Beneath the Mask

As we discuss the various forms and reasons for masks--offense/defense, gender, festivals of renewal, theater, and rites of passage-- it seems to me that this brief movie creates a strong juxtaposition between the face/mask that is obvious and shown outside the bathroom and in public as opposed to the face/mask that is present and seen in the isolation of the bathroom. With the shift from color to black and white and with the switch from a smooth, gold mask to a more textured and unpolished mask that is white and devoid of any rich color. This shift, along with the contemplative piano solo playing in the background creates a mood that questions. As I watch this short film I am moved to question why the girl is wearing the mask. Moreover, near the end when she takes to mask off, one would expect to see her face in the mirror, to find renewal or redemption in her act of removing the first mask, but instead beneath her mask is another. This movie uses mask in the form of a defensive mechanism. Whether the girl is trying to cover up her second, white mask, or more deeply, is trying to cover that which may be beneath the second mask is unknown. However, what can be perceived is the complexity to masks. As our lives often show us, we are not able to easily put on or take off our masked selves. Sometimes, we become so accustomed to our masked selves that we are unable to distinguish between masked and unmasked. Also, at times amidst the confusion we are unable to distinguish between the multiple roles, multiple masks we are donning .