o s t s i g n i f i c a n t l y k e e p s h i s t e l e p h o n e s h u t u p i n h i s d e s k d r a w . A t t h e e n d , h o w e v e r , w h e n h e i s i n f o r m e d t h a t h e h i m s e l f i s u n d e r s u r v e i l l a n c e , i t i s v i a t h i s v e r y p h o n e . H i s n u m b e r i s u n l i s t e d , b u t t h e c o n s p i r a t o r ? s i n t h e p l o t h e h a s u n c o v e r e d h a v e i t a n y w a y . T h e y p h o n e h i m u p a n d w a r n h i m , ? W e ? l l b e l i s t e n i n g t o y o u , ? a n d p l a y b a c k a r e c o r d i n g o f t h e s a x o p h o n e m u s i c h e w a s p l a y i n g j u s t b e f o r e h e r e c e i v e d t h e c a l l . T h i s , f o r H a r r y , a n i n v e t e r a t e p a r a n o i d , i s a n a b s o l u t e n i g h t m a r e . H e b e g i n s a s e a r c h f o r t h e b u g g i n g d e v i c e ; s t r i p p i n g o f f w a l l p a p e r , p r y i n g o f f d o o r f r a m e s a n d p i e c e s o f t h e h a r d w o o d f l o o r , c o m p l e t e l y g u t t i n g t h e a p a r t m e n t . B u t h e c a n n o t f i n d i t . ? H i s s a n c t u m s a n c t o r u m h a s b e e n p e n e t r a t e d b y h i s o w n g a z e t u r n e d b a c k u p o n h i m ? ( H a n s o n 4 9 ) . 54 L i n d i expose s hers e l f . The fanta sy has beco me shockingly direc t J o h n n y ? s s i t u a t i o n i s u n n e r v i n g l y s i m i l a r t o H a r r y ? s , w i t h h i s v o y e u r i s t i c i m p u l s e s ( ? I l i k e t o r i d e t h e b u s . . . . [ i t ] a f f o r d s y o u t i m e t o l o o k a t t h i n g s . . . . a t p e o p l e ? ) l e v e l l e d a g a i n s t h i m b y t h e v o y e u r i s t i c i m p u l s e s o f a n o t h e r , o f w h i c h h e i s , a s y e t , o b l i v i o u s . W h e n h e r e t u r n s t o t h e p h o n e h e s e e m s t o h a v e c o m e t o t e r m s w i t h t h e t e l e p h o n i c e n g a g e m e n t . He s t a r t s t o c r e a t e t h e i m a g e r y o f t h e i r f a n t a s y e n c o u n t e r w i t h d e s c r i p t i o n s t h a t a r e n o t l i m i t e d t o b o d i l y d e t a i l a n d p e r f o r m a c e , b u t w e a v e a c o m p l e x n a r r a t i v e . H e i m a g i n e s L i n d i i n h e r e n t i r e t y , t r a n s f o r m e d n o w f r o m t h e f r a g m e n t e d w h i t e w o m a n a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e f i l m t o a s e n s u o u s b l a c k w o m a n . H e b e g i n s t o c o m p o s e h e r s u r r o u n d i n g s , a s w e l l a s t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s o f t h e i r i l l i c i t r e l a t i o n s h i p ? w e s e e a l l o f t h i s , a s s c e n a r i o s , s e t - u p e a r l i e r , a r e r e o r d e r e d , a n d d e t a i l s a l r e a d y e s t a b l i s h e d s h i f t i n J o h n n y ? s i m a g i n a t i o n . I n t h i s f a n t a s y , J o h n n y c a s t s a n i m a g i n a r y L i n d i i n t h e r o l e o f t h e w o m a n h e w a s w a t c h i n g o n t h e b u s a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e f i l m ? s h e w e a r s t h e s a m e c l o t h e s , c a r r i e s t h e s a m e b a g , b u t i n s t e a d o f t h e f u r t i v e e n g a g e m e n t o f t h e o r i g i n a l e v e n t , J o h n n y s e t s - u p a s h o c k i n g l y d i r e c t m u t u a l s e d u c t i o n . S h e c o q u e t t i s h l y s m i l e s a t h i m w h e n h e r d r e s s g e t s c a u g h t i n t h e b u s s e a t e x p o s i n g h e r b a c k s i d e , a n d a l l o w s h i m t o f o l l o w h e r h o m e , w h e r e s h e t h e n e x p o s e s h e r s e l f a s h e m a s t u r b a t e s . W e c u t b e t w e e n 55 t h e f a n t a s y a n d J o h n n y o n t h e t e l e p h o n e a s t h e s e x u a l v e r b a l i z a t i o n s a n d L i n d i ? s v o c a l i z a t i o n s i n t e n s i f y . B u t s o m e t h i n g s t o p s J o h n n y , s h a m e p e r h a p s o r a r e a l i z a t i o n o f t h e s h a l l o w n e s s o f t h e e n c o u n t e r ? a t r u l y m a s t u r b a t o r y e n g a g e m e n t ? a n d h e u n c e r e m o n i o u s l y h a n g s u p t h e p h o n e . I n a n a d j o i n i n g b e d r o o m , b e h i n d t h a t d o o r h e t o o k p a i n s t o c l o s e s o d i s c r e e t l y , J o h n n y s i t s o n t h e b e d b e s i d e t h e m y s t e r i o u s , t e r m i n a l l y i l l m a n w e h a v e s e e n o n l y b r i e f l y t h r o u g h o u t t h e f i l m . J o h n n y ? s v o i c e - o v e r , w i t h w h i c h w e b e g a n , i s r e p e a t e d a s h e l e a n s o v e r a n d t e n d e r l y k i s s e s t h e s i c k m a n o n t h e c h e e k . Here i s t h e t r u e o b j e c t o f J o h n n y ? s d e s i r e , a n d t h i s r e v e l a t i o n p r e c i p i t a t e s t h e t r a n s f o r m a t i o n o f a n o t h e r b o d y , e v o k i n g L i n d i ? s c h a l l e n g e i n r e l a t i o n t o t h e s o u n d o f h e r b l a c k n e s s b y c o n f r o n t i n g t h e v i e w e r w i t h a n e w q u e s t i o n : W h a t d o e s g a y s o u n d l i k e ? I n r e v i e w , t h e f i l m b e c o m e s a r e v e r s a l , i n t e r m s o f s e x u a l o r i e n t a t i o n o f t h e s u b j e c t s , o n t h e m o d e l i d e a o f a s t r a y i n g h e t e r o s e x u a l p a r t n e r e n g a g i n g i n a h o m o s e x u a l a f f a i r . B u t m o r e t h a n t h i s , i t b e c o m e s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f o u r p r e s e n t s e x u a l c r i s i s . 56 T h e objec t of Johnny ? s desire T h e t e l e p h o n e , p r a i s e d a s a n i n s t r u m e n t o f a m o r o u s e n g a g e m e n t a n d e x p a n s i v e l y u t i l i s e d a s a s e x a i d , h a s b e c o m e a s y m b o l i c p r o p h y l a c t i c . O n t h e p h o n e , a s h a s a l r e a d y b e e n e s t a b l i s h e d , i t i s t h e i n t e r p l a y o f v o i c e s r a t h e r t h a n b o d i e s t h a t e n g e n d e r s a r o u s a l . T h i s i s s a f e , s a n i t i s e d s e x - n o f o n d l i n g , n o s t r o k i n g , a n d n o i n f e c t i o n s . T h e r e a r e a l o t o f t h i n g s t h a t c a n b e t r a n s m i t t e d b y t e l e p h o n e , E l l i s H a n s o n o b s e r v e s , ? b u t H I V i s n o t o n e o f t h e m ? ( 3 6 ) . I n t h e f a c e o f t h e r a v a g i n g v i r u s , s e x h a s c h a n g e d ; t h e n a t u r e o f d e s i r e i t s e l f h a s c h a n g e d , r e a d j u s t i n g t o t h e r e a l i t i e s o f t h e d i s e a s e , a n d p r e s e n t l y , t h e t e l e p h o n e h a s b e c o m e v i t a l m a t ? r i e l i n t h e m i n e f i e l d o f s e x u a l i n t e r a c t i o n . T h e o p e n i n g v o i c e - o v e r , w h e n r e p e a t e d i n t h i s n e w c o n t e x t , b e c o m e s a f a r u n h a p p i e r u t t e r a n c e t h a n i t w a s a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e f i l m . N o w , m o r e t h a n d e s i r e , i t s e e m s t o e v o k e a s e n s e o f l o s s . J o h n n y p l a c e s h i s h e a d o n h i s l o v e r ? s c h e s t , a n d i n r e s p o n s e h i s l o v e r g e n t l y s t r o k e s h i s h e a d . I t a p p e a r s a s t h o u g h J o h n n y h a s r e c o n c i l e d h i m s e l f 57 t o h i s d e v o t i o n t o h i s p a r t n e r . B u t a s J o h n n y l o o k s u p i n t o h i s l o v e r ? s f a c e h e n o t i c e s t h a t t h e t e l e p h o n e n e x t t o t h e b e d i s o f f t h e h o o k . S l o w l y i t d a w n s o n h i m t h a t h i s c a l l w a s n e v e r p r i v a t e ; t h a t h i s a t t e m p t s t o k e e p h i s i m p u l s e s u n d e r h i s c o n t r o l , t o k e e p t h e m ? i n s i d e ? , w e r e f u t i l e . T h e t e l e p h o n e b r e a c h e d t h e b a r r i e r s ? t h e w a l l s a n d t h e d o o r ? a c t i n g a s a c o n d u i t b e t w e e n t h e t w o r o o m s , a n d l i k e H a r r y C a u l , a t t h e e n d o f t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n , ? h i s i n s i d e h a s b e e n t u r n e d i n s i d e o u t . ? ( H a n s o n 4 9 ) 58 Not e s 1 The People?s Chronology , 1992 2 Peters quo tes an article entitled ?On conv ersati o n by Telep hon e,? pub lish ed in the 10 May 1915 editio n of Independent . 3 This voice -ov e r did not appea r in the orig in al screenp lay. It was add ed in part way thro ugh prod u c tion in orde r to clar ify the relatio n sh ip betw e e n Johnn y and the sick man whom we see gli mp ses of thro ugh ou t the film. See Dialtone s c r e en p la y in Append ix pp. 4 Peters quo tes an article entitled ?Teleph one Te rr or , ? publish e d in the Febru a r y 1920 editio n of Atlantic Monthly. 5 Charles Horton Coo ley observ es how children, wh en left to themselv es, simu late sociab ility by creati n g for the mse l v e s imag in a r y friend s. He desc r ib e s how a three- ye a r -o ld boy, R, invar iab ly talk e d aloud while he was playin g alon e : ?Mos t commo nly he would use no form of addr e s s but "you , " and perh a ps had no defin ite person in mind . To listen to him was lik e hear ing one at the telep h on e?? Coo ley sugg ests that this practice is an essen tial form of thoug h t, flo w ing fro m a lif e in which person al commu n icatio n is of chief interest. (Coo ley 88) 6 Leigh ? s husba n d in the film, a pool clea n e r played by Chris Penn , is infur ia te d by her lin e of work. He asks her, ?How come you neve r talk that way to me? ? Even though he has the real relatio n sh ip with her ? he is marr ie d to her, he slee p s in the same bed as her, he can have actu a l phys ic a l sex with her ? he rese n ts the caller s who will neve r meet her. On the phon e the relatio n sh ip is pure uninh ib ited fan tasy, but in real lif e it is a chor e? lik e chang ing soiled napp ies. 7 Applying our techn o lo g ical exp an sion to the mass me d ia represen tatio n of celeb rities, Dav id Chan ey sugg ests that the atten tio n, which often bor d ers on relig io u s worsh ip , paid to cultu ral stars is one of the most cons tantly perp lex in g char a c te r is tics of conte mp o r ar y audie n ces . Chan e y desc r ib e s the type of hero ism that star s embo d y as ?imag in ar y Fame? - their fame is based on audien c e opinio n, which is fabric a te d or at least sever e ly influ en c ed by the media . The media is both a stage on which the stars can perform, and a med i u m for all the ways they are to be talk ed abou t and rep resen ted. With ou t th e media the celebrity would cease to exist. (Chan e y 202) 8 Ellis Han son poin ts out that even tho ugh the char acteristics of race are ne g ated by the telep ho n e?s disinterest in physical bodies, r ace contin u e s to be a major concern for ma ny phone sex caller s . He cites the significantly large number of advertisemen ts for sex-ch a t lines, which state that their operators or clientele are of African or Asian descen t. (36) 9 In Spik e Lee?s Girl 6 , Ther esa Randle plays an out of work New York actress so demo ral i s e d by being reje c te d that she take s a quick -bu c k job as a phone-se x work er . Her boss , playe d by Jenif er Lewis, run s a mul tieth n ic call-cen tre, but she urg es all her operators to lie abou t their colo ur and tell their callers they are white girls. "Don't I look pretty with my l ong blond hair and big blue eyes," says Girl 29 (Shar i Free ls ) , a black woma n who wear s her hair in cornr ow s . Here Lee is revea lin g the mutab le natu r e of bodie s over the telep ho n e, but at the same time he is having a dig at what, he believes, society considers as the perfect fantasy body. 10 When Dialtone was screened at the 200 5 Nex t Reel Intern ation al Film Festiv al in New York, me mb ers from the largely Amer ic a n and Euro p e an audie n c e had particu la r diff icu lty in understanding this exchange. While accent and di ction, no doubt, play a significant role in deter min in g wher e a person comes from and poss ib ly their econ o mic statu s , it is more diff icu lt to establish race through verbal cues alone when mo st people have the same mother tongue . In South Afri c a , however , wher e we have el even official languages, these cues play a far more signific a n t role in iden tif yin g racia l group s and subcu ltu r e s. 59 Appendix 60 Mind Out of Joint Screenplay 61 C H AR A CT E R S LES - A tired man, confus ed by a world he has no recolle c t io n of. WOMAN - A thread , tenuous l y linking the world. TESLA - A mechan i ci a n and alchemi s t of sorts. THE KNOCKE D DOWN MAN - A bad memory . LOVERS - Part recoll e ct i on , part fantas y . PATIEN T S - Damaged people . 62 F A D E IN ? [ BL U R Ghostl y shapes ? a mass of indefi na b le matter . CUT TO THE LETTER PUNCHES OF A TYPEWR IT E R as they thud into paper leaving their marks. CUT TO MORE BLUR CUT TO THE LETTER PUNCHES OF A TYPEWRI T E R thuddi ng into paper and spellin g out the title: MIND OUT OF JOINT CUT TO BLUR and out of the blur emerge s: A PAIR OF SHOES as the wearer walks down the str eet. Stuck to the sole of one shoe, and stickin g out at the heel is a card. The shoes sudden l y stop, and the wearer , notici ng the card for the first time, bends down and peels it off. LES a middle- a g ed man with short- c r op p ed greying hair, looks at the card. ] [ T H E CARD has the words TESLA & SONS printe d on it. ] CUT TO BOTTLE S placed upside down in a rack, swing back and forth. ? Cut fr o m comp le ted fi l m 63 A drop of liquid seeps from a bottle . The drop falls onto a taut piece of string and then, gently , runs along it. A SMALL FAN chops at a strand of light as it spins. CUT TO BLUR and out of the blur emerge s: A LIVING ROOM A WOMAN enters carryi n g a pot plant THE WOMAN carrie s the pot plant throug h her living room and places it on a windows i ll . The window is open and a breeze flutte rs the plants leaves . CUT TO A BOX divide d in to small compar t me n ts housin g various object s. The object s are visibl e throug h windows in the compar tm e nt s . The objects are jostle d about as the box sways back and forth. LES carrie s the box on his back. It sways as he walks. A COMPAR T ME N T in LES'S box. The compar tm e n t is filled with keys. They jangle as LES moves. CUT TO A DOOR HANDLE A key hesita n tl y slips into the keyhol e . LES stands in a corrid or with the key in a keyhol e. He looks about cautiou s l y and then changi n g his mind, he remove s the key from the lock. He gets down on his knees and peers throug h the keyhole . 64 T H R OU G H KEYHOLE ? we see a bed. A woman lies under the covers ; a man sits on the edge of the bed gently, loving ly stroki n g her leg. They are LOVERS CUT TO The compart m e nt filled with keys. PAN AND TILT TO: A compar t me n t filled with photog r ap h s. A PHOTOG R AP H of a woman. She's smiling . CUT TO PHOTOG RA P HS animat e the woman as her smile turns to a look of disbel ie f . A tear begins to run down her face. CUT TO The compart m e nt filled with photogr a ph s . PAN AND TILT TO A compart m en t contai n in g a totem in the shape of a double -h e a de d dog. Nails and hoe heads have been hammer ed into the body ? a nail fetish . CUT TO A MANS MOUTH Rusty nails stick out from the side of the man?s mouth. A nail is removed from the mouth and the point placed to a piece of wood. THE FETISH In the backgro u nd , slight ly out of focus, a man holds the nail to the fetish and raises a hammer , and as he brings it down. CUT TO 65 T h e compart m e nt contai n in g the fetish. PAN TILT TO [ A compar t me n t contain i ng coins. ] CUT TO THE POT PLANT Beyond the pot plant, in the str eet below, we can see LES approa ch i ng . 1 ( A light flashe s across LES?S eyes as he walks. Someth in g shiny sparkl i ng from the gutter . LES squints as he looks into the light. Lying in the gutter, half covere d by a plasti c packet, is an open flick- k ni f e . There appear s to be blood on the blade. LES picks up the knife ginger l y and holds it close to his face as he inspect s it. LES sits on a bench and opens his suitcas e . We see the conten t s of the suitca s e. It is, like the box, full of collect e d objects . LES slips the knife carefu ll y in to a compart m en t ) THE POT PLANT In the backgr ou n d we can make out THE WOMAN vacuumi n g . LES, once again, carrie s his box and suitca s e down the street . A gust of wind whips about LES?S legs, flutte r in g his tie Wildly around his neck CURTAI NS billow in the window and knock the pot plant from the window ledge. CUT TO LES 1 Takes place, in the complete d fil m, in the veld. Introduces us to LES. 66 l y i ng dazed on the ground , blinki ng drowsi l y, blood oozing about his face. [ A COIN spins on the ground , and as it comes to rest. ] CUT TO LES'S CAR The car is statio n ar y and we're looking at the back of LES'S head. A thin scar runs up from behind LES'S ear and cuts a path through his hair. He touche s it absent mi n de d l y. Then, as if struck with a sudden though t , LES fishes in his jacket pocket and comes out with a photog r ap h , a nail fetish , and a piece of paper. LES places the fetish on the dashbo a r d and looks at the photog ra p h. [ T H E PHOTOGR A PH is very blurry. We can just make out a ghostl y figure . ] LES shakes his head, confus e d by the photo, and flips over the piece of paper. THE PIECE OF PAPER has an address writte n on it tha t reads: FAIRWAY MANSIO NS No 4 Les looks up and out of the car window . LES'S POV ? we see a buildi ng with the words FAIRWAY MANSIO NS set into the brickw o rk . A STAIRW A Y LES climbs the stairs . The place looks deserte d , but all around there are the muted sounds of life ? Televi si o ns blarin g, doors closin g , someon e coughi ng , a baby crying somewh er e in the distan ce . [ A HALLWA Y LES finds flat number four. He knocks and waits. He looks around warily , but the hallwa y is empty. He knocks again. There' s still no answer . 67 LES looks down at doorkno b . He slowly puts his hand on it. Turns it. ] T h e door glides open. Two identi c al vacuum cleane r s standi n g side by side in the flat. LES walks toward s the vacuum cleane rs - he cro uch e s in front of them; inspec t i ng them. The base of one vacuum cleane r is on top of a patch of soil and a soil trail leadin g to another part of the flat. LES cautiou s l y follow s trail. He is nervou s . The trail disapp ea r s underne a th anothe r door. CUT TO A BATHRO O M There' s soil everyw he r e . Soil on the floor. Soil piled against the bath. The bath tap drips. THE BATH PLUGHO L E Muddy water trickl e s down the drain. There? s a plant in the bath with muddy water runnin g from its base. CUT TO [ L E S walkin g down a shop lined street with the plant in his arms. A SHOP FRONT As LES passes the shop someth i ng in the shop window catche s his attent i on . 68 T H E FLICK-K N I FE is displa ye d in the shop window . ] CUT TO LES As he places a cloth bundle on a table and begins to unwrap it. The bundle contai n s the flick- kn i f e, keys, coins, a photog r ap h and, in the centre , the nail fetish . CUT TO BLUR and out of the blur emerge s: THE LOVERS They make love LES lying on his bed, masturb a te s . [ L E S? S room is small and everyw he r e, piled on the floor, heaped in the corner s , on a shelf and window ledge, are histor y books. ] CUT TO LES scans the lines of a book. His mouth moves slight l y as he reads CUT TO [ A n illust ra t io n of keys. CUT TO An illust ra t i on of a flick-k n i fe . CUT TO An illust ra t i on of coins. CUT TO An illust ra t i on of the nail fetish. ] 69 C UT TO LES readin g . As he turns the page of his book a card slips out from betwee n the pages. THE CARD lies on LES'S lap. It has the words TELSA AND SONS printe d on it. [ A N OFFICE DOOR the plaque on the door reads: TESLA AND SONS MECHANI T I AN S OF REPUTE SINCE 1902 A FLY lands on a window pane. We hear the sounds of high heel shoes clicki n g on contac t with the floor as they approa ch . A FLY SWATTE R sudden ly shoots into frame and squash e s the fly with a resoun di n g THWACK. THE DEAD FLY A woman' s finger s come into frame and delica te l y pick up the tiny carcas s . A woman (THE SECRETA R Y) holds the fly up and inspec t s it with satisf a c ti o n. She flicks the fly carcas s out of a window . LES watche s as THE SECRET AR Y return s to her desk. She ignore s him LES looks down awkwar dl y at THE SECRET AR Y as she begins flippi ng throug h a magazi n e. Eventu al l y THE SECRETA R Y looks up at LES, very noncha la n t, and points to a spot behind him. LES turns to look where the SECRETA R Y is pointin g . ] A WAITIN G BENCH 70 O n the bench sit two men . The one man?s face is obscur ed by a newspa p e r. A door leads off to one side. One of the men wears a gas mask of sorts. A tube protru de s from the front of the mask. The tube winds down in front of the man and enters into a box with a bell-j ar top; and growin g inside the box is a tree. A drop of conden sa t io n rolls off one of the tree?s leaves . 2 T he gas- ma s k- m an ' s breat hi n g sud denl y becomes labour e d. He grabs his throat . The man next to gas-ma s k- m a n lowers his newspa p er reveal in g an elabora t e set of glasses . He looks at the chokin g gas-mas k -m a n . The gas-mas k - ma n tugs at the tube. Glasse s- m an looks down at the tube, a section of which is on the floor. Glasse s- m an ' s foot is on a portio n of the tube. Gas-ma sk - ma n yanks desper a te l y at the tube. Glasse s- m an lifts his foot off the tube and Gas-ma s k- m a n 's breath i ng return s too normal. LES who has watched this event with confus io n takes a seat next to the glasses - ma n , who resume s reading his newspa pe r . CUT TO THE NAIL FETISH The light change s rapidl y causin g the fetish to cast a shifti ng shadow like a sundia l. CUT TO THE WAITING BENCH Only LES is left sittin g on the bench. 2 I n the complet ed fil m, this mo men t is preceded by a shor t inter lude in which Les looks at his numb er in the queue ? making sure that he is in the right order, and in doing so see ms to offen d gas - mas k- ma n. 71 THE LETTER PUNCHES OF A TYPEWRI T E R as they thud into paper leaving their marks. A TYPEWR I TE R Index finger s hit the keys sharpl y. LES sits in front of a desk - he looks uncomf or t a bl e . On The busine ss side of the desk sits a tall, gaunt man hunchi ng over his typewr i te r , his finger s hoverin g over the keys a cigaret t e danglin g from the side of his mouth. A plaque on the desk announc e s that the gaunt man is EUGENE TESLA. TESLA stops typing , stares at LES across the desk and takes a long drag on his cigare t t e. LES shifts uncomfo r ta b l y in his chair. TESLA consid er s LES for a moment then slowly begins to type again. 3 - TH E LETTER PUNCHE S OF A TYPEWR IT E R MIND OUT OF JOINT - 4 T ES L A puts out his cigare tt e . A FILING CABINE T as TESLA slides the draw open. TESLA runs a finger along the alphabe t is e d record s until he reache s -M-. He pulls a thin file from the cabine t and slides it onto the desk. LES looks down at the file. Looks up at TESLA TESLA taps his nose with his finger knowin g ly . 3 In the comp let ed fil m this wa s changed to: ? The final a mne sia.? 4 In the comp let ed fil m Tesla puts out his ci ga rette in reaction to the s mal l nail fet is h Les has taken out of his pocket an d pres ented to hi m. 72 L E S opens the file reveal in g a techni ca l drawin g of a contra pt i on - a box with a turni n g handle protru d in g from one side and a tube protru di n g from a mask on anothe r . MATCH CUT TO THE CONTRAP T I ON sittin g on a table. TESLA stands in the corner of a dreary room smoking a cigare tt e . 5 ( Th e one end of the tube protrud i ng from the contra pt i on is insert ed into LES'S nose by TESLA'S assist a nt . The assist an t covers LES?S eyes with a pair of goggle s, double checks connect i o ns and then turns to TESLA. TESLA nods to the assista n t. The assist a n t takes LES'S hand and places it on the turnin g handle. ) LES slowly begins to turn the handle . TESLA takes a last drag on his cigaret t e , drops it and crushe s the butt beneat h his shoe. LES begins to turn the handle of the contra pt i on faster . CUT TO BOTTLE S placed upside down in a rack, swing back and forth. A drop of liquid seeps from a bottle . The drop falls onto a taut piece of string and then, gently , runs along it. A SMALL FAN choppi ng at a strand of light as it spins. CUT TO 5 In the comp let ed fil m, Les does this hi mself with out the aid of an assista nt . 73 B L U R And out of the blur emerge s: KNITTI NG NEEDLE S as they click togethe r - interl o c ki n g stitche s . A DOOR HANDLE A key is remove d from the lock and LES slowly puts his eye to the keyhole A BALL OF WOOL on top of a bag placed on the floor. In the backgro u nd we can make out THE WOMAN knitti ng . THROUG H KEYHOLE ? we see a bed. A woman lies under the covers ; a man sits on the edge of the bed gently, loving ly strokin g her leg. Sudden l y he looks up and direct ly at the keyhole . He stan ds and stride s across the room toward s the door, the floor vibrat i ng with his every step. Vibrat io n s, reso und i n g throug h the build i ng , dis tur b i ng the bag and the ball of wool falls to the floor and begins to roll. THROUG H KEYHOL E ? THE LOVER advanc es on the door and puts his eye to the keyhol e . LES retreat s . He jerks his head back and quickly flatte ns himsel f against the wall adjace n t to the door. The ball of wool rolls out of the door, leaving a trail of thread . LES is nervou s . He loo ks sidewa y s at the door, waiting for any possibl e moveme nt . The ball of wool rolls to the edge of a stairwe l l and stops. LES nervous l y watches the door handle. A door slams shut. The ball of wool jolts and begins to tumble down the stairs . 74 L E S bolts At first the ball of wool bounce s down one stair at a time, but as it gains momentu m , it starts to leap over severa l stairs at once. LES dashes down a stairwe l l. Eventu al l y the ball of wool leaps its last stair, and the moment um it has now achiev e d sends it rollin g out of the buildi ng door and into the night. The ball of wool tumbles off the pavemen t and begins to roll across the road. As it reache s the middle of the road, it stops. In the backgr ou n d we see LES'S car approac h and then speed over the ball of wool. LES drives. [ L E S' S MEMORY BOX rocks gently from side to side on the back seat. The nail fetish is missin g . CUT TO The back of LES'S car ? the ball of wool is caught behind the car and is unrave l l in g , leaving a trail of thread . ] Light shifts across LES?S face as he drives . From the back seat - We see the world through the windsc re e n as LES does. Sudden ly there's a flurry outsid e. Someth in g shoots across the windscr e en . LES hits the brakes . [ T h e memory box on the back seat is thrown forwar d . ] LES'S eyes are suffuse d with shock ? he?s breath i ng heavy. There' s blood on the outside of the windsc re e n. LES notices it, reache s up and touche s that place with his forefin g e r. 75 LES opens the car door and steps out unstea di l y. There? s a body on the ground in front of his car. [ A taut line of wool extends from the back of the car and disapp ea r s into the surrou nd i ng darkne s s. ] LES looks down at the body, then looks around - distra ug h t and sudden l y acutely aware of his solitu d e . Someth in g on the ground catches his attent i on . A SMALL NAIL FETISH stands in the road. In the backgr o un d we can see the crumpl ed body and the out stretc he d hand of the person LES has knocked down. LES'S finger s come into frame and gently pick up the fetish . LES holds the fetish up to his face and inspec ts it quizzi ca l ly . He looks from the fetish in his hand to the body on the ground . THE KNOCKED DOWN MAN?S HAND In the backgr ou n d we see LES climb franti ca l ly back into his car and begin to pull off. [ A s LES pulls off the thread of wool attach ed to the back of the car snaps. The body lies in the middle of the road with a trail of wool thread leadin g away from its head. LES, still in shock, drives . He looks up at the rear-v i ew mirror . In the rear-v i ew mirror we can see the crumpl ed body in the road, rapidl y gettin g smalle r as we move away from it. ] LES'S EYES as he contem pl a te s what he has done. He looks down at his hands on the steeri ng wheel. 76 I n one hand clutche d betwee n the wheel and his finger s, LES holds the nail fetish . A SMALL FAN choppi ng at a strand of light as it spins. LES'S HAND on the turning handle of the mem ory contra p ti o n. He stops turnin g the handle . TESLA takes a long drag on his cigaret t e. LES remove s the goggle s that cover his eyes and looks down at his hand. He slowly unclen c he s his fist reveal in g the same small nail fetish . FADE TO BLACK 77 Dialtone Screenplay 78 ? { B L A CK JOHNNY (v.o.) I think about you consta nt l y. . . about making love to you. We were suppos ed to grow old togethe r . } FADE IN 1.INT. BUS ? MOVING - DAY The bus sways rockin g JOHNNY , a white man in his mid thirti es , back and forth. JOHNNY stares at the back of an attract i v e woman sitting a few rows in front of him. The bus begins to slow down and JOHNNY watches as the woman gather s her things and moves to the front of the bus. She looks up as she does and for a brief moment their eyes meet. The sound of teleph on e dialli ng tone become s audibl e . JOHNNY quickly looks away and the woman climbs off the bus. The dialli n g tone is sudden l y interr up t e d by sharp beeps as a number is punched in on the keypad . JOHNNY watche s from the bus as it pulls away and the woman disapp e ar s from sight. We hear the muffle d sound of a telepho n e ringin g - as if heard throug h a teleph o ne receiv e r. 2.INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT JOHNNY holds a teleph on e receive r to his ear. He sits in a swivel chair at a small secreta r y -t a bl e . A newspa p er ? This voice- over was added on suggest ion of Dorian Hea t lie, my editing tutor at the ti me. By includi ng this snippet at the beginning and then aga in at the end, I hoped to bookend the nar rative and clar ify the relationsh ip be tween John ny and the sick man who occupi es the roo m ne xt to the living roo m in which Johnny is maki ng his call. 79 o p e ne d to the classi f ie d sectio n is spread across the tablet op . ?[ He taps a pencil on an advert - a line drawin g of a woman wearin g a bow tie and the wor ds ?Black Tie ? Discre e t Live Chat? printe d underne a t h. ] There is a click as JOHNNY ? S call is divert ed and a woman? s voice suddenl y become s audible . WOMAN (v.o.) ...I?l l take it. Ooooh, that?l l be good. JOHNNY sits up straigh t as if caught unawar es by the woman? s voice. JOHNNY Hello? WOMAN (v.o.) Hi, this is Lindi. How are you doing? JOHNNY Who were you taking to? Did I interr u pt ? LINDI (v.o.) Nah. I?ve been waitin g for you, jus? fantas i si n g out loud, an?, ahhhh, I could use a well-hu n g man right now. JOHNNY I?m not gonna? JOHNNY looks furtiv e ly at a door leading off the living room. It is slight l y ajar. LINDI (v.o.) Yes? JOHNNY You know? ? Cu t fro m co mp le ted fil m 80 LINDI (v.o.) Tell me, baby. JOHNNY turns his back on the room ? away from the door. JOHNNY I?m not jerkin g off on the phone righ t now. Jus? so you know. LINDI (v.o.) Okay. You don?t have to jerk-o ff . We could jus? talk. Would you like that? JOHNNY I don?t usuall y do stuff like this. LINDI (v.o.) No? Well you should . ?s good for you. I?m good for you. JOHNNY swivel s restles s ly in his chair. LINDI (v.o.) What?s your name? JOHNNY Johnny . LINDI (v.o.) Tell me what you what, Johnny . JOHNNY I?m not sure. What are doing? LINDI (v.o.) I?m lying on my bed. JOHNNY 81 Do u b le ? LINDI (v.o.) Queen. CUT TO 3.A QUEEN- SI Z E BED. JOHNNY (v.o.) Of course . 2.1.IN T . LIVING ROOM ? NIGHT JOHNNY clears his throat. JOHNNY Doesn' t it give you the creeps , all these guys callin g you? LINDI (v.o.) No, It gives me a job. I can do it from home.. . CUT TO 4.VARI O US SHOTS OF TRADITI O NA L LY WOMAN? S THINGS ? hairdr ye r , curling tongs, make-u p , make-u p brushe s etc. LINDI (v.o.) And it turns me on. Doesn? t it turn you on, Johnny ? 2.2.IN T . LIVING ROOM ? NIGHT JOHNNY swaps the receiv er to the other ear. JOHNNY What are you wearin g ? LINDI (v.o.) 82 A camisol e . JOHNNY What colour? LINDI Taupe. CUT TO 5.A TAUPE CAMISO L E LINDI (v.o.) It?s so light it feels like I have nothin g on at all. 2.3.IN T . LIVING ROOM ? NIGHT JOHNNY wipes his brow with the back of his hand. LINDI (v.o.) I?m slidin g off the straps. . . an? runnin g my hands over my breasts . Can you see my breasts ? See how round and firm they are. The soft brown skin, so smooth . .. JOHNNY ?S brow knits into a perple xe d expres si o n. JOHNNY Brown. LINDI (v.o.) Like soft milk chocola t e ? JOHNNY You?re black? LINDI (v.o.) Oh, yeah, baby. A beat. LINDI 83 (v . o. ) You?ve called Black Tie chat service , sweeth e ar t . JOHNNY Ja. Black Tie. JOHNNY circle s the ad in the newspa p er . LINDI (v.o.) For discer n i ng gentle m e n who like their sugar brown. A beat. JOHNNY Oh, I get it. ?s just.. . You don?t sound black. LINDI (v.o.) What does black sound like, baby? JOHNNY I know, I know. It?s not a proble m . So, you?re on your queen-s i z ed bed... The door leadin g off the living room creaks as a breeze blows it open further . LINDI (v.o.) I?m run nin g my hand down my body and over my hips to the inside of my thighs . .. JOHNNY raises his hand willin g the door to stop opening . LINDI (v.o.) Oooo, that?s soooo good. JOHNNY swallo ws hard. LINDI 84 (v . o. ) I want you badly, Johnny .. . I want to feel your hands on my tits. Heavy and smooth , nipple s pucker e d, standin g erect as you hold them between your lips. JOHNNY ?S torn he wants to stay on the line, but the doors swingi ng open. LINDI (v.o.) Ahhh ahhh ohhh, Johnny ! Johnny ! JOHNNY can?t take it any longer . JOHNNY Could you jus? hang on a second? LINDI (v.o.) What? Oh, okay. JOHNNY tiptoe s across the living room and slowly , softly closes the door. He tiptoe s back to the phone and then says in a hushed voice: JOHNNY Sorry about that. LINDI (v.o.) ?s okay, baby. What do you want to do now? JOHNNY licks his lips. A beat, then - CUT TO 6.CLOS E UP ON A POCKET OF A PAIR OF TROUSE R S as the pocket lining is turned inside out. A pair of tailor scisso r s shears off the bottom part of the pocket lining and a hand is slowly thrust throug h the result i ng hole. JOHNNY 85 (v . o. ) I like to ride the bus. LINDI (v.o.) Uh ha. 7.INT. BUS ? MOVING ? DAY The bus sways rockin g JOHNNY back and forth. [ Hi s hand is in his pocket , the tendon s on his arm move slight l y, almost imperc e pt i bl y , and the materi a l around his crotch distor ts with the movemen t . ] JOHNNY (v.o.) I have a car, but the bus afford s you the time to look at things . .. at people . JOHNNY stares at the back of an attract i v e black woman (LINDI ) sitting a few rows in front of him. JOHNNY (v.o.) I?m lookin g at you on the bus. LINDI (v.o.) I know you are. I can feel your eyes on me. It?s making me hot. LINDI turns her head slightl y , sensing JOHNNY ? S eyes on her. The bus starts to slow down JOHNNY (v.o.) When the bus slows down you stand up. Your dress is caught betwee n the seat.. . JOHNNY watche s as LINDI gather s her things and as she moves toward the front of the bus her dress which is 86 c a u gh t between the seat pulls aside, briefl y exposi n g t he curve of her backsi de . JOHNNY (v.o.) ...and it rides up high and I can see your arse right there? She looks up and their eyes meet. JOHNNY doesn?t look away. LINDI (v.o.) Mmmmm. I want you to put your hand under my dress. I want to feel your finger s on my pussy. JOHNNY (v.o.) I want to... I want to bury my head betwee n your legs, but it?s to soon. The bus comes to a halt and LINDI climbs off. JOHNNY follow s. JOHNNY (v.o.) When you get off the bus I follow you. LINDI (v.o.) I knew you would. I wanted you to. 8.EXT. STREET ? DAY JOHNNY follow s LINDI as she walks down the street . He watche s her legs as they move, the gentle sway of her backsi de . JOHNNY (v.o.) I watch your arse move as you walk.. . 2.4.IN T . LIVING ROOM ? NIGHT 87 J O H NN Y cradle s the receiv e r with both hands. JOHNNY ...an? I think about the ski n at the top of your thighs rubbin g against the lining of your panties . [ L I N DI (v.o.) Ooch! ] JOHNNY I... I follow you back to your place. 9.INT. APARTM E NT BLOCK ? DAY An apartm en t door is slightl y ajar. LINDI (v.o.) An? I?v e left the doo r open for you , baby. 10.INT . APARTM EN T ? DAY LINDI lounge s seducti v e ly on a couch. JOHNNY It?s hot. You?re on the couch; your legs are apart, your toes holdin g on to the edge of the coffee table. You?v e hiked up you dress an? a table fan blows over you through your underw ea r . A fan rotate s slowly, blowin g air betwee n LINDI? S legs. She looks up to see JOHNNY looking down at her and, for he first time, she speaks direct ly to him, but her voice is still mediate d by the teleph o ne , still muffled and distan t. LINDI 88 I want you inside me. I need you inside me. JOHNNY slips his hand into his pocket , his trouse rs distor ti n g around the crotch as his tugs on himself . LINDI Ahhh ahhh. Fuck me, Johnny . Fuck me. 2.5.IN T . LIVING ROOM ? NIGHT JOHNNY mastur b at e s; his eyes shut tight, his breath i n g labour ed . LINDI (v.o.) Put your cock in me. Slid it in, every inch. Open me up? make me take it, let me have it. Ahhhhhh h ? JOHNNY opens his eyes, a look of desper a ti o n breaki ng across his face. LINDI (v.o.) Ahhhhh h Ahhhhh hh h .. . The sounds of LINDI? S moans pour out of the receive r as JOHNNY , exhaus te d , drops it from his ear and replac e s if on the hook ? CLICK. Silenc e. 11.INT . BEDROO M ? NIGHT A very sickly looking man is laid out in bed. There are partic ul a rl y nasty lesion s on his neck and chest. JOHNNY leans down, loving l y kisses the sick man?s cheek and gently places his head on his stomach . { J OH N N Y (v.o.) 89 I think about you consta nt l y. . . about making love to you. We were suppos ed to grow old togethe r . } The sick man tender ly stroke s JOHNNY ?S head. JOHNNY smiles and looks up at the sick man?s face. And then he notice s it ? the teleph o ne next to the bed with the receiv er lying off the hook. FADE OUT. 90 Bibli o g r a p h y Baker, Nichol son . Vox . London: Grant a Book s, 1992. Breton , Andr e . "Sur real i sm . " Ellm an n , Richa r d and Charle s Feide lson , eds. The Modern Tradition: Backgrou nd of Modern Literature . New York: Oxf ord UP, 196 5. Bu?uel, Luis. My Last Sigh . New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 1983. Carrol l , Lewis. The Annotated Alice: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass . Com p. 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