oh my

I haven't found an addition to my canon in quite a while.

This makes it in spades.

You just know nothing good goes on in these nightclubs.

Let's see: suicide, rape, slavery, drugs, murder, blackmail, revenge, deception, adultery, sex, assault, prostitution, extortion, seduction, an attempted heist and (somehow entwined within this all) singing and dancing. It seems all so Bollywood and yet this is part of the cabaretera (cabaret movies) genre from Mexico during the late '40s and early '50s.

Busby Berkeley would surely wince at the aerial photography but I really admire the big production numbers that burst the proscenium arch of the nightclub stages wide open. The ballads, mambos, rumbas and sambas that feature many top Mexican musicians [including Carmen Miranda's nightclub band] had me humming the tunes for days after watching this.

All this and noir-ish elements too - femme fatale, expressionist lighting, fog enshrouded streets, nihilist attitude, dark and dreary subject matter. Yet it never quite slides over into camp. Its all so lovingly embellished that I can suspend my disbelief and for the whole wild plot-wringing ride I'm right along with them.

Aventurera (1950)

directed by Alberto Gout

cinematography by Alex Phillips

production design by Manuel Fontanals

the blurry underground

Underground (1941)
directed by Vincent Sherman
cinematography by Sidney Hickox




Its such a shame that the DVD transfer is so poor.
I'd live to be able to share more images-
I'm sure there is a lot more beauty I couldn't notice over
the blurry transfer,
more black and white contrast that was washed out into greys.
For some reels, the sound and image
tracks had lost their common stride.

But the story is so compelling and the performances
absolutely riveting
that I'm sharing these just so I can mention that I've seen it.
Not to mention that the plot involves the underground
resistance in Germany.
Unusual enough and especially for a Hollywood film in 1941.

single shot - at the circus

Harpo in his element.

At The Circus (1939)

directed by Edward Buzzell

cinematography by Leonard M. Smith

pearls and lace

A headless bride in the thick of the night should appear more disturbing than this.
But its such a lovely vision; a beautiful, ghostly vision,
looking for all the world like a winged victory
rather than a woman with clouded vision.

Perlicky na dne (1966)
aka Pearls of the Deep
Automat Svet [Globe Buffet] segment, directed by Vera Chytilova

single shot - dying swan

Umirayushchii Lebed
aka The Dying Swan (1917)
directed by Eugeni Bauer

...and now the work begins

Christ in Concrete (1949)

directed by Edward Dmytryk

...with this most Vorkapichian montage sequence

sfsff- souls and lampshades

Soul of Youth 1920

directed by William Desmond Taylor

cinematography by James Van Trees

When the first half hour of this flickered across the big screen, the stunning images seared themselves onto my brain. I gushed afterwards about its beauty and learned that it already existed on dvd. But of course, the reason I and thousands of other people cram ourselves into the steamy, stifling heat of the Castro Theatre is that films never look half so good on a tiny screen as projected in a theater.

And the last remaining fun from the San Francisco Silent Film Festival is identifying the themes running throughout the string of films. My companions pointed out the repetition of animals and children/younger siblings. For me, it was lampshades. Look at this poor thing:

I'll allow that it may have been draped with fabric, but what a strange shape underneath. And this wasn't the only one. There are more in this film and scattered throughout the rest. Sadly they have all blurred together at this point- only the lampshades remain.

sfsff - part two

Jujiro photo courtesy of San Francisco Silent Film Festival

The rest of what I saw during the marathon weekend of the SF Silent Film Festival:

JUJIRO (1928, Teinosuke Kinugasa) is clearly the stand-out of the weekend for being surrealist while still maintaining a narrative. The spinning spheres and circles in the fun house were a beautiful repeating theme, as were the use of shadows including one of a spoked wheel that mimicked the national flag of Japan - a ghostly shadow of a rising sun. Dissolves interspersed with quick cuts, all within a scene. Breath-fog, body steam and rain-dusted hair.

Although not nearly as fractured, a lot of it reminded me of "Fall of the House of Usher" (1926-28, Watson Jr. and Webber) and indeed much of the imagery is repeated- dropped knife for a falling hammer, shadowy sets, sleeping faces, staircases.

The musical accompaniment by Stephen Horne involved experimental techniques as well, rubbing over the surface of the piano strings, plucking them or playing flute and piano at the same time. His score didn't strictly follow the action, sometimes adding a note for punctuation for what just occurred on-screen. Very effective and well matched.

It was preceded by KALEIDOSCOPE (1925), a short experiment with color film produced by Kodak. Nine minutes of trance-induction. Watching the constantly evolving images brought on a sense of loss; even though the replacements were just as beautiful, I wanted to hold on just a little longer.

Also saw:
HER WILD OAT 1927 directed by Marshall Neilan
THE PATSY 1928 directed by King Vidor
Both rollicking comedies, both featuring charming leading actresses.

LES DEUX TIMIDES 1928 directed by Rene Clair
Another rollicking comedy but with great set decoration by art director Lazare Meerson.

MIKAEL 1924 directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer
More great set design, here by Hugo Haring. Karl Freund not only contributed his cinematography skills but played the small part of an art dealer.

SILENT ENEMY 1930 directed by H P Carver
Absolutely gorgeous outdoor photography from Marcel Le Picard. The mist rising from the river and the many scenes in the snow are beautifully captured. I was also impressed by the action happening underneath the intertitles, which were often superimposed over the images.

I purposely missed catching THE MAN WHO LAUGHS as I'd just posted that one. I also passed on THE UNKNOWN as I'd already seen it too. Guy Maddin translated the French intertitles live, but I'd heard from some who watched that felt he gave this sad, sensitive film a campy edge. I would've thought the Castro Theatre crowd would have more compassion for such a troubled character - I'm glad now I didn't stay to hear people laughing at Lon Chaney.

sfsff 2008 - kid brother

photo courtesy of San Francisco Silent Film Festival

Kid Brother 1927

I have to admit here that Harold Lloyd was my very first crush. And I think there's still something between us. He's as handsome as ever and now I know that he not only did his own stunts, but performed many tasks off-screen that he selflessly let others take the credit.

According to his grand daughter, who helped to introduce the film last night, he refused to show his work on television because he didn't want commercials to interrupt the flow of the stories. After his death, others did just that.

I'm grateful though because that's how I was introduced to him. At least now our future meetings will be in a proper setting- big screen, full orchestra, very romantic.

This is the first night in the weekend long

death of a cyclist

Muerte de un Ciclista 1955

aka Death of a Cyclist

directed by Juan Antonio Bardem

cinematography by Alfredo Fraile

What a fantastic film.

Its a seamless link between film noir and Italian neo-realism, a combination of Bardem's Hollywood and European influences.

But here, as in most cases, I'm more interested in a visual reading of a film. For instance, I noticed after I had gathered these that most of these shots are divided into open spaces and closed spaces. Generally, the male protagonist is granted a lot of space while the femme fatale is often in more confined surroundings. Indeed, all the women are more shut in than he.

her exit:

his exit:

woman's shoes against the floor:

man's shoes against the distance:

Really, how often does a close-up of boots also include the sky?

She wastes away sulking on the bed or enjoying herself in a crowded party, while he teaches in a huge lecture hall:

His world is more open than hers because he can see the opportunities.

Possibly he can see them because he has a wider field of vision.

Either way, even their final resting places echo their placement in the rest of the film.

i saw ride the pink horse on a good-sized screen

humbly borrowed from Category D

There's a local film noir series that's been going on and off for a few years now. Some local film collectors contribute their own prints (usually 16mm), set up a screen and some chairs in an undisclosed location and invite those in the know to free screenings. There's a Robert-Osborne-esque introduction before the film and an open discussion right after.

The last few years, a stable home has been found in a beautiful art deco building here in the city. Not only are there beautiful surroundings but a full bar is provided so one can watch film noir projected on screen while enjoying a glass of scotch, just as nature intended.

humbly borrowed from noir of the week

The discussion was actually well attended, with many different people contributing ideas and observations. Racial and class overtones were the best topics. The host kept trying to draw parallels between the characters on-screen and their later involvement with HUAC, but no one was biting. I was still overwhelmed by the long opening shot, which followed the character exiting the bus, walking indoors, moving around to take care of business and finally focusing on the gun in the briefcase- difficult and absolutely beautiful photography.

Ride The Pink Horse (1947)

directed by Robert Montgomery

cinematography by Russell Metty

single shot - darling

My Darling Clementine (1946)

directed by John Ford

cinematography by Joe MacDonald