Which films use subliminal editing?

The Exorcist (1973), Fight Club (1999), Insomnia (2002).

What kind of technique is subliminal editing?

It is a editing technique. Related editing techniques include others listed on the CineCode techniques page.

Editing technique · used in 3 films

Slipping single frames or very short shots into a scene, too fast for you to see clearly. You feel uneasy without knowing why.

Examples

The Exorcist
William Friedkin · 1973
Friedkin inserts brief flashes of a demonic face throughout the film. You can see them if you freeze the frame. In motion, they only register subliminally, meaning below conscious notice. You are left with a constant sense of an evil presence just under the surface of what you normally see.
Where to see it: The demon face flash during Father Karras's nightmare. It is a single frame of a white-painted evil face. You sense it without being able to say what it was.
Fight Club
David Fincher · 1999
Fincher drops single frames of Tyler Durden into the film before he is properly introduced. The twist is sitting right there in the images for anyone who watches it again.
Where to see it: Tyler's subliminal appearances. They include the office copy machine, the doctor's office and the testicular cancer support group.
Insomnia
Christopher Nolan · 2002
Nolan and editor Dody Dorn slip in flashes of the crime and of Dormer's guilt that last only a moment. Some are too quick to read. You feel unsettled before you know what you saw.
Where to see it: Dormer examines Kay's body. Short flashes of the killing and of clues, like her painted nails, cut into the scene.

Questions

What is subliminal editing in film?: Slipping single frames or very short shots into a scene, too fast for you to see clearly. You feel uneasy without knowing why.
Which films use subliminal editing?: The Exorcist (1973), Fight Club (1999), Insomnia (2002).
What kind of technique is subliminal editing?: It is a editing technique. Related editing techniques include others listed on the CineCode techniques page.

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