Abandoning Omniscience
“[Varda] is seeking comprehension and plans to take the spectator along with her as the camera travels through the winter landscape of Southern France. She sets up her purpose for the film and directly informs us of her intent—to understand something of the nature of this renegade from the Order…At no time, however, does the narrator inform us of the proper interpretation—instead we are left with the enigma of this you woman who refused the constraints of society� (Hottel, Flying through Southern France)
The curiosity the spectator shares with the narrator, a typically omniscient being, during Vagabond embodies the feminist cinematic technique that brings the gaze back into the possession of the female lead. Mona, is a non-normative taking command of her mobility, which unsettles the psyche of those accustomed to a masculine mindset, which seeks to situate and control. The audience cannot understand Mona’s transience, constantly questioning her motives and rebellion. This questioning does not come from a narrator, but through the prodding of those she meets, such as Madame Landier, who asks nothing sexual or exploitative of her. Hottell further explains this:
“Mona’s chosen liberty makes traditionalists uncomfortable—they feel it necessary to deny that her situation was the chosen one.� (Flying)
A typical masculine-driven film would not have allowed Mona’s mobility to have been voluntary, such a decision revolts against the institution of domesticity and stability. Secondly, Mona would never be allowed such absolute control over her mobility. Mona does not rely solely upon the phallocentric modes of transportation, such as automobiles or motorcycles. Instead, Mona often uses her own body to transport herself, using automobiles only when she deems it necessary. Her wandering has no rhyme or reason, not directed or maneuvered by the omniscient (male) hand, and the camera never attempts to shake an answer from her, demands nothing. In this way, the film abandons the male gaze, which seeks to categorize and dominate, opting instead to embrace the perplexing lifestyle of its focus.