The Expository Mode

In this documentary style the voice of the documentary is one of the most popular ways to continue doing documentaries.  The expository mode emphasizes the impression of objectivity and a well supported perspective.  This doesn’t mean that it won’t have a voice in itself. Editing, Sound, and other matters will all influence still in the film.  As Nichols explained, “ The fact that documentaries are not a reproduction of reality gives them a voice of their own. They are instead a representation of the world.” This means that even an expository film will have a voice, or a style that would give a certain message that the filmmaker wanted to remark, and not merely an exposition of two ideas.

In the Manufacturing Consent with Noam Chomsky the director doesn’t use a clear omniscient voice, but still follows a certain exposition of ideas trough the character and the different interviews he would give around the world. The director places each one of these interviews in an order in which there is a progression of an idea. At the same time there is a juxtaposition of images and information than can invalidate Chomsky point of view.  One example is when he Chomsky talks about how important is the ability to communicate at a regular basis to one another, and how this separates us to other animals, and following that remark the director chooses to show how in the news broadcast that  chimpanzees  might have the ability to communicate. Then there is this comparison about having fail on communicating this little chimpanzee “Nim Chimpsky.”

Another example of expository films in which a voice of authority or voice of God was clearly highlight was in The Vampire, and the Love life of the Octapus  in which the narrator plays a relevant place on the film. He guide us trough the images to learn the information we need about this animals, the bat and the octopus. Although, there is an exposition of information with a well supported perspective. In the case of The Vampire, the filmmaker to prove a point mixes a fiction film Nosferatus compared to the Bat,  to illustrate how similar and scary this animal can be. The juxtaposition of these images are not forced, and support what the narrator is explaining about this animal.  In the other documentary,  even so is still a believable  voice of authority, the stylization of Love life of the Octapus,  wouldn’t be completely objective. Music and the description of the animal would make us think that this animal is not part of this world, but an alien. Still, as a viewer I believe and follow the characteristics and the information that this scholarly voice was explaining.

In short,  the voice of an expository film would  be one of the most believable voices in these different styles.  Even though, it can’t be a completely objective view of a topic, the well informed voice of God,  or the pattern of presenting an argument seems to have a great impact on the audience.