Semiotics In The Film Thief
“What is this?” “That is my life. And … nothin’, nobody can stop me from makin’ that happen.”
This semiotic analysis will focus on one element throughout several scenes in the film Thief.
First, a definition of semiotics. Semiotics is the study of human communication through the use of signs and symbols. According to Ferdinand de Saussure a sign is made up of two parts; the signifier - the material aspect, and the signified - the mental concept (Cobley and Jansz, 2010:10–11). For example, a drawing of a skull (signifier) can symbolise death (signified).
Thief is a 1981 crime thriller written and directed by Michael Mann. It follows Frank (James Caan), a professional diamond thief as he tries to start a life with his girlfriend Jessie (Tuesday …show more content…
Weld) and leave behind his criminal past. In addition, Frank is trying to help get his old friend and mentor Okla (Willie Nelson) out of prison. In order to get the financial security to allow him to move forward with his life and help get Okla out of prison, he takes on one last jewel heist for the local mob boss, Leo (Robert Prosky).
The element that will be the focus of this analysis is a collage which appears throughout several scenes in the film. “His own picture-perfect conception of the “American Dream”” (Rybin, 2013:22) . The collage can be interpreted as a symbol of Frank’s hopes and dreams for his life. It’s place in each scene contributes to this idea. Every time the collage is looked at by a character, the audience are shown a close up of it. Even though the audience already know what the collage looks like from the first close up in the scene it first appears in, it is shown every time a character looks at it. This emphasises the importance of the collage, and the level of attention paid to it by the characters. The collage (Figure 1) is around the size of a postcard and is made up of images that appear to have been cut from magazines and newspapers. The images included are; a house, a car, two women who’s faces have been blanked out, several children, a photograph of Okla (a father figure and mentor to Frank), a stack of skulls, Life magazine, a graveyard, and a blue space. Figure 1 - The Collage in "Letter from Okla"
First to analyse the collage itself, and then it’s place in each scene.
The house, car, women, and children collectively symbolise Frank wanting a family/domestic life. The women in the collage do not have faces. This is because he is looking for someone to fill that space in his life. Okla is a mentor and paternal figure to Frank. His photo would be included because Frank sees him as part of his family, the theme of the collage. This could also be seen as Frank’s hope that Okla will get out of prison in the future, and be a part of his family. In the collage he is shown with a blue space behind him. The blue space could be interpreted as the sky. If so, it may represent hope to be free from the urban landscape prevalent throughout the …show more content…
film.
When places behind the photograph of Okla, this can connote that he is watching over the family from above.
The stack of skulls may be used to symbolise death. They are on the right side of the image. If read from left to right, this could imply that after Frank finally has the family life he wants, all that is left is his eventual death. Although the fact that there are multiple skulls could be the death of Frank’s family.
The photographs of random children overlap what appears to be either a graveyard, or a field with tree stumps.
However, it is not clear how these two images relate to one another. “It is often quite difficult to differentiate between visual signs, because often there is no clear boundaries between different parts of an image.” (Rose, 2011:75)
At the centre bottom or the collage is a small image of Life Magazine. This could be a subtle way of literally stating that the collage is a symbol of Frank’s life.
The collage first appears in the scene “Letter from Okla” after the opening heist of the film. In this scene Frank receives a letter from Okla, an old friend, mentor, and father figure. Okla is in prison and writes asking Frank to visit him. After reading the letter, Frank takes the collage out from his wallet and stares at it.
Keeping the collage is in his wallet is significant as it is something he carries with him everywhere. This gives the connotation that his dream is constantly at the back of his mind and the motivation behind all of his actions throughout the film. The collage is ‘hidden’ in the back pocket of his wallet, and is kept behind all of his credit cards and club memberships. An explanation of this could be that the dream is the reason ‘behind’ his financial gain, and is at the foundation of his life. (Figure
2)
When Frank reads the letter from Okla and looks at the collage, he sits around the back of the used car dealership he owns and away from his employees. This tells the audience that he is private about these parts of his life; his criminal background, unsurprisingly, and his hopes for a family. Wanting a family is not unusual, so it could be that he hides this as he is fearful of having the dream taken away from him.
Figure 2 - The inside of Frank's wallet
The next scene the collage is featured in is “2 Coffees 1 Romance”. In this scene, Frank and his girlfriend, Jessie, go to a diner above a busy motorway, after Frank is late in meeting her at a bar earlier that night. They discuss what they want out of life and where their relationship is going. Frank tells Jessie about his time in prison, and hands her the collage, explaining what it means to him. Before handing her the collage he looks it over, which could be read as a hesitation to share it with her, and stresses the importance of the collage to him.
By handing her the collage (Figure 3), Frank is symbolically sharing the dream, and literally offering her a place in his life. Jessie takes the collage from across the table and examines it, trying to understand how she fits into the ‘image’ (Figure 4).
“What is this?” “That is my life. And … nothin’, nobody can stop me from makin’ that happen.”
After they have discussed their future together, Frank and Jessie hold hands across the table, above the collage (Figure 5). The dream the collage symbolises to them is what they are bonding over, by creating a physical bond between them, and also shows how they are connected to each other by sharing the dream. It is not a dissimilar action from shaking hands, so it appears as though they are making an agreement to work towards making the dream a reality.
Figure 3 - Frank offering Jessie the collage Figure 4 - Jessie examining the collage Figure 5 - Frank and Jessie hold hands over the collage
The last scene the collage appears in is near the end of the film, in the scene titled “Disassembling A Life”. In this scene, Frank takes apart everything he has worked for by permanently sending away Jessie and their son, blowing up his house, the used car dealership he owns, and the cocktail lounge owned by mob boss Leo. After setting the used car dealership on fire, Frank gets into his car to leave and go to confront Leo. However, before he starts the car, he takes the collage out from his wallet, pausing to look it over one last time (Figure 6). He then crushes it, dropping it out of the car window and driving away.
When Frank realises he has past the point of no return after he has destroyed his marriage, home, and business, that is when he abandons the collage. Everything that he wanted, as shown in the collage, he achieves and then has to let go of. He no longer needs the collage, as the dream is over. “Frank must make the ultimate symbolic sacrifice; he must destroy himself in order to save them. “(Wildermuth, 2005). The collage is shown left on the ground with the car dealership burning before it (Figure 7). This emphasises how small the collage is in the face of everything.
Frank is willing to ‘drop’ everything he has built in his life in order to be free of Leo’s control, and allow his family to live free from the criminal world. Figure 6 - Frank looks over the collage in "Disassembling a Life"
Figure 7 - The collage is abandoned at the car dealership
Another reading of the collage, is that it gives us a general synopsis of the film. If we read the images from left to right, as this is a Western-made film so would be read as such. It starts with the first faceless woman, the house and the car. Frank’s ‘life’ starts with marrying Jessie and making a home together. After these images are the children. After moving into a new house together, Frank and Jessie try to adopt a child, although they end up adopting a child illegally through Leo. The images of the children overlap what appears to be a graveyard. This could be read as the appearance of a child in Frank’s life coincides with death. In the film, Okla dies, around the same time Frank and Jessie adopt their son. The photograph of Okla overlapping the sky, which as earlier stated implies watching over from above (heaven), can be connected to Frank and Jessie deciding to name their son after Okla. At the far right is the stack of skulls. In relation to the events of the film, this could correlate with Frank killing Leo and his henchmen at the end. It could also signify Frank’s death at the end of the film. Although he does not literally die, despite being shot in the chest, he destroys every aspect of his life, including the collage. He describes the collage by saying “That is my life. And … nothin’, nobody can stop me from makin’ that happen.” He is right, as everything illustrated in the collage does happen, it just does not last. Discarding the collage may symbolise that he has achieved everything he wanted, and no longer needs it.
To conclude, the collage featured in the film Thief is a signifier of the main character, Frank’s life, including his hopes for the future. The images composing the collage tell the audience about Frank’s life goals. The attention shown to the collage through the use of close ups whenever looked at by a character cements its importance to the audience. Furthermore, it is used by Frank to communicate to his girlfriend, Jessie, the future he wants with her. In addition, the choice in the images used and how they are ordered appear to loosely outline the events of the film.
This semiotic analysis will focus on one element throughout several scenes in the film Thief.
First, a definition of semiotics. Semiotics is the study of human communication through the use of signs and symbols. According to Ferdinand de Saussure a sign is made up of two parts; the signifier - the material aspect, and the signified - the mental concept (Cobley and Jansz, 2010:10–11). For example, a drawing of a skull (signifier) can symbolise death (signified).
Thief is a 1981 crime thriller written and directed by Michael Mann. It follows Frank (James Caan), a professional diamond thief as he tries to start a life with his girlfriend Jessie (Tuesday …show more content…
Weld) and leave behind his criminal past. In addition, Frank is trying to help get his old friend and mentor Okla (Willie Nelson) out of prison. In order to get the financial security to allow him to move forward with his life and help get Okla out of prison, he takes on one last jewel heist for the local mob boss, Leo (Robert Prosky).
The element that will be the focus of this analysis is a collage which appears throughout several scenes in the film. “His own picture-perfect conception of the “American Dream”” (Rybin, 2013:22) . The collage can be interpreted as a symbol of Frank’s hopes and dreams for his life. It’s place in each scene contributes to this idea. Every time the collage is looked at by a character, the audience are shown a close up of it. Even though the audience already know what the collage looks like from the first close up in the scene it first appears in, it is shown every time a character looks at it. This emphasises the importance of the collage, and the level of attention paid to it by the characters. The collage (Figure 1) is around the size of a postcard and is made up of images that appear to have been cut from magazines and newspapers. The images included are; a house, a car, two women who’s faces have been blanked out, several children, a photograph of Okla (a father figure and mentor to Frank), a stack of skulls, Life magazine, a graveyard, and a blue space. Figure 1 - The Collage in "Letter from Okla"
First to analyse the collage itself, and then it’s place in each scene.
The house, car, women, and children collectively symbolise Frank wanting a family/domestic life. The women in the collage do not have faces. This is because he is looking for someone to fill that space in his life. Okla is a mentor and paternal figure to Frank. His photo would be included because Frank sees him as part of his family, the theme of the collage. This could also be seen as Frank’s hope that Okla will get out of prison in the future, and be a part of his family. In the collage he is shown with a blue space behind him. The blue space could be interpreted as the sky. If so, it may represent hope to be free from the urban landscape prevalent throughout the …show more content…
film.
When places behind the photograph of Okla, this can connote that he is watching over the family from above.
The stack of skulls may be used to symbolise death. They are on the right side of the image. If read from left to right, this could imply that after Frank finally has the family life he wants, all that is left is his eventual death. Although the fact that there are multiple skulls could be the death of Frank’s family.
The photographs of random children overlap what appears to be either a graveyard, or a field with tree stumps.
However, it is not clear how these two images relate to one another. “It is often quite difficult to differentiate between visual signs, because often there is no clear boundaries between different parts of an image.” (Rose, 2011:75)
At the centre bottom or the collage is a small image of Life Magazine. This could be a subtle way of literally stating that the collage is a symbol of Frank’s life.
The collage first appears in the scene “Letter from Okla” after the opening heist of the film. In this scene Frank receives a letter from Okla, an old friend, mentor, and father figure. Okla is in prison and writes asking Frank to visit him. After reading the letter, Frank takes the collage out from his wallet and stares at it.
Keeping the collage is in his wallet is significant as it is something he carries with him everywhere. This gives the connotation that his dream is constantly at the back of his mind and the motivation behind all of his actions throughout the film. The collage is ‘hidden’ in the back pocket of his wallet, and is kept behind all of his credit cards and club memberships. An explanation of this could be that the dream is the reason ‘behind’ his financial gain, and is at the foundation of his life. (Figure
2)
When Frank reads the letter from Okla and looks at the collage, he sits around the back of the used car dealership he owns and away from his employees. This tells the audience that he is private about these parts of his life; his criminal background, unsurprisingly, and his hopes for a family. Wanting a family is not unusual, so it could be that he hides this as he is fearful of having the dream taken away from him.
Figure 2 - The inside of Frank's wallet
The next scene the collage is featured in is “2 Coffees 1 Romance”. In this scene, Frank and his girlfriend, Jessie, go to a diner above a busy motorway, after Frank is late in meeting her at a bar earlier that night. They discuss what they want out of life and where their relationship is going. Frank tells Jessie about his time in prison, and hands her the collage, explaining what it means to him. Before handing her the collage he looks it over, which could be read as a hesitation to share it with her, and stresses the importance of the collage to him.
By handing her the collage (Figure 3), Frank is symbolically sharing the dream, and literally offering her a place in his life. Jessie takes the collage from across the table and examines it, trying to understand how she fits into the ‘image’ (Figure 4).
“What is this?” “That is my life. And … nothin’, nobody can stop me from makin’ that happen.”
After they have discussed their future together, Frank and Jessie hold hands across the table, above the collage (Figure 5). The dream the collage symbolises to them is what they are bonding over, by creating a physical bond between them, and also shows how they are connected to each other by sharing the dream. It is not a dissimilar action from shaking hands, so it appears as though they are making an agreement to work towards making the dream a reality.
Figure 3 - Frank offering Jessie the collage Figure 4 - Jessie examining the collage Figure 5 - Frank and Jessie hold hands over the collage
The last scene the collage appears in is near the end of the film, in the scene titled “Disassembling A Life”. In this scene, Frank takes apart everything he has worked for by permanently sending away Jessie and their son, blowing up his house, the used car dealership he owns, and the cocktail lounge owned by mob boss Leo. After setting the used car dealership on fire, Frank gets into his car to leave and go to confront Leo. However, before he starts the car, he takes the collage out from his wallet, pausing to look it over one last time (Figure 6). He then crushes it, dropping it out of the car window and driving away.
When Frank realises he has past the point of no return after he has destroyed his marriage, home, and business, that is when he abandons the collage. Everything that he wanted, as shown in the collage, he achieves and then has to let go of. He no longer needs the collage, as the dream is over. “Frank must make the ultimate symbolic sacrifice; he must destroy himself in order to save them. “(Wildermuth, 2005). The collage is shown left on the ground with the car dealership burning before it (Figure 7). This emphasises how small the collage is in the face of everything.
Frank is willing to ‘drop’ everything he has built in his life in order to be free of Leo’s control, and allow his family to live free from the criminal world. Figure 6 - Frank looks over the collage in "Disassembling a Life"
Figure 7 - The collage is abandoned at the car dealership
Another reading of the collage, is that it gives us a general synopsis of the film. If we read the images from left to right, as this is a Western-made film so would be read as such. It starts with the first faceless woman, the house and the car. Frank’s ‘life’ starts with marrying Jessie and making a home together. After these images are the children. After moving into a new house together, Frank and Jessie try to adopt a child, although they end up adopting a child illegally through Leo. The images of the children overlap what appears to be a graveyard. This could be read as the appearance of a child in Frank’s life coincides with death. In the film, Okla dies, around the same time Frank and Jessie adopt their son. The photograph of Okla overlapping the sky, which as earlier stated implies watching over from above (heaven), can be connected to Frank and Jessie deciding to name their son after Okla. At the far right is the stack of skulls. In relation to the events of the film, this could correlate with Frank killing Leo and his henchmen at the end. It could also signify Frank’s death at the end of the film. Although he does not literally die, despite being shot in the chest, he destroys every aspect of his life, including the collage. He describes the collage by saying “That is my life. And … nothin’, nobody can stop me from makin’ that happen.” He is right, as everything illustrated in the collage does happen, it just does not last. Discarding the collage may symbolise that he has achieved everything he wanted, and no longer needs it.
To conclude, the collage featured in the film Thief is a signifier of the main character, Frank’s life, including his hopes for the future. The images composing the collage tell the audience about Frank’s life goals. The attention shown to the collage through the use of close ups whenever looked at by a character cements its importance to the audience. Furthermore, it is used by Frank to communicate to his girlfriend, Jessie, the future he wants with her. In addition, the choice in the images used and how they are ordered appear to loosely outline the events of the film.