Viewing art cinema means looking for moments where stylistic features interrupt the narrative flow, diverting attention from the fabula (story) and emphasizing one's own role. Therefore, the style of an art film is intrusive: the use of unusual camera movements, unreal angles and lighting, and situated settings with a disjointed soundtrack come together to surprise the audience and complicate the narrative. Art films pose questions that guide us in fitting the material into a continuous structure. Features such as flash forwards are unconventional in classic cinema because they create a disruption in the narrative. This forces the audience to think about the narrative and the film itself while trying to solve the “puzzles” presented to them. Since art cinema is aimed at a niche audience, more confusing films are acceptable, as the audience will likely be looking for something that forces them to think. Although art cinema must include a set of conventions in which audiences are able to understand more or less easily and immediately, otherwise the genre would not survive because audiences rely on familiarity within a film as an element of escape and pleasure. However, art cinema challenges the audience's knowledge in such a way that the audience is more aware and engaged in the film. In this essay there will be an in-depth analysis of the films The Tango Lesson (Sally Potter, 1997) and Performance (Nicolas Roeg, Donald Cammell, 1970) and their relationship with art cinema. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The Tango Lesson is a stereotypical new wave film focused on the power of dance and the relationships between people and art of dance. As the film is part of art cinema, it presents unconditional ideas, including its cinematography, as it has the freedom to experiment as the audience expects from this type of cinema. Although using minority representations, the film allows for more open interpretation from the audience, such as the depiction of female filmmakers and them being the more dominant character in a role/relationship. These types of films require the audience to be active rather than passive, as there is a high likelihood that a particular ideology or political agenda will be emphasized in the film. For example, in The Tango Lesson there are many references to the fact that female filmmakers are not accepted in Hollywood as directors, which is a comment on the Hollywood studio system being a male dominated field - comments like these were rare in this era of film, with the exception of some alternative art films. The use of artistic moments has an impact on the audience because they perceive the film as art cinema. These moments include the use of mirrors as a means of reflecting characters and moments in the film. As well as the use of a work style interview as a means of communicating with the characters and the audience, as the film is meta-textual as it is a film within a film. The tango lesson changes from black and white to the color most of the audience would expect. this represents a flashback/flash forward or change in the narrative although at this point in the film it is unclear to the audience and a riddle to solve. Although the film adheres to Todorov's narrative structure, it ends with a soft ending where nothing is really resolved or concluded, the film simply ends. The beginning of the film is intentionally meant to confuse the audience because we don't know that Sally is a filmmaker, her rolecharacter is not defined from the start, which is typical of art cinema because the audience is expected to solve this puzzle in relation to Hollywood. in which the role of each character in the film is defined from the first act. Furthermore, the film constitutes an episodic narrative which shows small acts within acts and therefore creates a Flexi-narrative in which the audience must also focus on this. does not result in any cause and effect unlike Hollywood cinema such as work of Spielberg. During one scene in the film, Pablo is offended by the term work because he wants to be a part of art, which is unusual because in mainstream films the roles are reversed because stereotypically a woman would be considered art when a man would simply work. . This could be confusing for the audience, as they would have to understand why the roles were reversed and the unconventional functions of the characters. It is clear that Pablo wants to be the male character, he has a desire for control which is conventional to the film although this contrasts with an equally headstrong female character - Sally, this results in Pablo demonstrating an insecure character trait which Once again, this can confuse the audience. Sally Potter has a “passive” role in tango, she finds ways through dancing to assert herself, intentionally or not. Where Pablo constantly gives Potter the message that she must subvert herself – her will, her feelings, her energy which creates a tension which in turn makes the tango work. This is particularly emphasized in the film when, while he and Potter are rehearsing to perform together, Pablo chastises her for "doing too much". He constantly tells her to "let go", but she seems unable to comply with his request. This implies that she is not ready to be totally passive towards him, in general she still wants that control which is unconventional but common in art cinema as it suggests that each character is not that that it seems to be. This again suggests that they have a more three-dimensional personality and characteristics that the audience needs to see through to understand the character and the film itself. The film can be seen as covertly feminist in that the male role is taken and subverted by Sally. as the film progresses her character also evolves, she becomes the one who objectifies and profits from her relationship with the dance instructor as he becomes her muse - she has moved from what Mulvey stated as the look masculine to a feminine gaze. Her body language implies that she is in control of the situation, which leads to insecurities within the teacher, who is used to being the one who dominates his students. This is unconventional in mainstream films but is typical of art cinema, as noted before the narrative and character functions develop as the film progresses. The characters are presented in an oppressive light and in subverting roles, which goes against audience expectations and perhaps "confusing" at first, but becomes clear towards the end of the film. Arguments within the film suggest a complicated relationship between Sally and Pablo, underscoring the idea that they are both active in terms of control over each other – they both want to be intimate at different points in the narrative . Look Performance's is about a violent gangster who seeks refuge from the mob in the bohemian home of a former rock star, but in reality the film is much more complex, tackling issues of politics, gender sexuality and influence of the government of the time. The performance has a simple symbolic journey that takes Chas from a repressed narcissistic homosexual in the opening sequence to the liberated sexuality oflast minutes of the film. During the opening sequence, there is a soulless display of sexual pyrotechnics as Chas and Dana engage in liberated contemporary sex. While Chas' sexuality may be known as the being of the film, there is a more complex agenda to him and his sexuality due to his repressed homosexuality. That’s what art cinema is for, to interrogate the audience’s thoughts and feelings about each character, to guess what is being presented to them. The politics of spectacle is not about the epiphenomena of parties and governments or the reality of class exploitation, with England represented as a country captivated by a vicious and cynical ruling class. The lawyer and the gangsters are, despite differences in language and social class, united in their common exploitation of people only seen in the streets and offices. The only area beyond this control is the home, the place of sex, drugs and music that has the potential to transform society. This concept is not obvious to audiences unless they take the time to deconstruct the film and its politics. Although this is expected in art cinema as it is a means of disseminating ideological beliefs through a visual medium, with these beliefs being confusing to the audience, once understood there is a greater appreciation of the film and a better understanding of politics. the performance is very important because it generalizes the whole story, it indicates that the film has moved, during its progress, from a purely realistic level to a purely allegorical level. The audience can see Chas from behind getting into a white Rolls-Royce, as the car passes the camera, the figure inside with the red wig looks out the window - it's Turner. There is then a close up high cut looking at the street and Central Park West, the shot continues as the car turns into Central Park and highlights the New York skyline. Since the film is based in England, this ending not only confuses the audience, but leaves them wondering where the film actually takes place. Unlike contemporary Hollywood films, art cinema tends to leave the ending open or "soft" for audience interpretation, suggesting that art cinema is a puzzle for the audience to solve. creating its own ending. "The penetration of the camera into Turner's body, the destruction of Borges's image, and the transgression of all the rules of spatial construction mean that the film's eerie final minutes are entirely our invention." This lack of integration leads the audience to draw their own conclusions at the end of the film and it could therefore be argued that art cinema is a means of audience engagement. The performance is as difficult to listen to as it is to watch, as the soundtrack is perhaps the most influential and revolutionary aspect of the film. Indeed, rather than being a total composite source or collection of found songs, Jack Nietzsche's soundtrack blends disparate and impure musical forms into a non-diegetic soundtrack. This creates a self-awareness that the audience is situating themselves within the structure of the film and experiencing the idea of ​​what we call a contemporary music video. In addition to the use of music highlighting the performer's narcism, the songs in the film portray Turner as a self-obsessed musician who is better than Chas and highlight the cultural significance of that era. “Just like classical storytelling, cinematic storytelling asks questions that guide us in fitting the material into a continuous structure.” The performance is obvious because it constitutes a classic story but distorts it in such a way that.