slow disintegration

Anthony McCall

gypsysphinx — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 18:44:51 +0000

Anthony McCall creates “solid light” environments via animated shapes projected through film. With this unique method, McCall is able to combine various artistics sensibilities including architecture, sculpture, film, and time to form his atmospheric signature works. His first major works were completed in the early 70s beginning with Landscape for Fire (1973) and Line Describing a Cone (1974). The Sean Kelly Gallery in New York will be exhibiting some of McCall’s new work from February 2 to March 17.

Janus Turns 50

gypsysphinx — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 22:42:51 +0000

You probably already know, if not, you ought to. Janus Films has reached its 50th year in existence, and are commemorating it with a 50-disk box set entitled Essential Art House: 50 Years of Janus Films. Also, they are touring the country with brand new 35mm prints of various films which will be shown at the Castro Theater in San Francisco and the LACMA in Los Angeles, among other theaters. If you can’t make it to any of the screenings, tune in to IFC, where they are showing 2 different Janus Films every week, or just buy the damn thing at the Criterion Store for $650 USD. More info at JanusFilms.com.

Le Proces [1962]

gypsysphinx — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 22:18:07 +0000

This 1962 adaptation of Kafka’s The Trial is another brilliant piece of work by the great illusionist, Orson Welles. As usual, this film is technically superb, and Anthony Perkins’s performance as Josef K. is impeccable. What really caught my eye was the use of geometric framing and camera movement and how it complemented the nebulous paranoia of the story. The overall tone and some of the sequences in the film were very similar to scenes in “Werckmeister Harmonies”, so similar, in fact, that I think Bela Tarr may have been referencing this film (I even went as far as losing a little bit of respect for him because of the similarity between the two, though I still think he’s a genius). Perhaps my only criticism of the film is that, at times, the dialogue can get a bit difficult, but this may be (in part) due to the poor transfer of the film I saw. I’m sure that if Criterion picked this one up, it would definitely be a more enthralling film experience than it already is. Highly recommended.

Sympathy for…

gypsysphinx — Thu, 12 Oct 2006 05:22:19 +0000

Impressive, I must say. I wasn’t expecting much from the finale to Chan-Wook Park’s “Revenge Trilogy”, but this film is, without a doubt, one of the most skillfully executed contemporary “entertainment” films I’ve seen. It’s everything that Hollywood should be, but isn’t; it’s what they’re capable of achieving, but always shy away from.

Every shot in the film is painstakingly calibrated; all the hues and patterns work seamlessly, with an elegant grace that mirrors the feminine theme of the plot. Its fresh style combines Almodovar’s drama, Wes Anderson-esque meticulous stylization, Michael Haneke’s sharp, disturbing suspense, Aronofksy’s editing, and (dare-I-say) Gaspar Noé’s (for the lack of a better word) mindfuck sensibility, and delivers it to you in a sleek, pristine high-definition rendering. It’s remarkably different from the other two films in the series, and, in my opinion, it steals the cake in terms of psychological effect (which, ultimately, is the raison d’etre for the films in the trilogy).

At this point, I feel that Park may potentially be at the top of popular cinema. I’ll have to wait until I see Aronofksy, Lynch, Bujalski, and Scorsese’s new stuff to confirm this suspicion, but as of right now, he’s at the top of my list in this arena. I recommend checking it out if you haven’t seen it.

Yes, Always

gypsysphinx — Sun, 08 Oct 2006 05:16:38 +0000

I simply cannot get enough of the infamous Orson Welles “Frozen Peas” audio clip. Speculated to have been recorded sometime in the late ’60s, the clip consists of Welles attempting to record a commercial for a British food company, but becoming increasingly angry at the copywriters for their bad copy. It’s pure, unadulterated comedy with some very memorable one-liners. Orson Welles at his egocentric best.

Listen to it here, at UbuWeb: Frozen Peas

Overture

gypsysphinx — Thu, 05 Oct 2006 19:31:29 +0000

I feel obligated to dedicate my first post here to a criminally unrecognized artist that has greatly inspired me in a time where art seemed stagnant: Hungarian auteur Bela Tarr.

Watching a Tarr film is like being hypnotized and transported to a world that exists somewhere between a cloud of smoke and a magician’s hat. It’s a timeless, melancholy limbo, where there’s always a suspended feeling of impending dread amidst. He effortlessly encapsulates a penetratingly aural tone in his films, which slowly envelops the viewer with its strikingly bleak black & white contrast and incredibly long, complex tracking shots. Technically, his films are similar to Tarkovsky’s and his fellow Hungarian predecessor, Miklos Jancso’s, but, somehow, Tarr retains an originality in his craft.

He works closely with writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai in order to create films which explore ontological themes that raise questions about what is at the core of humanity. Nevertheless, his work seems to only obliquely suggest anything at all via narrative; the plot is secondary in a Tarr film, the visual and atmospheric effect of his films are the chief tools utilized to establish his mystique.

Thus far I’ve only seen 3 of his films, which doesn’t even include his proclaimed masterpiece, the 7+ hour long magnum opus, Satantango. Still, he’s already a confirmed visionary in my opinion, and a filmmaker that deserves to be looked-out for. His films aren’t for everyone, but if you feel you have a genuine interest in film, I highly recommend watching Werckmeister Harmonies (a masterpiece, in my opinion) and Damnation (9.5/10). I’ll definitely update after I watch Satantango (which is scheduled for release by Facets.)

That being said, hello, my name is Elmer, and this is my blog.