The Birthday Party by Harold Pinter

Post view task: The Birthday Party by Harold Pinter

Hello readers,
                      This blog is a part of the post-viewing task of the play "the Birthday Party" written by Harold Pinter in 1957 and directed by William Friedkin, a 1968 film in which our Professor Dr.Dilip Barad sir gave us a task to interpret the movie. Here is the blog link of the given task click here.

1]  Why are two scenes of Lulu omitted from the movie?

• Lulu 's two scenes omitted from the movie because probably director doesn't want to show violence into his film. It may disturb readers. Also, the center of the film is Stanley, Goldberg and McCain. So male is the center of the film. If the director shows the scene in which Lulu harassed by Stanley. We felt more sympathy for Lulu, not Stanley. So maybe it is the reason for omitted the scenes.

2]  Is movie successful in giving us the effect of menace? Where you able to feel it while reading the text?

• yes, the movie giving a successful effect of menace. While we are reading the play at some level it creates that kind of effect but not that much like film does because the audio and visual effects are more effective than reading a text. In the movie, we find the effect of menace clearly in the interrogation scene where the number of the question asked and through the loud sound effect and Stanley was sweating in fear and frustration and when Stanley hears about the two strangers he runs in a fear.

3]  Do you feel the effect of lurking danger while viewing the movie? Where you able to feel the same while reading the text?

• Yes, throughout the movie we can find the effect of lurking danger when door knocking and in the interrogation scenes. Furthermore, we can find the lurking danger when Mccain tears newspaper in pieces. In the play, we can find when we think who drive the car where s/he going and interrogation scene of text.

4]  What do you read in 'newspaper' in the movie? Petey is reading the newspaper to Meg, it torn into pieces by McCain, pieces are hidden by Petey in the last scene.

• Newspaper can be seen from both sides means positively and negatively.newspaper is a symbol here. newspaper gives us information about all the thing whatever happens in society. petey is reading a newspaper which means he faces the reality but he is reading to meg which means he is hiding from Meg.

5] Camera is positioned over the head of McCain when he is playing Blind Man's Buff and is positioned at the top with a view of a room like a cage (trap) when Stanley is playing it. What interpretations can you give to these positioning of camera? 

• while seeing the film camera talks everything.thus when a camera is positioned over the head of McCann when he is playing blind buff which demonstrates that McCann is at a power position and is situated at the top with a perspective of the room like a trap which symbolizes that Stanley is trapped by a stranger who was touching him.

 6] "Pinter restored the theater to its basic elements: an enclosed space and unpredictable dialogue, where people are at the mercy of one another and pretense crumbles." (Pinter, Art, Truth & Politics: Excerpts from the 2005 Nobel Lecture). Does this happen in the movie?

• Yes, these all things are reflected in the movie. We don't know some characters and why they are coming as like politics. We can also see that an artist is not free to do whatever they want. So, these things reflected in the movie.

7]  How does viewing movie help in better understanding of the play ‘The Birthday Party’ with its typical characteristics (like Pinteresque, pause, silence, menace, lurking danger)?

• Obviously yes, this movie helped me a lot in developing the different insight of watching movies.  By reading, we may not get exact effects of it. We can feel the Pinteresque qualities in the movie like pause, silence, lurking danger like knocking and in the game of blindman's buff. Throughout the movie, the shrill voice gives more fearful effect. 

8] With which of the following observations you agree:

o   “It probably wasn't possible to make a satisfactory film of "The Birthday Party."
o    “It's impossible to imagine a better film of Pinter's play than this sensitive, disturbing version directed by William Friedkin”. (Ebert)

• According to me, both are right at its own place. Because everything has its own limitation that it can’t go beyond the limitation. Same thing if we apply here in the movie or in the text of the play then we realized that both has its own charm to satisfy the needs of the readers or the viewers. 

9]   If you were a director or screenplay writer, what sort of difference would you make in the making of the movie?   Who would be your choice of actors to play the role of characters?

• According to me, the movie is very much accurate to the original play there is no need to change or add the things in the movie because the setting, character, camera work, dialogue everything is perfect.