Daisies (1966) is a very interesting experimental film. Throughout, it uses many cinematic techniques and mise-en-scene elements to weave a complex web of emotion and discovery as two women both named Marie (played by Ivana Karbanová and Jitka Cerhová) navigate the depths of their patriarchal world. The first frame that I grabbed from Daisies (Figure 1, 00:03:00) establishes its feminist values. This sequence cleverly introduces the Maries, their joints squeaking like old dolls when they move as literal objectification. They lament the badness of the world and how it makes no sense for them to be good (hence the caption on screen) because of it. Their feet are already dirty, no doubt because of the “dirtiness” of the world that has tainted the pure representation of these women. On the left, Ivana frames her face with the flower crown she uses to symbolize her virginity and innocence. It’s almost as if she’s peering through a hole to say that what once was whole no longer is. Jitka clasps her hands together in a way that reflects that the girls are meant to come off as innocent, despite their nihilistic discussion of the world around them. One of my favorite parts of this sequence is the quick transition from black-and-white to color film. Jitka slaps Ivana, which spurs this transformation to a world that is dynamic and full of color. This elucidates how dull and plastic life is until the realization that it shouldn’t matter how women present themselves. Furthermore, their world goes from lifeless and bland to bright and lively the second they reject patriarchy.
This next frame grab (Figure 2, 00:37:11) confirms that, throughout the film, there is also a cinematic motif behind color choice. Some sequences are black and white, some colorized, and some have color filters, like this example. Even in the full-color sequences, there tends to be an overarching pattern with colors, shown with clothing, props, and décor—like when their bedroom adopts a green color scheme (00:20:00 – 00:25:30). The black-and-white film sequences are the most serious, often showing some amount of reality or more “in-line” behaviors from the characters. This is important for other parts of the film when the Maries make a scene to show how people react to those who act out of place within the world of this film. This is juxtaposed by sequences with a red filter, which almost always have a manic or maniacal feel to them. The full-color sequences represent these motifs as they all try to speak at once: chaotic and impossible to detangle at a glance. These patterns in color choice and mise-en-scene help to create subconscious relationships between what is happening on screen and the meaning that is associated with the color throughout the rest of the film. Thus, the colors help to regulate the emotions of the audience and the meaning behind each of the disjointed sequences. When watching based on the colors, it helps make more conclusive sense of the film.
The final frame I chose (Figure 3, 1:08:01) wraps up the ideas about this film in, ironically, a tidy bow. For starters, this entire sequence resembles the way in which the Maries did a full 180-degree turn in every possible way while still maintaining the personalities the audience associates with them. The flower crown I mentioned earlier is still atop Ivana’s head for a great reason: these women shouldn’t be seen as any less innocent or proper, despite their unruly actions. The film is a caricature of the idea that patriarchal values limit women in how much they can explore and experience. Their actions throughout the film are negative (leading men on, stealing, making scenes in public for attention); thus, they represent any societal step out of line. However, this ends up taking on a positive connotation that promotes the crowd to cheer for them. They are gluttonous to break down the very barriers that restrict their potential. They steal to signify the free will women should have. They lead men on to represent how powerful women are. These values culminate in this sequence down to the fact that it is full color and, therefore, deploys a lot of the aforementioned motifs. Thus, throughout the film, the mise-en-scene and cinematography help to elucidate the theme of breaking down the oppression of patriarchy.
Daisies (Spine #1157) is available from The Criterion Collection.
Author Biography
Josie Banner is a University of North Carolina Wilmington senior studying for a major in Film Studies and a minor in Digital Arts.
