Week 4 FIlms

Manhatta (1920) Scheeler and Paul Strand

I appreciated a lot of the shots in this film for their grandness—the buildings still look impressive today. One shot I really liked was an aerial view with a train coming down on the right side—it abstracted the goings on of the city in a well-composed way. The film felt a bit like a documentary I’d watch in a US History class though.

A Bronx Morning (1931) Jay Leyda

I enjoyed A Bronx Morning. It was an artistic snapshot of a specific place in a specific time. The motion of the blurred imagery in the beginning was gorgeous and reminded me of a Mark Rothko painting.  Many of the shots had painterly compositions, and I particularly liked the artistically cropped shot of the first woman pushing her baby’s carriage. Leyda was able to abstract real life, which is what excites me most when I work on my own paintings.

The Life and Death of 9413 (1928) Slavko Vorkapich & R. Florey

The theatrics of 9413’s expressions were a little off-putting for me. But I appreciated how it was honest with emotions. The man labeled with the star drips with such apparent snobbishness when 9413 tries to talk to him. And when the star rejects 9413’s mask and he cradles it, his pathetic-ness was palpable. I also enjoyed how they represented heaven at the end with the layering of shimmering crystals. There were a lot of beautiful gray mid-tones that came across well in the black and white film.

Vorkapich Montage Sequences/The Furies (1928-1937) Vorkapich

This was delightful. The billowing fabric of the Furies’ dresses looked like flames against the dark background. And the cuts between each member of the couples’ expressions were really well done. Whether intentionally or not, those cuts added a lot of humor to the film. As did the expressions of the Furies.

The Fall of the House of Usher (1928) James Sibley

I thought it was very cool to see an actual narrative interpreted in an avant-garde way. That’s another element that interests me in painting and in art—being inspired by another’s creativity and interpreting it in your own style. And it effectively felt like a fever dream—the way the camera floated over the steps at one point captured what it’s like when you just kind of glide in a dream.

The Hearts of Age (1934) Orson Welles & William Vance

I had no idea what to make of this. It had a distinctive feeling about it because the film was over-exposed and all the parts outside felt like a blindingly bright day. I kept expecting that there was some story line I was supposed to be following but couldn’t keep up with. But I didn’t really think of it as a surreal film since it wasn’t very dreamlike, so I was uncomfortable not knowing what was going on.

Lot in Sodom (1933) Watson and Webber

If I had read this story I think I would’ve enjoying seeing it translated more. I didn’t know the story for The Fall of the House of Usher either, but the mood that created was full enough to appreciate it still—whereas for this film, the mood was not as powerful and it was difficult to know what was going on. I did really enjoy the beginning though—the way the debauchery was depicted was so graceful and seemed like a ballet.

Week 3 Films

Le Retour á raison (1923) Man Ray

At first I felt very uncomfortable watching this. The assault of the images and the sounds made me feel trapped and uneasy. I understand the importance of art that physically affects you, but, personally, I value beauty above everything in art.  While the images were interesting, it felt like Man Ray just threw everything in.

Emak-Bakia (1926) Man Ray

This had some beautiful visuals that stuck with me, like the play of lights and the rotating words in a black void. But my favorite part was when he entered surreal territory—the transition from the person in the bedroom to the beach felt so natural and dreamlike. I also loved the shots he had of the fish swimming from below. It was a relief to see recognizable visuals.

Entr’acte (1924) Rene Clair

I enjoyed the sense of humor in this film. The opening with the men jumping in slow motion is still funny today; same with all the people running in their finery in slow motion. I think I also enjoyed the runaway hearse part because I didn't have to try to figure out how it made sense.

Symphonie Diagonale (1924) Viking Eggeling

While I appreciated the planning that went into the animation, this type of visual is really not my cup of tea. I felt that the lines and shapes were too dated and not aesthetically appealing.

Blood of the Poet (1930) Cocteau

I loved this film! I felt like I had a lot in common with Cocteau’s visual taste. The elements of antiquity and the romantic era—laurels, wigs, etc.—combined with “contemporary” dress appealed to my love of period pieces, traditional art, and conflicting imagery. And it totally captured the feeling of moving sluggishly in a dream the way that the main character half-crawled along the hotel hallway. It was delightfully macabre too. I loved how the boy’s gunshot wound was a pentagram.

Anemic Cinema (1924-1926) Duchamp/Ray

It’s very hard to separate this film from the music that was added to it. If not for the music, I might’ve entered a trance more readily or felt like I was going a little crazy. However, because of the soft guitar music I found each new segment very relaxing and oddly started attaching emotion to the circles.

Ballet Méchanique (1924) Leger

I enjoyed this film but not that much stands out in my memory. I thought the visual of the woman swinging upside down was beautiful and I thought it was interesting how the wine glasses become flat from their overrepresentation.

Un Chein Andolu (1929) Dali and Buñuel

The whole time I was watching this, I just felt like, “WHAT?” But then I realized how awesome it is that something that seems to make no sense was actually very carefully planned and executed and it held my interest the entire time. I really like the surreal films we’ve seen.

Week 2 Films

Strike (1925) - Sergei M. Eisenstein

I’m not exactly sure what to make of this film. I have to admit I started feeling very restless and bored realizing that the entire hour and half would in fact be dealing with a non-narrative strike. But I was impressed that it was a true production and that this many people were involved in a non-mainstream film. It felt very loaded in terms of the visual mockery of the people in power. Their faces took on gruesome traits and the way that one of the men pops up the table with all the alcohol when they’re supposed to be considering the terms of the proletariat makes it clear how Eisenstein viewed this class as ridiculous.

 I also thought it was very effective to juxtapose the man juicing the orange with the police trampling the laborers. I felt the effect of the police more vividly because of that. I thought the most avant-garde element, as I understand it, was the shot where all the riff-raff pop out of the holes on the king’s land. It was interesting how the film devolved into total chaos, starting with these strange characters. Having the riot go on for so long at the end reflected the actual feeling of it being never-ending for the people.  I felt ignorantly surprised with the way that it ended. I guess I’m used to narrative films where, even when it’s a tragedy, there’s more of a denouement lead out.

Odessa Steps

This scene showcased horrors of authority even more so than Strike, particularly with Eisenstein’s decision to show the child being trampled. I like how he drew everything out, like with the pram falling down the steps, because he created tension in an artful way. I also appreciated how there was a never-ending stream of people coming down the steps; it felt like the steps themselves went on forever.