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symbolized here by the glass partition, and by the alluring idea of a brighter future, evoked by
the escapism of the trio's song.
By contrast, through Clerici, Bertolucci represents a different kind of politically aware
individual, the type that supported Fascism although fully conscious of the socio-political
reality, his behaviour guided by cynicism, scepticism or by opportunism. Clerici "s awareness
of the regime's violence is represented in another piece of narrative invented by Bertolucci,
where he makes Clerici question his father - a former Party official now shut in a lunatic
asylum - about his responsibility in ordering assassinations. To avoid answering, the father
calls for a strait-jacket while muttering the words 'slaughter and mercy' This implicit
confirmation of Clerici's suspicions does not prevent him from going ahead with his criminal
purpose. From a cognitive perspective therefore, and particularly in terms of the hierarchies
of preference into which viewers place screen characters while watching films (Smith, 1995:
84-85) the breed of individual to which Clerici belongs will be regarded as more
reprehensible than that to which Italo belongs, and the mise-en-scene of the radio station
sequence was arguably conceived to strengthen the negative evaluation of Clerici"s
personality.
Using colour and lighting to blur the film's reality status
Colour schemes and lighting are also used to blur the reality status of some sequences,
sometimes enhancing their beauty while problematizing the viewer's cognitive evaluation of
whether they constitute reality in the world of the film, or a subjective image of an
individual's state of mind. Paris is rendered in bluish-grey tones, being depicted at night or at
dawn, and dimly illuminated by street lamps. The images are often characterized by the lack
of a human presence - apart from stealthy appearances by Clerici and Manganiello - and by a
misty atmosphere, so that they cue a sense of mystery and a dreamlike ambience. Gloomier
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