X-Ray Vision: Surface and Depth in Aldir Mendes de Souza’s O homem que descobriu o nú invisível (1973)

Abstract

As a visual medium, cinema is an art of the surface. Bodies, objects, and environments are projected before us as two-dimensional images on the flattened surface of the screen, which provides only an impression of depth but which cannot be broached by the audience. Nevertheless, deep focus and 3D technology have sought to immerse the viewer in the world of the film, while film discourse more broadly has railed against ornamentation and superficiality in its bid to assert a certain depth of meaning. This article considers the tensions between surface and depth as they emerge in Aldir Mendes de Souza’s O homem que descobriu o nú invisível (1973), a Brazilian softcore sex comedy that makes particular use of X-ray technology for both serious and voyeuristic ends. Comparing the use of radiography in this film with the artist’s experimental work with X-rays elsewhere, this article interrogates distinctions between high and low culture, and between the literal surfaces and depths of the photographic image.