What I See

John Schlesinger’s 1969 Midnight Cowboy, is a movie about a young Texan named Joe Buck, and his experiences moving to New York City. Joe Buck is a cowboy, who in the beginning seems to be intact with his rugged cowboy exterior, until he is exposed to new situations. In the beginning of the film, Joe quits his job as is a dishwasher in a Texan diner, in exchange for a new life in the “promising” city of New York. He moves to the city with intentions of being a male prostitute, or as he puts it a “hustler.” Throughout his journey his character develops from a vulnerable newcomer, to a more aware citizen of the city. The director uses several techniques in order to convey these concepts, as well as to project different emotions on screen.

The scene that I have analyzed takes place when the main character has almost had enough of the new city, that he has learned brutal truths about. It is the turning point in the film, where you start to see Joe try to hide his vulnerability and develop assertion. At this point Joe is tired of trying to decipher who is trustworthy in the city, and is desperate for anyone to reach out a helping hand. In the establishing shot, you see Joe standing in front of a coffee shop window, and Rizzo sitting at the counter inside. There is then a close-up on Rizzo’s face, which shows his facial expression of a friendly smile. Then there is a cut to Joe’s face his expression is at first happy to see a familiar face, but soon changes to anger when he remembers that this familiar face is just another person out to get him. A quick cut and a shot back to Rizzo, shows his new facial expression of guilt and fear. This alone reveals that he knows he has done something wrong, without having to speak with Joe. Tight close ups are used in these shots, as to show the dramatic emotions of each character. The composition of the shots have little depth of feel, focusing more on the characters at hand and less on the busy background of the diner they are in. There are low angle and high angle shots between the characters to show tension, until after the scene the shots of each character are sometimes at eye length.

The film techniques used to create the ideas conveyed on screen, show gradual change through out the movie. High angle and low angle shots show superiority as well as, inferiority between characters before an understanding between the two has been come to. There are also extreme close ups to show dramatic emphasis and short depths of field to show focus on one subject. Deeper depth of field is created with a zoom out. These combined are used to show the insignificance of Joe in the city by showing how small and minute he is among all bustle in the city. I feel that these techniques were utilized in a skilled way and successfully portrayed an interesting story.