Article Review On Marat/Sade

Marat/Sade is a film directed by Peter Brook and is based on a play by Peter Weiss. This film can be described as a play within a play. Originally a stage play, the director adds the techniques of cinema. This is important in identifying the difference between directing a film and directing a stage play. While a film director has the power of forcing the audience to see what he or she wants them to see, a stage director does not have this power. The theater provides an experience whereby the audience can look at any place or part on the stage. However, in the movies, it is the camera which becomes the eye of the audience. In the film, the performance of the play is by a set of inmates who suffer from different stages of mental illness. The essence is to create an ironic or comic effect.
The play uses mini musical interludes with the aim of adding ironic commentary on the action that takes place ‘on stage’. On stage is in quotes because the scene is in the movie and not on the actual stage. The director manages to use musical score effectively with the songs commenting on issues and themes of the play. The songs in the play tend to create an alienation effect whereby the interrupt the play’s action to offer social, political and historical commentary. the hot-house asylum atmosphere exhibits excellent cinematography, with the film using a brilliant group of actors and a rich tapestry of colors to provide the audience with a great viewing experience. Marat/Sade is a perfectly filmed play that stimulating to watch, enjoyable for the acting and reflects and resonates with social and political realities of today.