Montage Editing in Under The Skin

In "Under the Skin" Scarlett Johanson plays a nameless alien who's trying to understand what it truly means to be human. She is an outsider trying to understand why people act the way they do, and what humanity truly is. To convey this, director Jonathan Glazer uses almost exclusively montage editing throughout the film's entirety. The use of montage editing allows us to see the world from our protagonist's point of view, jumping around schitzophrenically from person to person, not staying focused on one thing long enough for it to mean anything or to make a connection. This constant switching from subject to subject causes the viewer to feel as disjointed and confused by the images and events as the protagonist does. Just by the use of montage editing, the director has strengthened the connection between the viewer and protagonist in such a way that wouldn't be possible by other means.