THE RULE OF THREE 1. THEMATICALLY we are exploring three different perceptions of Freemasonry which are
contained in the subtitle: THE MYSTERY, MYTH AND TRUTH OF FREEMASONRY, namely:
1) Mysterious
2) Mythical
3) Factual
2. FORMALLY the film was divided in three parts:
1) Prologue
2) Discourse or the body of narrative presentation
3) Epilogue
3. THREE MASONIC PRINCIPLES are explained in the body of narrative presentation
1) Brotherly love
2) Relief
3) Truth
4. INVESTIGATION about the subject was approached using three different methods
1) Historical
2) Philosophical
3) Sociological
5. DRAMATIC feature representation of the candidates process of initiation was
divided in to three progressive parts.
1) Candidate's entrance in to the temple and search for the lodge which was accompanied with Mozart's music from Masonic opera "The Magic Flute". Three ladies singing
on the stage represent three ferries who are saving the hero from the dragon who symbolizes force of darkness. The interpretation of this particular connotative association does not belong necessarily to the subject of
our analysis (the paradigmatic Masonic sub-code) rather to a "General cultural code of associative connections".
2) Parallel montage between the prayer at the opening of the lodge and preparation of the
candidate, finishing the sequence with three distinct knocks at the door.
3) Bringing the candidate to the light - the act of illumination. Scene ends with extreme close -up of the burning candle.
6. The
INVESTIGATION AND EXPLANATION of Freemasonry was conducted from three different angles by three different characters which could be explained through our "paradigmatic Masonic sub-code" or the " Masonic
Symbolic level of the connotative layer" as:
1) The omnipresent Narrator accommodates with his moderation, leading the viewer through the maze of fascinating facts and sometimes confronting opinions, symbolizes
the Junior Warden who observes the time and call the Craft from labor to refreshment; superintend them during the hour there of... If we consider films being "refreshment of the mind", and connecting the
notions of art and beauty, this associative connection through analogy to the "pillar of beauty" would be very probable.
2) Consequently, historian John Robinson is associated with the Senior Warden -
"the pillar of strength", assisting the W. Master in opening and closing his lodge...Providing the audience with some bold historical interpretations he actually assists in our plastic investigation of the
subject of Freemasonry.
3) Masonic scholar, Jerry Marsengill who, as the Worshipful Master in Masonic lodge, in our film represents "the pillar of wisdom" masterfully governing the philosophical,
psychological and sociological complexities of our investigation.
7. THE SEGMENTS from three different mediums were used to dramatically illustrate and underline different aspects of Freemasonry.
1) Theater - opera "The Magic Flute" by Mozart
2) Literature - novel " War And Peace" by Leo Tolstoy
3) Art - painting "18th Century Viennese Lodge"
8. THE THREE GREAT LIGHTS of
Freemasonry were implemented in three different places of the film as a separate iconic signs in the structure.
1) Bible appears in the scene of narrator talking about King Solomon's Temple.
2) Square appears on the illustration scene about medieval builders.
3) Illustration of compasses appears on the famous Blake's painting of God.
9. THE THREE LESSER LIGHTS - the three burning tapers - appear in three different scenes.
1) Opening of the Tolstoy's "chamber of reflections" sequence, where the character of Count Villarsky carries the
three-candle candelabra leading the character of Pierre through the darkness. Masonic connotations of this sequence are virtually limitless and we don't have the time to explore them more.
2) IN THE MASONIC LODGE sequence, where the Senior Deacon arranges the Lights.
3) IN THE NARRATOR'S CONCLUDING scene, where the actor ascends three steps carrying the three burning candles talking about the focus of
many famous Masons lives.
10. METAPHORIC ICONOGRAPHY of the horse, carriage, and the old driver with the top hat on his head, has a three-fold function
1) Narrative transitional - exposing the ambiance and the
setting while smoothly transposing the topics and themes between different places.
2) Rhythmic transitional - accentuate and determine the pacing of the film
3) Symbolic unified function - presents the third element
in the connotative -communicative structure consisting of
1. the viewer - identifying with the candidate who is ready to be initiated in to the new order of knowledge; the viewer will experience art through the
medium of film;
2 the filmmakers - who will bring him from darkness to light trough his new and unique experience of the film;
3. the film itself- as a symbol of the highest level and the creation that associate
with the notion of Deity.
On this highest degree of the symbolic level in the film's structure, iconography is reaching it's meaning through the "syntagmatic" connotation. In other words, the
horse-carriage-driver symbol doesn't exist as such anywhere else except in the film "The Freemasons" and is gaining it's connotative meaning only in relation to the other structural elements of this film,
other signs, symbols, metaphors, and the totality of it's global experience.
The horse-carriage-driver symbol offers several connotative interpretations on many different levels, but I will concentrate only on the
three main ones.
1. Incongruity of the horse and carriage in the modern city subconsciously associate to the "old times", tradition, continuity of the journey through time, which leads to:
2. Juxtaposing
the scenes of carriage through the film, starting in the very opening of the prologue, through the body of the narrative, and finishing with the last scene of the epilogue, filmmakers created the feeling of a journey
through 1) film; 2) Freemasonry; 3) The life itself. The first time we see the carriage in the opening sequence, the ambiance strongly suggests the setting in the past - probably the last century. Through the middle
section of the film carriage is always seen in contemporary setting - the present time. The last time we see it, is at the very end of the film, where the shot of the carriage leaving dissolves to the shot of the Earth,
suggesting the idea of the Future (also mentioned in the narration: "...The symbol of the Future..."). Coming from the Past, passing through Present, and raising to the Future - so, we journey upon the level
of time to that "undiscovered country from whose bourne no traveler returns..." All of this will lead us to the next level which is:
3. Unexpected appearances of the carriage throughout the film suggest the
feeling almost of a Deus Ex Machina presence, but also are perceived as something natural or inevitable. Horse carriage is driven by the old man. He is dressed in black and has a top-hat on his head. Connotative
association to the Worshipful Master of the lodge is unavoidable. But what kind of Master in the context of the internal symbolism is he and where is his lodge? He might be the symbol of the greatest Masonic metaphor.
He is somebody who leads us trough space and guides us through time; from the first shot of the film which is of Moon, to the scene of the rising Sun in the middle section of the film, to the last picture of our journey
which is of Heavens.
