The Eyes Have It: WESTWORLD
While Westworld (1973) makes a big deal of ‘the hands not being quite right,’ it’s the eyes which give much away, and hold power as well as failure.
And of course it’s the shots which let us see those all-important eyes!
Seeing Through Tech
Westworld is the first feature film to use digital image processing, to show us the world as seen by the android Gunslinger (Yul Brynner).
The way you have to strain to try and clarify details, even as the basics are obvious, really puts you in the Gunslingers’ boots.
Glasses Shots
From the gorgeous, chills-inducing shot of a pilot whose aviators reflect the horizon, to giving the ‘deputy’ and several extras thick-framed glasses, Westworld emphasises sight-assisting lenses throughout.
But it also emphasises just plain eyeballs.
Eye Lights and Contacts
In closeups we get plenty of classic Hollywood ‘eyelight’ technique which brings that sparkle.
Yul Brynner wears contacts which emphasise his eyes even in mids and wides. Within his wonderful physical performance, managing to keep his eyes wide open all the time is a key component.
Even in the dark hallway sections you can see his eyes shine!
The scene also shows a rare non-pixilated POV shot before he breaks into a run.
Meanwhile the cadence and sound mix reminds me of the Point Blank hallway walk.
Eye Manipulation
Some great shots involve android eyes emphasised and/or being worked on; they could have used the eyes being closed to indicate they were ‘switched off’ but this is much more effective, as well as not giving any indication they aren’t seeing everything.
(Hopefully they had plenty of eyedrops on standby for the actors!)
When Peter tries to impersonate an android and hide in that very same repair room, it’s his eyes moving which give him away.
Eyes as Communicators
None of the participants have to speak, you don’t even need to know who these characters are to understand what their eyes are saying, from social discomfort to brazen challenge.
In this sequence the Hostess (Nora Marlowe) tells Peter (Richard Benjamin) an escape plan entirely through exaggerated eye movements, then the ‘sheriff’ watches her go before tipping his hat over his eyes.
In the also-wordless penultimate moment between the Gunslinger and Peter, it’s the Gunslinger’s eyes which are bright and alight, while Peter’s are dark and inscrutable; making us wonder how much of each being human is involved in showing or hiding the windows to his soul.
Takeaways
Putting emphasis on one element opens up a lot of opportunities. While some of the above are blatant — imagine that aviator shot closeup on a big screen! — you can also use a motif in many smaller ways which add up to something bigger.
For example, Peter’s eyes are involved in several of the exchanges. Knowing that, consider one of the first shots of him looking out over the park, his eyes lit from a strip of sun through the window. Then think about how one of Peters’ final acts in the park involves an android whose eyes don’t give her away until it’s too late.
What exactly does that mean?
Westworld‘s use of so many eyes leaves that question for us to ponder.