The Finale in the Films of Bruno Dumont

Abstract

The thesis’s focus will be on the endings in the films of the French filmmaker Bruno Dumont. Dumont’s films throughout the years have had mixed reactions by audiences. This is partly due to the fact that in some ways his films tend to go against common expectations of narrative cinema. While discussing his thoughts on the relationship between his films and the audience, as well as the role of the spectator, Dumont stated that he does “not finish his own films”. Drawing from that statement the aim of this thesis is to explore how and why his films often end with an unresolved plot, unanswered questions or without an obvious dramatic resolution. Firstly by discussing classical theories of dramatic storytelling and how endings function within a dramatic structure. Following that it will move on to compare the way in which Dumont follows classical conventions of storytelling to the way he breaks away from those conventions, a way in which this thesis will argue lies mainly in the finales of his films. It will analyse reappearing elements in the endings of Dumont’s films, elements that substitute a more traditional resolution and can serve as a key for an interpretation of his films.