ESSAYS, ARTICLES, AND THEORIES ABOUT CINEMA: THE SEARCHERS EXISTS THROUGH WIDESCREEN

Blu-Ray titles. Oh, if Ford could have lived to experience this film in Blu-Ray...

John Ford could film the Grand Canyon for an hour, and upon watching it in the theater, one would feel they had actually seen its spectacular magnificence. In The Searchers (1954), Ford takes the grandeur of the West’s gigantic valleys, crystal blue dangling skies, never-ending stretches of land, and sets it as the backdrop for one of the greatest Western tales ever filmed. With the newly developed technology of CinemaScope, the screen became wider, and Ford used the wider screen to enhance not only objects within the frame, but used the edges of the frame to enhance the cinematic experience for the viewer. The film opens with the view of the outside seen from inside a cabin. The edges of the door block the rest of the outside, therefore making the opening somewhat of an iris. Ford shows this view, then tracks out to become engulfed into the breathtaking immense openness of the outdoors. The reason for starting inside the cabin with the edges blocked is to show the normal size of a screen, and then upon reaching the outdoors, the screen’s border in itself enlarges to showcase the visual appeal of CinemaScope. In John Ford’s epic masterpiece,The Searchers, cinematography’s aesthetic techniques, specifically the long/extreme long shot, the pan, and the angle are visually enhanced due to widescreen.

Perfect illustration how well Ford used the enhanced edges.

Ford had used the long/extreme long shot many times before, and in fact became famous for showing landscapes before, however with a wider screen, he was able to place the audience even further into the story. With the use of widescreen, a landscape or any scene for that matter, shot from directly ahead would appear flat. So, Ford uses geometrical perspectives to enhance the realistic experience. In the scene where the Indians surround Ethan and his gang, they line up on both sides of the gang. While using an extreme long shot, both edges of the frame show the line of Indians, while in between them centered, is Ethan’s gang. As soon as Ethan’s gang charges ahead rapidly, the two rows of Indians converge to the center of the frame as they reach the foreground. This enhances the angular perspective of the rows and further more, makes the viewer feel the two rows are charging towards him/her.

Movement also plays a huge role in what is seen in the frame, as well as provide further aesthetic analysis. Specifically, the panoramic shot introduces further surrounding environments throughout the process of movement. In the beginning, when Ethan and the Rangers gallop off, the camera pans with them. By doing so, it shifts the perspective of the frame, giving a different and even further perspective. A pan seen through the normal size screen does not capture this effect, however it is through widescreen, that more is seen when panning. Another scene that uses widescreen to enhance the pan is during Martin’s fight with Charlie. As they fight, the camera cuts to Laurie begging Ethan to stop the fight through a medium shot. When he refuses, she runs out of the frame. A few seconds later, the camera pans right to capture a fascinated Laurie in a medium close up. This transition is shown through two ways: character emotion and distance. Laurie goes from being worried in the beginning of the shot, but after the pan, she is seen with a huge grin on her face, excited to see who wins. The variations of distance also plays a key role, being that the shot goes from showing Laurie in a medium shot to a medium close up. The change to the medium close up through the widescreen really accentuates her size, giving the viewer a clear sight of her facial expression.

Ford's use of perspective. There's so much depth to this shot. Ethan himself, in the farground is just as clear as the woman in the foreground.

Placing the camera in the wrong location can ruin a shot. Through the film, it feels as though Ford manages to put the camera in all the right locations for all varied reasons. Being that the use of widescreen requires more preparation for the mise-en-scene, the framing of the shot relies solely on what angle to capture the image. In the scene when Ethan and Martin first discover the burning house, they are seen from a low angle, towering above the viewer. The widescreen allows the sky brightly looming in the background gives all the light to the scene, thus making Ethan completely silhouetted. By using this angle, the widescreen emphasizes their rage, making them seem 100 feet tall, and projecting it through camera placement.

Perspective in this picture is shown with Ford's placements of actors within the frame. Notice how all the characters rest on different planes of action, but CinemaScope highlights the separate planes.

Whether the camera is placed far away, moved or is angled do in fact convey a visual meaning, however are forcefully emphasized when seen through widescreen. Just as the film opens with the camera being introduced to the open wilderness, the film closes with the opposite. As the Jorgensen’s carry Debbie inside, the camera pulls in and the edges of the frame are cut off and leaves the iris effect, showing Ethan as he walks off into the sunset. This puts an end to the story and just as the story ends, the door closes in the very same nature the cover of a book is closed.

Ford's Iris: Ethan walking into the sunset. For some reason, I can't help but bring up the uncanny resemblance to Chaplin's tramp character walking off into the sunset.