Imagine you’re sitting in a theater. There are three walls that surround the stage: on the left, on the right, and in the back. Between the audience and the stage exists this imaginary fourth wall, which separates the real world from the fictional world of the stage. So when a film breaks the fourth wall, that means the line has been crossed, there is no longer a boundary between what is real and what is fiction. The spectator is now taken out of the film world - they are purposely being made aware that they are watching a movie.
What are some of the ways that a filmmaker breaks the fourth wall? The most common device is
when a character turns to the camera and directly addresses the spectator. A film can also be meta, which means it is referencing itself. For example, a film within a film about filmmaking is another way to break the fourth wall.
Which of the following movies that break the fourth wall did you like the most?
After voting,
discuss here.
