Breaking the fourth wall isn't just a clever trick - it's an emotional journey that can leave audiences stunned. We're diving into the most powerful moments where movies shatter the barrier between fiction and reality, creating unforgettable cinematic experiences that will make you laugh, cry, and think.
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00:00Why do we get to all these feelings?
00:06Welcome to Miss Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the times when a movie
00:10used the fourth wall break to dramatic and heartbreaking effect. Spoilers ahead, so beware.
00:15So what's the answer? That's what I keep asking myself. What's it all about? Know what I mean?
00:23Number 10. It's Up To You. JFK
00:27Oliver Stone's controversial, paranoid political thriller follows a New Orleans lawyer determined
00:32to uncover the truth behind the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
00:37In character as Jim Garrison, Kevin Costner delivers his closing remarks to a courtroom jury.
00:42Authority forgets a dying king. This was never more true than for John F. Kennedy,
00:49whose murder was probably one of the most terrible moments in the history of our country.
00:54Having presented his evidence to the court, just as the movie has to us, he challenges the jury
00:59and everyone on earshot to pursue justice, even if it comes at a great personal cost.
01:04That's not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.
01:08Do not forget your dying king.
01:13The burden of standing up to the powerful is a shared burden.
01:16He ends this impassioned speech looking directly at the camera. It's a challenge to us, too.
01:21Nothing as long as you live will ever be more important. It's up to you.
01:30Number 9. Top 5 Things I Miss About Laura. High Fidelity
01:34Rob Gordon works at a Chicago record store, and seems to have a top 5 list on every possible topic.
01:40Frequently throughout High Fidelity, Rob breaks the fourth wall,
01:44addressing us directly with his musings of love, relationships, and music.
01:48Can you see your name on that list, Laura? Maybe you'd sneak into the top 10.
01:55Being dumped by his girlfriend Laura changes him.
01:57Framed by the Chicago skyline, Rob recites his new list, Top 5 Things I Miss About Laura.
02:03Two. She's got character. Or at least she had character before the Ian nightmare.
02:08She's loyal and honest, and she doesn't even take it out on people when she's having a bad day.
02:14That's character.
02:16He can barely get it out without wincing at how vulnerable he's being.
02:19But for a guy who seems disconnected with nearly everything,
02:22hearing him finally be grateful and open about his life marks a big change in him.
02:27Number 5. She does this thing in bed when she can't get to sleep.
02:30She kind of half moans and then rubs her feet together an equal number of times. It just kills me.
02:36Number 8. Choosing the Real World. The Purple Rose of Cairo.
02:41This in-universe example of a literal fourth wall break is also pretty heartbreaking.
02:46Cecilia is a working class woman in a terrible marriage who finds her only refuge in the movies.
02:51When the main character of her favourite film literally climbs out of the screen to romance her,
02:56it's everything she could ever want.
02:58You know where I come from, people, they don't disappoint. They're consistent. They're always reliable.
03:04You don't find that kind in real life.
03:07You have.
03:09Soon she's locked in a love triangle between a fictional character and his fictional world,
03:14and the very real actor who plays him.
03:16Last week I was unloved. Now two people love me. And it's the same two people.
03:23For the first time she decides to choose the real world instead of the fantasies of the movie theatre.
03:28See, I'm a real person no matter how tempted I am. I have to choose the real world.
03:36I loved every minute with you. And I'll never forget our night on the town.
03:427. Be Kind, Rewind
03:45Funny games.
03:46A family is taken hostage by two sadistic murderers in this Austrian psychological thriller.
03:51But if you think it sounds like your average home invasion tale, think again.
03:55Not only is it incredibly disturbing, it's also constantly playing with your expectations.
04:05The killers gleefully break the fourth wall several times,
04:08letting us know how much they're enjoying themselves.
04:10But the most devastating instance may be when the family finally gains the upper hand
04:15and takes their revenge on one of their captors.
04:23This doesn't last.
04:25One of the killers presses the rewind button on a remote,
04:28literally rewinding the movie to essentially revive his partner in crime.
04:32Whatever fate awaits our heroes, we realise there's no escaping it.
04:416. What Now? The 400 Blows
04:44François Truffaut's semi-autobiographical film follows Antoine Doinel,
04:48a young boy who turns to crime.
04:50The troubled youth bounces from misadventure to misadventure
04:53as his family, school and the authorities seem unsure what to do with him.
05:03Antoine doesn't seem too sure what to do either.
05:06At the end he escapes the reform school he's been shipped off to
05:09and ends up on the beach, which he's always wanted to see.
05:19But once he fulfils that goal, he looks into the camera,
05:22still unsure of what he wants, where to go or what to do.
05:25He's free, but lost.
05:325. The Ambiguous Ending – Little Women
05:41Greta Gerwig's take on Louisa May Alcott's beloved classic
05:45is both a retelling and a commentary.
05:47As Jo March presents the story of Little Women in a novel form to a publisher,
05:52she receives notes on its ending.
06:03This is played parallel to a scene that finds her family pushing her to realise
06:08she's in love with the departing Professor Bear.
06:11Telling it this way acknowledges that this is a story
06:14and the audience has expectations on how the story should end.
06:27You get swept up in the stirring train station love scene
06:30between Jo and the Professor, but the whole time you're aware that this is all a story.
06:34It's a departure that even fans of the source material still argue over.
06:504. All This Unused Life – Shirley Valentine
06:53This underrated romantic comedy first had a life on the West End,
06:57before moving to a Tony-winning run on Broadway.
07:00Both times, actress Pauline Collins played the role of Shirley Valentine,
07:04a bored housewife who takes a chance on a Greek holiday.
07:07I thought, why am I so terrified of being on my own?
07:10I'm an expert at it.
07:12And then I started to relax.
07:14She also stars in the movie adaptation,
07:16which keeps the play's humorous and devastating asides to the audience.
07:20Halfway through the film, Shirley laments how she feels
07:23she's cheated herself out of the life that she wanted.
07:26I've led such a little life.
07:30And even that'll be over pretty soon.
07:33She delivers her regrets right to the camera,
07:35looking right at us as she realizes she's lived a small life.
07:40That's where Shirley Valentine disappeared to.
07:44She got lost in all this unused life.
07:473. The Speech – Barbie
07:50After Barbie enters the real world, she faces a crisis of confidence.
07:54The pink utopia of femininity is crumbling around her,
07:57and she no longer feels useful or even beautiful.
08:00What? You're so pretty.
08:02I'm not stereotypical Barbie pretty.
08:05Note to the filmmakers, Margot Robbie is the wrong person to cast
08:08if you want to make this point.
08:09Narrator Helen Mirren's funny, fourth-wall-breaking comment is hilarious,
08:13but it sets the stage for America Ferreira's lauded monologue
08:16about the contradictions of womanhood.
08:18And you can never say you want to be thin.
08:20You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin.
08:25Her character Gloria is not just speaking to Barbie here.
08:28Her frustration feels bigger than the story of the film.
08:31While it may not be a traditional break,
08:33the way the whole scene plays with the fourth wall
08:35means it's constantly toeing the line.
08:37It's too hard, it's too contradictory,
08:40and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you.
08:43And it turns out, in fact, that not only are you doing everything wrong,
08:46but also everything is your fault.
08:492. Hitting the Wall – The Truman Show
08:51Having figured out his entire life has been a lie
08:54manufactured for a television audience,
08:56Truman Burbank makes his great escape.
09:04Leaving his hometown for the first time,
09:06setting sail on a stormy sea,
09:08he literally crashes into the fourth wall.
09:10To his horror, Truman realises that even the horizon, the ocean,
09:14and what he thought was the sky, is fake.
09:19He tries to punch through the wall,
09:21hoping to emerge into real life.
09:23It's a painful and profoundly philosophical moment.
09:26It's also one of the moments that made audiences see Jim Carrey
09:30as a gifted, dramatic actor.
09:32In case I don't see ya,
09:34good afternoon, good evening, and good night.
09:37Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel
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09:42And as always, thanks for watching.
09:481. Let Us All Unite – The Great Dictator
09:52In 1940, America had yet to enter the Second World War,
09:55and the horrors of the Nazi regime were yet to be fully known.
09:59The Great Dictator sees a Jewish barber
10:01swapping places with a Hitler-inspired tyrant.
10:04In the meantime, it might be a good idea
10:06to take a look at some of the most famous
10:08and most controversial films of the 20th century.
10:11Let's take a look at some of the most famous
10:13and most controversial films of the 20th century.
10:17In the meantime, it might be advisable
10:19for you to dance with Madame Napoloni.
10:21Huh?
10:22It will carry weight.
10:24You mean I will carry weight?
10:28Silent Master comedian Charles Chaplin
10:30set out to satirise fascism,
10:32but in the last minutes of the movie,
10:34the barber in disguise makes a plea for humanity
10:37to unite against tyranny.
10:39Don't give yourselves to these unnatural men,
10:41machine men with machine minds and machine hearts.
10:45You are not machines.
10:46You are not cattle.
10:47You are men.
10:48Gathering power and passion,
10:50Chaplin looks into the camera,
10:51breaking character to deliver a message
10:53that's bigger than the story of this movie.
10:55His impassioned words still have a haunting power
10:58eight decades later.
11:00Let us fight for a world of reason,
11:02a world where science and progress
11:04will lead to all men's happiness.
11:07Soldiers, in the name of democracy,
11:10let us all unite!
11:13What's a fourth-wall break that you will never forget?
11:16Sound off in the comments below.
11:18Right after I got here,
11:19I ordered some spaghetti with marinara sauce
11:21and I got egg noodles and ketchup.
11:24I'm an average nobody.
11:27Get to live the rest of my life like a schnook.
11:30Do you agree with our picks?
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11:42.