Maya Deren: Meshes of the Afternoon

While I was viewing this films, I had to look at a little more

closely at the small clues that are presented through out

the film. My basic interpretation was that of the idea of the

mind and the unconscious. I guess you can say the Deren

was trying to accomplish a dream like idea for this film. What

prompted this idea was the scene with herself at a table, split

into threes. What immediately came to mind was the idea of the

three subconscious: ID,Ego, and Superego. I know that may

be stretching it a bit, but it has a similar idea. All of the three

versions of her selves were looking at the key which then turns into a knife.

So is it possible that the key was a way of symbolizing a entry into

her mind?

The structure of the film was interesting in a way because

the was no dialogue. So in a way it was a mystery without dialogue.

The audience has to follow her clues in order to figure out

what is going on. The most interesting portion of the film was the

cinematography. The camera moved with the actress while also

expressing the appropriate emotion. An example would be the

the scene where Maya is climbing up the stairs, while hitting the

wall. The camera moves with her in the scene so it gives an

uneasy feeling. Also what I felt throughout the films was a

feeling of claustrophobia, because we (audience) never get

a chance to see the entire space. We are also packed into

a small space.