Media-Specific Metareference in Film

Metareferential devices in film aim to keep the audience from anticipating the diegesis and seek to encourage critical observations of the medium. Ideally these devices lead to an emancipation of the spectator. They turn a passive consumer into an active participant who is able to critically engage in the encouraged reflections on the medium. Woody Allen’s three films, "Annie Hall", "Play It Again, Sam" and "The Purple Rose of Cairo", were chosen to illustrate the creative potential of media-specific metareference because they differ significantly in the manner in which they induce metareferential reflections in the spectator.