Cognitive dissonance as an effect of watching Amator

In this paper, it is shown how Amator [Camera Buff] (Kieslowski, 1979) poses a problem to engagement theory. Spectators begin noticing a friction between the expected behaviour of the characters and how they turn out to be. The psychological theory of cognitive dissonance is a theory that helps to explain how people process this kind of conflicting information. One of the most peculiar outcomes of this theory is that the more a favourite character acts against the spectator's expectations, the more the spectator will like him. After describing cognitive dissonance in psychology, I will describe how cognitive dissonance (in the spectator) has been sporadically described in film theory, and how cognitive dissonance theory can be incorporated into film theory. Subsequently, this model is applied to the film Amator. The film is used as just one example of European art cinema.