Ballet mecanique (1924)
*** (out of 4)
This short is often considered one of the earliest examples of real avant garde filmmaking. It's worth noting that the film is available in the UNSEEN CINEMA collection and that the production notes for this film say that the score that was written for it in 1924 was so difficult that it couldn't be performed at all. In fact, according to the notes, the score wasn't able to be completed until the late 90s when technology was good enough to try and capture the various moods and notes going on with the score. The "visuals" include a wide range of stuff from film clips to puppets to some stop-motion animation. There's no real "story" to talk about, instead we're just given various images that play well against the score as the film moves along both the images and that score grow faster and more intense. You never really know how one might take these avant garde films because many will view them as nothing more than a complete mess and while I think that can often be the case, in special cases, like this one, you can tell there's some passion and effort going into the production. I'm not going to sit here and say that a deep meaning jumped out at me but I did enjoy the experimental music and many of the visuals in front of me. The stuff with the puppet was probably my favorite but I think I'd recommend this film to those who enjoy strange music. The music is certainly the main ingredient here and it's an interesting mix that really adds to the overall experience.
*** (out of 4)
This short is often considered one of the earliest examples of real avant garde filmmaking. It's worth noting that the film is available in the UNSEEN CINEMA collection and that the production notes for this film say that the score that was written for it in 1924 was so difficult that it couldn't be performed at all. In fact, according to the notes, the score wasn't able to be completed until the late 90s when technology was good enough to try and capture the various moods and notes going on with the score. The "visuals" include a wide range of stuff from film clips to puppets to some stop-motion animation. There's no real "story" to talk about, instead we're just given various images that play well against the score as the film moves along both the images and that score grow faster and more intense. You never really know how one might take these avant garde films because many will view them as nothing more than a complete mess and while I think that can often be the case, in special cases, like this one, you can tell there's some passion and effort going into the production. I'm not going to sit here and say that a deep meaning jumped out at me but I did enjoy the experimental music and many of the visuals in front of me. The stuff with the puppet was probably my favorite but I think I'd recommend this film to those who enjoy strange music. The music is certainly the main ingredient here and it's an interesting mix that really adds to the overall experience.