Use of Space in the Physical Separation of the Bourgeoisie and the Working Class in “The Exterminating Angel” (1962) and “The Swamp” (2001)

The struggle between the bourgeoisie and the working class is reflected in the filmography of many countries, including that of Spain and Argentina, specifically through the films El Ángel Exterminador (The Exterminating Angel) (1962), directed by Luis Buñuel, and La Ciénaga (The Swamp) (2001), directed by Lucrecia Martel. Each director utilizes interior and exterior space to demonstrate the difference between the working and bourgeoise classes within their films. As stated by Charles Shiro Tashiro in his observations of The Go-Between, the set design and narrative of cinema are intertwined in such a way that the setting of a film is essential to the successful delivery of the message and context of said film. This comparative study will focus on how Buñuel's and Martel's aforementioned films follow a similar pattern in 3 aspects of this use of space: the use of large estates with the mansion in The Exterminating Angel and the La Madrágona house in The Swamp to create a physical barrier that is representative of the metaphorical barrier between socioeconomic classes, the use of interior space to create a sense of entrapment within the confines of the bourgeoisie, and the sense of barrenness created by the grandeur of the bourgeois space.