What Lies Beyond the Frame: Analyzing Self-Discovery and

Societal Resistance in Kurt Wimmer’s Equilibrium

Equilibrium is a science fiction action film that was written and directed in 2002 by Kurt Wimmer. This cinematic piece of art creates a totalitarian dystopia where constituents are denied the right to feel and are subdued by a universal drug. In this society, clerics are responsible for ensuring that members of society oblige by the rules and destroying those who do not. The central themes communicated in this film are self-discovery and man’s ability to overcome societal expectations. Wimmer conveys these messages to viewers with a number of artistic elements, but does so specifically by use of symbolism, mise en scene, lighting and camera shots. By breaking down and analyzing a scene that occurs early on in the film, audiences can observe the metamorphosis of the protagonist and how this affects the entirety of the film.

The main character begins a transformation near the beginning of the film when he skips a dose of the mind and personality numbing medication. Realizing what feeling is and how it imposes meaning on everything, Preston’s life as he knows it, changes. The dismal shades of life that he once knew are slowly turning to brilliant shades of color as he acknowledges feeling. Awakening from a frightening nightmare, this character sees the world in a new light and barrels down the path of self-discovery and his newfangled rebellion to societal conformities.

Using lighting and symbolism as tools, this beginning of this scene conveys a sense of darkness and the acknowledgement of evil. The opening frame (31:57) of this scene depicts a man lying on a metal sheet in the center of the screen. He is clothed in a body bag, and the flames of an incinerator await him in the background; this image is born from Preston’s nightmares. A voice-over of a woman that this character convicted of feeling plays in the background, “Without love, breath is just a clock ticking.” In this frame, the fire in the background, symbolizing destruction, is about to engulf the awaiting corpse. The colors in the frame consist of shades of gray; this represents the morbid colors of a dark life that protagonist is beginning to let go. Wimmer conveys the main character’s realization of meaningless destruction by displaying the ease at which lives are taken and he demonstrates the main character’s thoughts of changing with the intuitive voice in the background. This frame alone encompasses symbolism and the elements of mise en scene to create a scene that exposes the protagonist as someone who can in fact, feel.

The beginning of this next frame starts Wimmer’s repetition of the use of hands to convey a sense of feeling and capability; he does so by the simple recognition a heartbeat.

After the cleric awakes from this terrifyingly revealing nightmare, he slowly reaches his shaking hand toward his heart. At this time (32:19), the frame consists of a close up shot of Preston’s hand placed over his chest. The light and dark contrasts of the frame direct focus on the details of the character’s body, specifically his hand. With this camera shot, the director is portraying vulnerability in his half nudity and his slow but sure self-discovery of feeling.

As the sun rises in the scene, the camera focuses in on a centered shot of the sun intensifying as rain silently falls on the window outside (32:31); this is symbolic of new beginnings and the rain washing away the way things used to be. By creating a frame that that unveils the sunrise in such a way as to indicate that Preston has never truly seen or experienced, Wimmer is creating a positive tone and a transition for the main character. Not only does he realize beauty, but he recognizes feeling. This exposure of light and color demonstrates a change for the protagonist as he continues to discover use for his feelings.

When the director creates a centered shot of the cleric reaching out toward this sun-filled window with a bewildered expression on his face, he has generated an almost spiritual experience for the protagonist (32:39). By encompassing only Preston and his outstretched arm surrounded by light, viewers can observe that the main character is reaching toward something that had once seemed unattainable. The appearance of light radiating from the window and his slow movement toward the glow of the sunrise illustrates his escape from his past and his slow grasp on this new self that recognizes beauty and sees it as something worth his time.

Perhaps the most crucial frame of this three minute scene occurs just twelve seconds after when Wimmer effectively uses camera shots and lighting to display Preston’s internal struggle to defy conformity and find his true self. This frame consists of a close up shot of the main character’s fingers scratching away at a film over the window. The soothing ascending musical number that begins to play in the background juxtaposes the heavy breathing coming from the protagonist as he tears away at the blindfold of his past. The lighting in this frame connotes a feeling of hope and satisfaction by highlighting the raindrops on the window and allowing light to beam through this new opening. This is also an example of the Wimmer’s repetitive use of hands to demonstrate feeling one of its rawest states.

Even though the scene has thus far exposed Preston as one who is able to feel and therefore guilty of treason, there is a frame that betrays his doubt. At (13:42), Wimmer demonstrates an effective use of shot-reverse-shot with the protagonist viewing himself in the mirror. After the camera rotates from an image of the main character, to one of himself in the mirror, viewers are left to observe the utter confusion and bewilderment in his face as he holds the gun to his neck that would insert the daily numbing medication. This crucial pause that the director has created by focusing on the mirror image conveys the internal battle this character is fighting between attempting to kill his feeling and succumbing to human nature and the power that comes with feeling. This is symbolic of his resistance and his soon-to-be rebellion.

After the scene quickly transitions to Preston in the workplace, sound and the way it is placed among camera shots takes on an important role (34:12). There is a voice-over of the government describing the drug, Prozium, praising its ability to suppress society. Simultaneously, the frame is filled by an overhead high shot of all the workers (with Preston dead in the center) as they are dressed in identical clothing and hairstyles, and standing in the same upright stance with an empty stare. The inability to express emotion is created in this scene by expressing the dull sameness of the fellow clerics and by the ominous voice in the background. This frame shows the protagonist forcing himself to comply with the norm in able to take the next rebellious step. Wimmer’s effective uses of tone and camera shots display the main character’s resistance among his repressed colleagues.

While some viewers may be questioning whether or not Preston is going to continue to trust feeling, their questions are answered when a mere 18 seconds later, the camera moves in on close up shot of a tube of Prozium that Preston’s foot is crushing. The voice-off of the government ruler instructing citizens to take this drug loyally juxtaposes the protagonist’s actions. The destruction of this medicine solidifies this new self and destroys the cold emotionless character that now ceases to exist. This is symbolic of self-acceptance and rebellion in its earliest stage.

Bringing the scene to a close, Wimmer comes full circle with another image portraying a hand, representing Preston’s final ascending step toward embracing this new self and all of the responsibilities that come with his new existence. After all of the clerics begin to march through a doorway and up a wide staircase, the camera again moves in on a close up shot of Preston’s hand (35:07). Removing the glove from his hand, he slowly places his hand on the railing and examines this simple feeling. Again, the hand is symbolic of feeling and capability. In addition, the removal of the glove represents the elimination of the mask that he once was coerced and forced to wear.

In a span of three minutes, Wimmer exposes the protagonist of his film; leads him onto a path of self-discovery by the recognition of feeling; and fuels the fire beneath him to resist and rebel. The director’s effective use of symbolism, lighting, sound, and camera shots create a frame by frame artwork that can be seen as nothing else but revealing the central themes of the entire film. The evolution of the main character in this short scene sets the tone for the entirety of the film, while still maintaining to leave viewers craving to know the outcome of Preston’s acceptance of feeling and resistance to society.