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June 2008, Week 4

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From:
"Larsson, Donald F" <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Film and TV Studies Discussion List <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Mon, 23 Jun 2008 16:59:55 -0500
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The museum is the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, particularly what is now known as the Alte Nationalgallerie (Old National Gallery).  The web site is at http://www.smb.museum/smb/sammlungen/details.php?lang=en&objID=17.

As to the statue itself, I just looked at the scene and can't say for sure. It strikes me as looking of 19th century vintage (I might guess something to do with Prussia) but I'm not an art historian. More than allegorical meaning (I was struck by a quick shot of a statue of Cupid and Psyche [perhaps]) that sort of fits that role), it serves as a nifty visual marker for the cat-and-mouse game in the museum, a trace of the old Hitchcock touch (somewhat reminiscent of the chase in British Museum in BLACKMAIL) in that rather disappointing film.

For a bit more light (perhaps) on the subject, see the press release for the "Mind the Gap" exhibit at the Glarus Museum in Switzerland, featuring work by Martina Sauter that includes her examinations of the set of TORN CURTAIN: http://www.kunsthausglarus.ch/en/frontend/exhibition_detail/420 (Be sure to click on "Show Press Release" to see the description.) It states that the interior shots for the museum had to be filmed in the studio, so the statue must be something from the studio's collection. (Also note the interesting octagonal floor that looks like something from THE DA VINCI CODE before its time.)

Don Larsson
___________________________________________________
"When something is empty, fill it. When something is full, empty it. When you have an itch, scratch it." --Dieter Dengler

Donald F. Larsson, Professor
English Department, Minnesota State University, Mankato
Mail: 230 Armstrong Hall, Minnesota State University
        Mankato, MN 56001
Office Phone: 507-389-2368
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From: Film and TV Studies Discussion List [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Frank, Michael [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Sunday, June 22, 2008 5:04 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [SCREEN-L] hitchcock trivia query

apologies for duplication



in TORN CURTAIN there’s a scene in what the film identifies as the “museen zu berlin” [perhaps a real place, perhaps not] and in that scene hitchcock twice frames his shots so that our view is dominated by a statue that is in the center foreground and takes up well over half the frame . . . of course the statue is never identified, and because it’s so much in the foreground with the main lighting coming from behind it much of what we can see is close to silhouette . . . so far as i can make out the statue is somewhat larger than life size and shows large bird of some kind [an eagle??] and a human figure, based on musculature apparently male—



for many reasons it’s clearly not leda and the swan –. . . maybe ganymede? . . . but that myth has no resonance with the film . . .



if anyone has any info about this, or even educated guesses, i’d be very glad to hear them



many thanks



mike

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