A Man Escaped Excerpt 1: The beginning of the film — Fontaine’s escape attempt (2’03”).

Excerpt 1

 Questions

1. Why does Bresson emphasize so much Fontaine’s hands and the gearshift in this initial sequence?
2.

Describe the shot in which Fontaine tries to escape.  What do we not see?  How does Bresson’s technique make us understand that Fontaine’s attempt will fail?

3. What is the role of the soundtrack here?
4. How is violence represented (here and in the following scenes)?
5.

Note the quickness of the dissolve at the end of the sequence.  Discuss.