Michel Gondry’s excellent film The Science of Sleep (2007) comments extensively on the ways in which we perceive, control and use our hands.
In the opening sequence of the film, a piano falls down the stairs of his apartment, crushing his hand when he tries to support it. When it is being bandaged, a neighbour sprays his hand with foot deoderiser as a placebo – which he perceives as being effective. It is as if his hand lacks identity, and has been easily re-territorilized as a foot.
Stephane’s seeming lack of control in his own life is represented in his dreams by cumbersome hands, which cause him to ‘make mistakes’. They become “the size of houses,” and become autonomous -violently attacking his dull co-workers.
Stephane sees Stephanie’s dexterity and control of her hands as a desirable attribute, and one that he envies. Her skill is embodied by an apartment full of delicate hand made dolls and dioramas, as well as her ability to play the piano (which is an obviously hand-centric instrument). In the short clip below, he comments that “it’s as if her synapses are directly married to her fingers.”
Gondry, or at least Stephane, also explores how consciousness can be split, linked and exist outside the body. There is a sequence where Stephane & Stephanie play tricks with eachother’s hands, tricks that reveal “how our unconscious sensory processing systems can produce impressions at odds with reality”. (Princenthal, 2008).
Stephane is momentarily enchanted by putting two of his fingers together tip to tip and looking beyond them, which seems to make them grow an extra joint, He also likes tactile illusions that create confusion about where his body ends, as when he puts his hand against the hand of Stephanie, his would-be girlfriend, and strokes their aligned fingers…. under which circumstances it’s very hard to tell whose are whose.
Stephane’s inventions extend and create links between human bodies, such as the thought communication device, above. But he also describes loops between minds that have no direct physical connection – a phenomenon he describes as “parallel synchronized randomness”.
References:
Princenthal, Nancy. Eyes wide shut: ‘The Science of Sleep’ Art in America 96.4, April 2008
June 8, 2008 at 2:58 am
Of course, the ‘hand-made’ aesthetic is central to Gondry’s work thus far. Referring back to your post on Be Kind Rewind, there is an obvious parallel between the VHS/DVD and CD/LP divide … which you’ve probably already pointed out … and Rewind triumphs the ability to express humanity and creativity through the hands and associated technologies (hand-held cameras, etc.). Obviously Rewind is not quite as good a film as Science of Sleep, though.
Eternal Sunshine also seems to champion memory as the ultimate physical recording format, and one which should not be recorded over. No real link to hands here, just … brains.
(I feel like I’ve just reiterated a bunch of things that you’ve already said, but … whatever.)
June 9, 2008 at 8:40 pm
Nice review. Loved the film. We’re Gondry fans too.