baumer Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 (edited) This is another article I wrote for the website I contribute to on a regular basis. What is the “fourth wall”? Simply speaking it’s the window we as an audience look through when watching a movie. Here are 10 great movies that break the “fourth wall rule”… What is the “fourth wall”? Simply speaking its the window we as an audience look through when watching a movie. It’s our point of view. In fiction film, the fourth wall doesn’t exist within the story. In other words the characters within the fictional world don’t know it’s there. However, filmmakers have chosen to use the imaginary fourth wall within the story to create a different dynamic between the film and the audience. This is usually seen by way of a character looking into camera (therefore acknowledging that it exists) and speaking directly to the audience. One of the most famous uses of this technique can be seen in 1965′s Alfie starring Michael Caine. Caine plays the titular title character, a larger-than-life Londoner and serial womaniser, who frequently speaks directly to camera as if the audience is a friend of his. Here's my top 10. Obviously there are dozens of other films that could be here as well. http://www.top10films.co.uk/archives/19990#comment-780919 10) In Superman and the sequels, the film usually ends with Superman flying away and nodding or smiling to the audience. There are other examples in the first film. After Clark catches a bullet in his hand, he looks to the camera and gives a slight smirk, as if to say, "it's just between us." 9) In Fight Club, Brad Pitt gives the speech that starts off with, "You are not the car you drive, you are not the contents of your wallet.." By the end of the monologue, he is staring directly into the camera, then it shakes and apparently comes loose. It's one of the most blatant breaking of the fourth walls in film history. 8) In last summers very funny film, We're The Millers, David Clark, played by Jason Sudekis, stares at the camera and smiles as if to say, "Hell yea!" when Jennifer Aniston is performing her strip tease for the bad guys. It also gets a good laugh from the audience. 7) In Pretty In Pink, after Ducky sees Andi at the prom and tells her to go after Blaine, he glances around and spots a very attractive girl checking him out. Ducky, as you may recall, lacks self esteem and it was one of his glaring faults all throughout the film. But when this new hot girl is checking him out, he points at himself and whispers, "ME?", and she nods yes. He then looks directly into the camera, raises his eyebrows and makes his way over to her. It gets a big laugh every time. 6) In Wolf of Wall Street, Leonardo DiCaprio talks to the audience on numerous occasions, two of the most notable are when he is walking down the stairs in the morning, explaining all the drugs he takes throughout the day. As he is walking towards his chauffeur, he tosses his glass of orange juice behind him and you hear it break and DiCaprio never stops talking to us, the audience it does. There are other scenes where he attempts to explain eclectic terms and scenarios to us, before stopping and just telling us the audience that it really doesn't matter. All of this adds to the brilliance of the film, which is why, imo, it is the best film of 2013. 5) There is a great breaking the fourth wall moment in the trailer for Clint Eastwood's In the Line of Fire. In the teaser trailer, we hear the voice of John Malkovich telling us that he sees Clint Eastwood standing over the body of another dead president. As the numbers 1963 turn into 1993, we see Clint loading his gun and he then turns to the camera and says, "That's not going to happen." It was a very effective teaser for the film. 4) In JFK, the fourth wall isn't broken in the traditional sense, but director Oliver Stone breaks it nonetheless. In Jim Garrison's closing arguments, he is pleading his case to the jury. The closing speech is very lengthy and as Kevin Costner is finally ready to wrap it up, the camera begins to move towards Costner so that it is eye level with him. His last words are, "It's up to you." And as he is saying these words, he is looking directly into the camera, at us, the audience. Although this is not the number one spot on my list, it is my favourite breaking the 4th wall moment as the JFK fairy tale told by the Warren Commission is something I am very interested in. 3) In one of the funniest breaking the fourth wall films, the criminally under rated Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, there are two very funny moments. One is when Holden, played by Ben Affleck, says to Jay and Silent Bob, "a Jay and Silent Bob movie? Who'd pay to see that?" And then all three of them turn to the camera and glare at the audience. There's another funny scene where Ben Affleck and Matt Damon play themselves playing their characters in Good Will Hunting and Affleck says, "you gotta do the payback picture because your friend says you owe him," and then they pause and stare back at the camera (and Kevin Smith, who is directing Jay and Silent Bob and who produced Good Will Hunting, which made stars out of the two of them). 2) In Gremlins 2, Hulk Hogan is summoned by an usher at a theater because the gremlins have stopped the movie "Gremlins" and replaced it with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Hogan, who at the time was one of the most well known celebrities in the world, stands up and in character, tells the gremlins that the audience has paid good money to watch the film and if they don't put Gremlins back on, Hulkamania is going to run wild on them. The Gremlins take heed to his warning and put the film back on. Clever and completely ingeniously done by Joe Dante. 1) And the number one breaking the fourth wall moment in film is of course Ferris Bueller's Day Off. The entire film has Ferris talking to us, the audience. From moments where he tells about how much he loves driving the Ferrari to the time when he is in Chez Quis talking to us about not getting busted by a guy like him, they are all funny. But the best is the after credit scene where he has just gotten out of the shower, peers around the corner and asks, "You're still here?" And then he tells us, "Go home, it's over." A great bonus for those who stuck around till the end of the movie. Edited February 4, 2014 by Christmas baumer 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SchumacherFTW Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 You put in Jay and Silent Bob. You sir, are a legend! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumer Posted February 4, 2014 Author Share Posted February 4, 2014 Did it not have one of the best fourth wall moments though? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Gittes Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 (edited) Not all of these qualify - often the camera simply assumes the POV of a character who's looked at - but still: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYakwEUNZTk Edited February 4, 2014 by Jake Gittes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Gittes Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 A personal favorite - Anna Karina in Godard's Vivre sa vie (My Life to Live). Though it's obviously more effective in context. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luna Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 annie hall obv 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilmac Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 I love your Superman example Baumer. It would be my #1 as well. #2 is ALL of House of Cards. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dashrendar44 Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 12 Years A Slave. There's a lingering "Malickian" shot on Solomon in a forest and as he's staring all around him, he ends up breaking the fourth wall staring at us. It was really surprising and troubling. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoolioD1 Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 I love your Superman example Baumer. It would be my #1 as well. #2 is ALL of House of Cards. Especially the UK version, which I just finally watched recently. Kevin Spacey's fourth wall breaks are fun, and all, but Ian Richardson does an excellent job of talking as if you're just as guilty as he is by simply enjoying the show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil in the Blank Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 (edited) Some great breaking the fourth wall moments in here. Edited February 4, 2014 by Spottswoode 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Stingray Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 12 Years A Slave. There's a lingering "Malickian" shot on Solomon in a forest and as he's staring all around him, he ends up breaking the fourth wall staring at us. It was really surprising and troubling. Wow. Haven't seen the movie yet, but just reading it that shot sounds powerful. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Stingray Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumer Posted February 4, 2014 Author Share Posted February 4, 2014 I never noticed the fourth wall being broken in 12YAS. I'll have to watch it again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master Scottb Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 (edited) Ferris Bueller's Day Off has a lot of scenes where Ferris talks or gives commentary directly to the audience. An example (go to 1:07) http://youtu.be/yZjZL_UmsfE Edited February 4, 2014 by scottb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumer Posted February 4, 2014 Author Share Posted February 4, 2014 Yep, the whole movie he talks to us. But for the article, I had to pick one or two scenes from the movie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master Scottb Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54SYd-pH56A Here's a good one 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Webslinger Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 The Wolf of Wall Street wins handily among more recent examples. Even though it was a one-off, I also dug the hell out of the ending of Wanted. "What the fuck have you done lately?" 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcclaine Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 Annie Hall, Fight Club, Wolf of Wall Street, Whatever Works, Wayne's World... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
75Live Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 I can't find the clip yet, but Eddie Murphy in Trading Places always comes to mind with this. When they are telling him how commodities work and using examples with bacon as you can find in a bacon lettuce tomato sandwich, he then stares at the audience like "do you believe how bleeping dumb that just was?" 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prime Mover and Shaker Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 I can't see the clips above at work, so sorry if this has alrady been mentioned - but Belushi in Animal House, as he's watching the half (or more) naked nublies through the window. He gives the camera a great look - so funny. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
