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Thread: 90s CINEMA

  1. #1
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    90s CINEMA

    The 1990s was one of the best decades in the history of American cinema because of the coming-of-age of an independent movement. How did it come about? A brief flashback. The Hollywood studio system lost power and influence somewhere in the early 60s. A crop of new filmmakers appeared. These were influenced by Italian Neo-Realism and the French New Wave,and buoyed by the counterculture and the rise of cinephilia. Their films were for the most part financed by the studios, now willing to give decision-making power and artistic freedom to the directors. The last half of the 60s and first half of the 70s make up a decade when several emerging American directors (Altman, Scorsese, etc.) produced a crop of outstanding films. Then came Jaws and Star Wars, which gave birth to the era of the blockbuster by breaking box office records. Hollywood decided to invest in the production and marketing of banal spectacles highly dependent on costly special effects which appealed primarily to youth looking for escapism (even critic Pauline Kael, by then a populist who rarely reviewed so-called art films, decried this lamentable development). As a result, the 1980s is probably and arguably the worst decade in the history of American movies.

    Of course there were excellent American films made every year of that decade, but less of them. I've come to this personal conclusion fairly recently, after four decades of compulsive movie watching. There have always been American independent movies or "amerindies". Among my favorites: Salt of the Earth (1954), Shadows (1958), Wanda (1970), and Eraserhead(1977). But by the late 80s, these no longer seemed isolated products by renegade mavericks but part of a growing movement inspired by the Do It Yourself (DIY) ethos of the punk rock scene, fed by college film programs, and supported by institutions such as the Sundance Institute and its film festival. The mainstream press took notice in 1989, when Jarmusch's Mystery Train, Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing, Steven Soderbergh's Sex, Lies and Videotape, and Gus van Sant's Drugstore Cowboy were released in close proximity. Yet this was only the beginning. The indie movement truly came of age in the 90s. Hollywood responded by investing a modest but significant amount of its vast resources into projects by young filmmakers with a vision (not unlike what happened 20 years earlier). As a result, American cinema in general experienced a renaissance.

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    INTERNATIONAL TRENDS

    There are more French movies on my foreign-language lists than movies from any other country. It's not because I particularly favor films from France (I don't even speak French) and it's not because the 90s were the best decade in French cinema. Do French films get better distribution in the U.S.A. than films from elsewhere? Perhaps so, but I don't think this accounts for their high output of quality movies. Consider for instance how many 90s films directed by excellent French directors Jacques Rivette, Philippe Garrel, and my beloved Alain Resnais never turned up at American theatres. The obvious conclusion is that, with the exception of the 1940s, France has consistently produced great cinema since the origins of the medium. Only the United States can reasonably make a similar claim. Moreover, what became clear to me during the 90s is that, as far as European cinema is concerned, Spain took second place as Italy and Germany experienced a serious decline (German cinema appears to be coming out of the dark as of late. I wish I could say the same about Italy, but Gianni Amelio is the only Italian director producing consistently at a high level).

    There were interesting films coming from several Latin American countries during the 90s. Among them: Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Brasil and Argentina. But we had to wait until the current decade to experience the explosion of new talent from the southern half of our hemisphere. In particular, what's happening right now in Argentina is unprecendented. Mexico and Brasil are close behind. And Chile is finally developing what can be rightly called a film industry.

    Yet what concerns us here is the 1990s, when the groundbreaking films were actually coming out of Asia and the Middle East. From China proper: 5th-generation directors Chen Kaige and Zhang Yimou were at the top of their game and top-tier film festivals took notice. Other important Chinese directors of that generation, like Tian Zhuangzhuang, were less successful in circumventing obstacles placed by the all-powerful Communist party. From Hong Kong: Stanley Kwan and Wong Kar Wai, the latter becoming as famous worldwide among film buffs as Fellini or Bergman had been. During the second half of the 90s, South Korea experienced a creative surge in filmmaking, which sprang from the country's political and social changes. Hur Jin-ho, Im Kwon-taek and Hong Sang-soo are my favorite Korean directors, but there were many others producing remarkable films. Kim ki-duk and and Park Chan-wook have achieved wide popularity, especially among younger film lovers. A crop of Iranian filmmakers, led by the great Abbas Kiarostami, created wonderful movies characterized by hidden complexities beneath seemingly simple narrative facades.

    And finally, the enigma of late 20th century cinephilia: how did tiny Taiwan, that island nation obsessed with business and technology, produce three masters of the art of cinema of the stature of Tsai Ming Liang, Edward Yang, and Hou Hsiao Hsien? The latter has been called "currently the world's best narrative filmmaker" and the label is well deserved. What's frustrating for me, here in the USA, is the poor distribution and exhibition of Taiwanese cinema during the 90s. Only Tsai Ming Liang received anything approaching adequate dissemination of his filmography.

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    Favorite Performances of the 1990s

    I've been compiling lists of favorite movies and directors since middle school. That was a long time ago. Yet I've rarely if ever made lists of favorite actors or performances. Moreover, I find it difficult to properly describe a performance and to write intelligently about acting. I think this is as common among amateurs like myself as well as professional film critics (who often come to film from unrelated fields). As a matter of fact, the two American critics who provided consistent insight into film acting are either dead (Pauline Kael) or long retired (Manny Farber).

    When I write about film I dedicate more space to the work of directors, writers and cinematographers than actors. I concentrate on a given performance almost exclusively when it is significantly accomplished, or significantly detrimental to the overall picture. Then again, I respond to great acting as much as anybody and the performances listed below have given me great joy and inspiration. If movie appreciation is subjective, rating a performance is even more so, for many reasons. Chief among them is the difficulty in separating performance from the nature of the character (For instance, is Reese Witherspoon's Oscar-winning performance in Walk the Line the best one of 2005? Perhaps the fact that Ms. June Carter Cash was such a wonderful, generous, talented and attractive human being played a part in swaying Academy voters.) Please don't take the order too seriously, even though the top five (or so) are, in my humble opinion, among the best performances in the history of cinema. Let's start with the females:

    JENNIFER JASON LEIGH---- (Georgia)
    ROMANE BOHRINGER-------(Savage Nights)
    CRISSY ROCK------------- (Ladybird, Ladybird)
    JULIETTE BINOCHE-------- (Three Colors: Blue)
    EMILY WATSON----------- (Breaking the Waves)
    AMANDA PLUMMER-------- (Butterfly Kiss)
    SANDRINE BONNAIRE------ (Joan the Maid)
    BRENDA BLETHYN--------- (Secrets & Lies)
    EMMANUELLE BEART------- (A Heart in Winter)
    ISABELLE HUPPERT-------- (La Separation)
    MERYL STREEP------------ (Bridges of Madison County)
    KATRIN CARTLIDGE-------- (Claire Dolan)
    MARIBEL VERDU----------- (Lovers)
    HOLLY HUNTER------------ (The Piano)
    MAGGIE CHEUNG----------- (The Actress)
    GONG LI------------------- (Shanghai Triad)
    LUMI CAVAZOS-------------(Like Water For Chocolate)
    CECILIA ROTH------------- (All About My Mother)
    PENELOPE CRUZ----------- (Jamon, Jamon)
    NATACHA REGNIER--------- (The Dreamlife of Angels)

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    Favorite Performances II

    HENRY CZERNY--------- (The Boys of St. Vincent)
    SEAN PENN------------- (Dead Man Walking)
    EAMONN OWENS-------- (The Butcher Boy)
    HARVEY KEITEL--------- (Bad Lieutenant)
    DANIEL DAY-LEWIS----- (In the Name of the Father)
    BILLY BOB THORNTON--- (Sling Blade)
    ULISES DUMONT-------- (Yepeto)
    DAVID THEWLIS-------- (Naked)
    FEDERICO LUPPI-------- (Martin-H)
    TIMOTHY SPALL-------- (Secrets & Lies)
    JIM CARREY------------ (The Cable Guy)
    DANNY GLOVER--------- (To Sleep with Anger)
    JIM BROADBENT-------- (Topsy-Turvy)
    DANIEL AUTEUIL-------- (My Favorite Season)
    JEREMY IRONS---------- (Reversal of Fortune)
    RUSSELL CROWE-------- (The Insider)
    RAY WISE-------------- (Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me)
    SAMUEL L. JACKSON---- (Jungle Fever)
    JOE PESCI-------------- (Goodfellas)

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    I thought I'd seen a lot of movies oscar.
    You put me to shame in that dept.

    Your lists reinforce how many films I still need to see or watch again. But that's a great thing, an exciting incentive/prospect.

    I might be dropping anchor in Ottawa again- I'm being needled.
    Plus I'm considering going to the T.O. fest this year.
    I wanna meet Roger Ebert- get him to sign my copy of Book of Film, get a photo... He usually comes to the Toronto fest.
    "Set the controls for the heart of the Sun" - Pink Floyd

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    Toronto...I have great memories of the '95 fest but can't afford to go this year and make new ones. Perhaps I should watch less movies and work more hours... Maybe I'm too much like the protagonist of Somerset Maugham's "The Razor's Edge"...

    Ebert is a regular fixture at Toronto. He's hosted festival tributes to Duvall, Scorsese and Beatty, and he has introduced personal faves as part of the fest's Dialogues: Talking with Pictures series. In '95, Siskel and him had a 90-minute live show in which they discussed films using chosen clips. Sold out in minutes I was told.

    My "90s project" at filmleaf is coming to an end. One more, very long post listing important, highly regarded films of that decade not available on dvd. Half the films listed have never been released on any format! Basically what this means, given the way cinema is consumed nowadays, is that these are movies in danger of oblivion or extinction.

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    LEST WE FORGET (or never find out)

    Basically, this is my dvd wish list for the 90s. There are two lists for each year: one for films never released on any format in the USA; a second one for films released on highly perishable and obsolete vhs. Many of these tapes have become rare or extinct, often the copies available for purchase are expensive and worn out (a few out-of-print and subpar dvds are included too).

    It's a fact that the number of "repertory" theatres has been shrinking for two decades and that yesterday's movies are consumed at home on digital discs (What would Henri Langlois say?). Films that are not released on this format will fall into permanent oblivion. There are thousands of movies released worldwide every year and to the bulk of them I say: "good riddance". But I think extinction of the films listed below would constitute a great cultural loss (I think it's particularly important to preserve the 20 American films on these lists; documentaries, film essays, and fiction independents of significant educational and entertainment value).

    More than half are movies I would like to watch again because they are special. The remainder are films I have never seen that have been highly regarded by critics and juries of major film festivals (underlined titles). Coming up with these lists involved a great deal of research and there are likely errors. I would appreciate comments from anyone wishing to point them out or to suggest titles deemed worthy of inclusion. Hopefully I'll find myself editing out newly-available titles often.

    1990

    NO, or THE VAIN GLORY OF COMMAND (Manoel de Oliveira)
    NOUVELLE VAGUE (Jean Luc Godard)
    BLACK SNOW (Fei Xie)
    FALLEN FROM HEAVEN (Francisco Lombardi)
    HOW TO LIVE IN THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY (Harun Farocki)
    AMELIA LOPEZ O'NEILL (Valeria Sarmiento)
    THE STING OF DEATH (Oguri Kohei)
    THE FAMINE WITHIN (Katherine Gilday)
    LETTERS FROM ALOU (Montxo Armendariz)
    LE PETIT CRIMINEL (Jacques Doillon)

    SONG OF EXILE (Ann Hui) rare vhs
    AY CARMELA! (Carlos Saura) vhs
    LARKS ON A STRING (Jiri Menzel) vhs
    URANUS (Claude Berri) vhs
    TILAI (Idrissa Ouedraogo) vhs
    LIFE IS SWEET (Mike Leigh) rare dvd

    1991

    A BRIGHTER SUMMER DAY (Edward Yang)
    I DON'T HEAR THE GUITAR ANYMORE (Philippe Garrel)
    WOMAN OF THE PORT (Arturo Ripstein)
    THE SUSPENDED STEP OF THE STORK (Theo Angelopoulos)
    GERMANY 90 NINE ZERO (J.L. Godard)
    HORS LA VIE (Maroun Bagdadi)
    PRINCE OF SHADOWS (Pilar Miro)
    PARIS AWAKENS (Olivier Assayas)

    BUTTERFLY WINGS (Juanma Bajo Ulloa) rare vhs
    LIFE AND NOTHING MORE (Abbas Kiarostami) vhs
    TOTO THE HERO (Jaco van Dormael) vhs
    THE HOURS AND THE TIMES (Christopher Munch) vhs
    LOVERS (Vicente Aranda) vhs
    VAN GOGH (Maurice Pialat) vhs
    THE OX (Sven Nykvist) vhs
    NIGHT AND DAY (Chantal Akerman) vhs

    1992

    THE ACTRESS (Stanley Kwan)
    THE LAST BOLSHEVIK (Chris Marker)
    PARAJANOV: THE LAST SPRING (Mikhail Vartanov)
    ONCE UPON A TIME, CINEMA (Mohsen Makhmalbaf)
    GUELWAAR (Ousmane Sembene)
    AN INDEPENDENT LIFE (Vitaly Kanevsky)
    LA FRONTERA (Ricardo Larrain)

    DREAM OF LIGHT (Victor Erice) rare vhs
    THE PANAMA DECEPTION (Barbara Trent) rare vhs
    THE STOLEN CHILDREN (Gianni Amelio) rare vhs
    THE LONG DAY CLOSES (Terence Davies) vhs
    THE BEST INTENTIONS (Bille August) vhs
    THE OAK (Lucian Pintilie) vhs
    SAVAGE NIGHTS (Cyril Collard) vhs
    A PLACE IN THE WORLD (Adolfo Aristarain) vhs
    THE LAST DAYS OF CHEZ NOUS (Gillian Armstrong) vhs
    VACAS (Julio Medem) rare dvd

    1993

    SMOKING/NOT SMOKING (Alain Resnais)
    WHISPERING PAGES (Alexandr Sokurov)
    EXTERIOR LIGHT (Mark Rappaport)
    THE BIRTH OF LOVE (Philippe Garrel)
    FROM THE EAST (Chantal Akerman)
    MAN BY THE SHORE (Raoul Peck)
    BUCCANEER SOUL (Carlos Reichenbach)
    THE BEGINNING AND THE END (Arturo Ripstein)

    THE WOMEN FROM THE LAKE OF SCENTED SOULS (Fei Xie) vhs,bad subs
    LATCHO DROM (Tony Gatlif) vhs
    RUBY IN PARADISE (Victor Nunez) vhs
    THE RED SQUIRREL (Julio Medem) vhs
    MATINEE (Joe Dante) rare dvd
    THE PUPPET MASTER (Hou Hsiao Hsien) subpar dvd

    1994

    SATANTANGO (Bela Tarr)
    THROUGH THE OLIVE TREES (Abbas Kiarostami)
    COLD WATER (Olivier Assayas)
    COMPLAINTS OF A DUTIFUL DAUGHTER (Deborah Hoffman)
    U.S. GO HOME (Claie Denis)
    HIGH SCHOOL II (Frederick Wiseman)
    DIEU SAIT QUOI (Jean-Daniel Pollet)
    A CONFUCIAN CONFUSION (Edward Yang)
    RED ROSE WHITE ROSE (Stanley Kwan)
    CITIZEN LANGLOIS (Edgardo Cozarinsky)
    COMING TO TERMS WITH THE DEAD (Pascale Ferran)

    UP, DOWN, FRAGILE (Jacques Rivette) rare vhs
    AN UNFORGETTABLE SUMMER (Lucian Pintilie) rare vhs
    THE DAY THE SUN TURNED COLD (Yim Ho) rare vhs
    FAST TRIP, LONG DROP (Gregg Bordowitz) rare vhs
    LADYBIRD, LADYBIRD (Ken Loach) vhs
    BLUSH (Li Shaohong) vhs
    ASHES OF TIME (Wong Kar Wai) subpar dvd
    WILD REEDS (Andre Techine) rare dvd

    1995

    JOUR DE FETE-color version (Jacques Tati)
    2X50 YEARS OF FRENCH CINEMA (Jean Luc Godard)
    JLG BY JLG (Jean Luc Godard)
    WHEN IT RAINS (Charles Burnett)
    SALAAM CINEMA (Mohsen Mahkmalbaf)
    SEE HOW THEY FALL (Jacques Audiard)
    PATRON (Jorge Rocca)
    DON'T FORGET YOU'RE GOING TO DIE (Xavier Beauvois)
    BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE BIG BLUE SEA (Marion Hansel)

    ART FOR TEACHERS OF CHILDREN (Jennifer Montgomery) extinct vhs
    LE CONFESSIONNAL (Robert Lepage) vhs
    BANG (Ash) vhs
    THE WHITE BALLOON (Jafar Panahi) vhs
    LAND AND FREEDOM (Ken Loach) vhs
    BEYOND THE CLOUDS (Michelangelo Antonioni) rare dvd
    FROM THE JOURNALS OF JEAN SEBERG (Mark Rappaport) rare dvd

    1996

    THE PHANTOM HEART (Philippe Garrel)
    COMRADES: ALMOST A LOVE STORY (Peter Chan)
    THE DAY A PIG FELL INTO THE WELL (Hong Sang-soo)
    L'APPARTEMENT (Guilles Mimouni)
    A MOMENT OF INNOCENCE (Mohsen Mahkmalbaf)
    MAHJONG (Edward Yang)
    ORIENTAL ELEGY (Alexandr Sokurov)
    THE SUICIDE (Gregg Bordowitz)
    THE DOG IN THE MANGER (Pilar Miro)
    LETGOHAND VASKA (Peter Gothar)
    DRIFTING CLOUDS (Aki Kaurismaki)
    A PETAL (Jang Sun-woo)
    TOO LATE (Lucian Pintilie)
    HOW ANGELS ARE BORN (Murillo Salles)

    JAZZ '34:REMEMBRANCES OF KANSAS CITY SWING (Robert Altman) rare vhs
    NIGHTJOHN (Charles Burnett) rare vhs
    THIEVES (Andre Techine) vhs
    NENETTE AND BONI (Claire Denis) vhs
    THE QUIET ROOM (Rolf de Heer) vhs
    THREE LIVES AND ONLY ONE DEATH (Raul Ruiz) vhs

    1997

    BLUE MOON (Ko-I Cheng)
    PUBLIC HOUSING (Frederick Wiseman)
    SUZAKU (Naomi Kawase)
    KITCHEN (Jim Ho)
    THREE STORIES (Kira Muratova)
    THE OYSTER AND THE WIND (Walter Lima, Jr.)
    LIFE IS ALL YOU GET (Wolfgang Becker)

    SAME OLD SONG (Alain Resnais) vhs
    TANGO LESSON (Sally Potter) vhs
    BLACK CAT, WHITE CAT (Emir Kusturica) vhs
    DESTINY (Yousef Chahine) vhs
    WESTERN (Manuel Poirier) vhs

    1998

    INQUIETUDE (Manoel de Oliveira)
    THE APPLE (Samira Mahkmalbaf)
    HISTOIRE(S) DU CINEMA (Jean Luc Godard)
    CHRISTMAS IN AUGUST (Jin-ho Hur)
    KHROUSTALIOV MY CAR! (Alexei Guerman)
    MR. ZAO (Lu Yue)
    VIETNAM: LONG TIME COMING (Blumenthal/Gilbert)
    DANCE ME TO MY SONG (Rolf de Heer)
    CIRCLE'S SHORT CIRCUIT (Caspar Stracke)
    SOMBRE (Philippe Grandieux)
    DIVORCE IRANIAN STYLE (Ziba Mir-Hosseini)
    WIND WITH THE GONE (Alejandro Agresti)
    THE FARM: ANGOLA,USA (Garbus/Rideau)
    DIVINE (Arturo Ripstein)

    CABARET BALKAN (Goran Paskaljevic) vhs
    WEST BEIRUT (Ziad Doueiri) vhs

    1999

    BELFAST, MAINE (Frederick Wiseman)
    JUAN, I FORGOT, I DON'T REMEMBER (Juan Rulfo)
    YEPETO (Eduardo Calcagno)
    CLOUDS OF MAY (Nuri Bilge Ceylan)
    THE CARRIERS ARE WAITING (Benoit Mariage)
    GOD'S WEDDING (Joao Cesar Monteiro)
    THRONE OF DEATH (Murali Nair)
    SACHS' DISEASE (Michel Deville)
    SICILIA! (Straub/Huillet)
    NEGATIVE SPACE (Chris Petit)

    SET ME FREE (Lea Pool) vhs
    Last edited by oscar jubis; 07-03-2006 at 03:11 AM.

  8. #8
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    Important and impressive post oscar.

    Film preservation is an extremely noble cause.
    So many people don't know what they're missing.
    A tragedy.
    So few understand the "cultural" part of what you posted.

    Cinema is a very existential thing, like a song, or even the words I'm typing now.

    You can't really retract it.

    I think I read in an HST book or somewhere that there will be less geniuses in the future.

    Why?

    COMMUNICATION.

    But we have shafts of hope and light to guide us, people like Marty Scorsese & Stanley Kubrick & many other film industry people who take/took film preservation seriously.

    Roger Ebert said movies make us better people.
    He's right. Only cinephiles really know what that means.

    "In a dark time
    the eye
    begins to see"
    "Set the controls for the heart of the Sun" - Pink Floyd

  9. #9
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    Watching movies makes us better people because movies are windows to worlds, persons and points of view different than our own. Ignorance and insensitivity are negative forces that need to be defeated via the search for knowledge and the development of empathy. Cinema can be a conduit to precisely that. This doesn't mean we should frown on movies that provide sheer escapism and entertainment (I'm a huge fan of the films of Peter Jackson and I'll never forget the message of Sullivan's Travels). But perhaps at their most sublime, films are bridges of understanding and portals to everything that exalts our spirit.

    Someone could argue that there are more than enough movies out there, in theatres and home video formats, to feed the most insatiable cinephile. I don't think that's open for debate. I watched 312 movies during the first half of 2006 yet my netflix queue is at 71 titles and growing. The point of my last post is not that there aren't enough films to watch. The rationale for the list is that each of those films that remain unavailable amounts to a unique voice being silenced, a boarded-up window to a particular and specific place.

    I love your comment about the "shaft of hope and light", past and present, fighting to preserve, distribute, and exhibit a century of worthy cinema. Mr. Scorsese has even become a teacher of sorts on his excellent video surveys of American and Italian cinema.

    I'm still pondering this idea you planted that there'll be less geniuses in the future. I associate genius with originality. Perhaps there's less of that going around. Or perhaps truly original works are harder to access because the "gate keepers" don't know what to make of them...

  10. #10
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    Well said, Sir, well said.

    "boarded up windows"- great analogy.
    It's so true that undistributed films are cultural losses.

    The idea that there will be less geniuses in the future stuck with me when I read it and it seems to be true.
    People just don't communicate like they used to.
    Even 20 years ago people talked freely about anything- politics, Hollywood, whatever. Now everyone is AFRAID to say anything. They'll get locked up! Big Brother will come a-knockin'!

    I agree genius is close to originality.
    But I also think genius is tied tight to consciousness.

    What I wonder about is just how many people are conscious.
    It seems as though most people are the Living Dead.
    "Asleep", as Jarmusch kindly put it.
    Zombies, arms outstretched as they lumber down the street...

    In my warped mind I wanna be one of those people that Kerouac wrote about:
    Mad, Mad to Live, Mad to Die, burning, burning like a Roman candle.


    It's a hard road to hoe, but in the meantime.... :)
    "Set the controls for the heart of the Sun" - Pink Floyd

  11. #11
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    What can you tell us about Histiores du Cinema?

    I've been trying to find it in video stores but no one carries it!
    "Set the controls for the heart of the Sun" - Pink Floyd

  12. #12
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    Kerouac is certainly an inspiration. I think true cinema genius requires being perceptive, observant, and able to forget every film one has seen. I think someone from a rural area in Asia or Africa who has never seen a movie would make a more interesting and original movie than a cinema junkie like me.

    The title Histoire(s) du Cinema sounds like a filmed encyclopedia of world cinema but it isn't that at all. It's a 20-years-in-the-making Godard project consisting of 8 episodes lasting between 26 and 38 minutes about "his secret cinema of formative viewing experiences, personal illuminations and epiphanies". It's a highly concentrated, multi-layered audiovisual essay that likely requires and rewards repeat viewings.
    Check out these screen captures.

    Histoire(s) has been available on home video only in Japan (for a small fortune). Gaumont France is scheduled to release a 4-disc box on July 26th, priced at about 50 E. I haven't been able to find out if it has English subs. A guy from Hong Kong sells dvd-r copies for under $40 US, but admits the images are "vhs-quality". I'm convinced Histoire(s) will eventually get a proper US or UK release (it's too notorious to be forgotten) so I'll wait until then.

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    Huge thanks for the info!

    The VanCity theatre has "Histoires" in their archives- I talked to a volunteer about it at the box-office when I noticed the soundtrak sitting behind him on a shelf. I asked what it was- it had Godard's name & HISTOIRES Du CINEMA on it- a large box set, bigger than a CD box set. He didn't know much about it except that it was the soundtrack and he didn't know if it was a companion to the print or if it was just music, or what.

    It was a large black box set, like an "encyclopedia".

    I'll try to find out more.
    "Set the controls for the heart of the Sun" - Pink Floyd

  14. #14
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    Powerful screen captures, by the way.

    They remind one of Chris Marker, or even Greenaway's superimpositions.
    Last edited by Johann; 07-06-2006 at 09:36 AM.
    "Set the controls for the heart of the Sun" - Pink Floyd

  15. #15
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    Right on both counts. The captures look like Greenaway's superimpositions and the whole project uses methods and delves into themes common to Marker. Marker's latest, Immemory is apparently available exclusively as a CD-Rom. My guess is that the black box set you saw at the VanCity theatre is the CD-Rom version of Histoire(s). It could also be the Japanese dvd version but it's less likely because you would notice the Japanese writing.

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