Rhythmic Montage

Rhythmic montage

Rhythmic montage is a technique of cutting film depending on the content of the frame. “The movement within the frame that impels the montage movement from frame to frame” . In other words, the film is cut to display a constant movement of action in a linear timespace. For example if there is a long shot of someone sliding a cup across a table, then a close up shot of the cup sliding, the edit will aim to achieve a constant motion of the cup so the viewer perceives time to be constant. In The Bourne Identity The use of rhythmic montage is very evident in many places. One particular scene in the film that uses this method is where the main character Jason Bourne is in hand to hand combat with an assassin in his apartment located in Paris within the first act. The technique is used between different shot angles where action is extremely fast. The Rhythmic montage in this sequence adds emphasis to the action to make it more dramatic. It also shows how Soviet montage techniques have influenced modern filmmakers.