ABSTRACT
Using selective focus to visualize a character’s subjectivity is among the oldest lens techniques in the history of cinema; early examples can be seen in German Expressionist films from the 1920s. It continues to be used to this day because it is an extremely effective way to let an audience experience a character’s physical, emotional, or psychological state, especially in unusual or particularly tense situations. One variation of this technique involves using it in combination with a looking/POV/reaction shot sequence, one of cinema’s most effective methods for eliciting audience identification with a character. A brilliant use of selective focus to convey a character’s physical impairment can be found in an especially tense scene from Denis Villeneuve’s Prisoners , a thriller that examines the moral dilemmas a suburban couple face after they kidnap and torture a creepy loner they believe abducted their 6-year-old daughter.
