The gossip of the members of his community about his demotion, rather than the demotion itself, is the direct cause of the doorman's downfall in The Last Laugh. Some of the most expressive images in the film demonstrate the spread of gossip and the resultant mockery of the neighbors: the camera moves to an outstretched ear, the camera follows the doorman along a walk of shame, grotesque and blurry heads superimposed on the neighborhood mock him with unabashed laughter. What is the movie saying about gossip as a form of communication? What is it saying about the community that listens to it? How does what other people think of us influence how we think of ourselves?
The film, The Last Laugh, is very vocal about how society praises the downfall of others in power and spreads this negativity through gossip, which ultimately can affect the victim’s perception of him or herself. In the moments when community members find out about the doorman’s demotion, the camera moves multiple times to catch their reactions to the news. What stood out to me the most was how the majority of the characters in the film stopped what they were doing at the moment to listen and gossip. This scene made me realize how people will drop everything to worry about other peoples’ businesses instead of their own. The shot of the out stretched ear portrays this message the most efficiently, because it helps the audience understand what the community members were doing, as there are no words or intertitles in this film. I also noticed that many of the characters who laughed about the doorman’s demotion were women (who were considered low class at the time). I connected this observation to how people today laugh at or gossip about those (such as celebrities or others with platforms) who are in power when something goes wrong in their life. Later on in the film, the doorman rises back to power, which is an important moment because the doorman has a choice to make: laugh at those who laughed at his downfall or be kind. But, he chooses not to, which proves to the audience that we don’t have to let the negativity of others get to us and that we can spread positivity instead. The doorman didn’t let the community’s words shatter his confidence, which inspires the audience to do the same. This part of the film also made me realize how not everyone reacts to gossip this way and that it can be detrimental to the mental health of victims. Gossip truly is a negative form of communication and that people need to choose their words wisely, as they don’t take the victims’ feelings into consideration when doing so. The most important lesson I learned from this film is that we need to do better as a society by not gossiping in order to make ourselves feel better and instead try to solve our own problems and help those who are going through a rough time and need it the most.
ReplyDeleteMarisa M
DeleteIn The Last Laugh, it is clear how powerful gossip and social opinion are. The doorman losing his job is not the central conflict, but his failures being the talk of the town is what really causes problems for the doorman. It seems as though the writer had a clear intention to use this film as commentary about the competitive nature of society. The director executed the writer’s plan very well by clearly showing the audience how the constant mockery and shame of the doorman internally tormented him. The way this film portrays gossip shows the viewer how people will often use gossip as something negative to incite judgment on the person or thing being talked about. That is the reason why the doorman was heavily affected by the gossip because he was being made out to be a failure in front of the whole community. This movie is trying to tell the audience that gossip only ever puts people down and causes problems for them. Those who believe and spread gossip should be seen as spineless bullies, who look to find satisfaction in other’s faults. It is interesting to think about how these ideas are prevalent in today’s society, ninety-six years after this film’s release. With the worldwide popularity of social media, people today have a need to find approval from their peers, and it nearly influences some people’s every decision. There are always people, who say they do not care about other’s opinions, but it is very rare for people living today to do something without consideration of potential reactions and gossip.
ReplyDeleteThe film, The Last Laugh, assembles a brutal hierarchy of class throughout the movie and how the Doorman fits within it. The Doorman, possibly representing the Common man, starts off in a slightly higher position than his neighbors in terms of class. As the doorman walks down the street in his clean and fashionable uniform, he salutes everyone he passes. As he walks down the corridor to his house, many women giggle and stare. This is clearly the film attempting to establish his economical fit. Thus, every day the Doorman has a smile on his face. However, this raises the question as to the origin of the smile. Is it from his small wealth, or the status in which his position provides? This question is answered in the Doorman's fall from class. When he is seen by his girlfriend/wife cleaning the bathrooms aat the hotel, he is instantly set into a trance of demise and disgrace. He probably was earning around the same wage in that position due to the standards of the Atlantic Hotel. However, in the Dorrman's time, this position was seen as substandard. Furthermore, his partner who saw this gave no mercy and instantly relayed this information to close friends, which then spread to everyone he knew. Maybe it was the Doormans disappointment in himself, or that the Doorman couldn't take the rejection. Nevertheless, this nearly killed the doorman. As everyone mocked him for falling below their "level", he became more dreary and weak. The idea that seals this concept of social wealth over material wealth is when his wife leaves him, causing him to sleep at the Atlantic Hotel bathroom. He favored escaping the judgement of his peers over physical comfort. I believe that this series of events is the film trying to push the unjust danger of gossip. The idea that a community would push the doorman so low in his time of need is absolutely barbaric.
ReplyDeleteConnor Carlson
ReplyDeleteThe Last Laugh depicts gossip as not only one of the most powerful outlets for distributing information and influence but also a source of entertainment and, most importantly, engagement with a community. Even the interception of the information, which was when one lady shamelessly eavesdropped on the conversation, unafraid of others discovering her, show how comfortable and unafraid this community is with itself. We see how closely knit the community of the residential area that our protagonist lives in is in how fast the news spreads. Immediately, the women start running around, knocking on doors, yelling to each other from windows, all while avoiding the source of the information. We see the laughs, the yells, and the joyful, and shocked facial expressions of the women. These reactions show how riveting and thrilling the experience of gossip is for these women. For this one day, the whole neighborhood gathered to engage with gossip, the all watched the entrance, waiting for the infamous protagonist to return home to confirm their rumors. In one shot, we see a woman hiding behind her windows, anxiously peeking out and retreating. When the protagonist returns home, we see various people leaning out their windows and lingering behind him, awaiting the confirmation of their inferences. The culminating activity of this gossip experience is the superimposition shot of many heads laughing. The imposing, and almost scary shot, shows how scary and overbearing the influence of gossip can be. However, the laughter also unites the community against one individual. This is not very great for our protagonist, who is deeply affected by the loss of reputation among his peers. In conclusion, even at the expense of the protagonist, gossip gives this community something to get behind, unite, and bond over, something to distract them from the daily labors and struggles of life.
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