The Stream of Consciousness in the Films of Alain Resnais

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The representation of thoughts and emotions streaming through a character's mind is imperative in cinematic expression. It grants penetration beyond the character's surface behavior and reaches inner dimensions of his existence. The challenge is vital in a medium which photographically reproduces the concrete visible world in action rather than the intangible invisible drama within the individual's consciousness.

The book introduces the potentialities of a cinematic representation of stream of consciousness through the achievements of Alain Resnais. Of all filmmakers, he has been the most involved in a deliberate effort to represent mental processes of characters in his films. The insights presented in this book have been reached through a close examination of the practice of major filmmakers. A comparative study conducted for over a decade at Tel-Aviv University is the basis of this study.

Haim Callev is a theoretician and a practising filmmaker. He has a Ph.D. degree in Film from Columbia University. Among other publications by the author is the book Cinematic Expression, a two part study of expressive practices in the first centenary of cinema, based on film analysis. Part one deals with cinematic space and part two with screen time.