We have been watching The Pitt and it is pretty fantastic. The missus who works in healthcare is impressed with the accuracy of the tests ordered, results thereof and the time taken to run them, blood allocation etc. I was impressed with the episodes involving a mass-casualty shooting and the response by the hospital staff because again the accuracy was spot on. Definitely worth the watch!
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The eyes thing has ALWAYS bothered the hell out of me. Brushing the fingers over the eyelids, I could accept, but the bizarre and very specific “palm past face” thing has always looked awkward and wrong and they just keep doing it. I guess a lot of actors playing corpses have very twitchy eyelids and can’t have a hand come anywhere near actually touching their face without it having to also hide their eyes from view to avoid ruining the scene?
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Suspending disbelief is an intrinsic part of enjoying the dramatic arts.
We used to watch people in cheesy rubber suits and flashing neon tubes representing engines and really enjoyed the stories.
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Yeah, I almost think the hyper realism of today’s films and tv make minor inaccuracies stand out more than they did when everything was cheap and obviously fake.
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I still love those movies.
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Le charme des objets - early shorts of Walerian Borowczyk
Summary
Walerian Borowczyk started his professional film career as a Polish animator in the 1950’s. Like many Polish directors of the Soviet era, after achieving a bit of notice in the West he moved to France, there receiving even more acclaim. He created several award-winning shorts and then moved into live action features. His live action work showed a strong interest in eroticism from the start, and the permissiveness of the ‘70s enabled him to create controversial works such as Immoral Tales (1973) and The Beast (1975) which won him much praise and accusations of being a pornographer. This pigeonholing may not have been the best for his career as his reputation eventually moved him from competing in Cannes to directing Emmanuelle 5.
Here are a few of his early works, before all the brouhaha started.
Banner of Youth aka Sztandar Młodych (co-directed by Jan Lenica 1957)
A two-minute advertisement for the journal of the Polish Youth Union, Sztandar Młodych (Banner of Youth), utilizing found footage and hand-painted abstract animation reminiscent of Norman McLaren, all set to some jaunty big band jazz.
Dom aka House (co-directed by Jan Lenica 1959)
A woman (Ligia Borowczyk, Walerian’s wife), alone in a house at night, daydreams (or has visions) providing the framework for this compilation of differently styled animations and experimental film segments. Looks back to the avant-garde of the early 20th century, especially Jean Cocteau, and ahead to Czech surrealist Jan Švankmajer.
Les Astronautes (co-directed by Chris Marker 1959)
An inventor (Michel Boschet) creates a spacecraft, mostly from newspaper, and, accompanied by his pet owl, tours first Paris and then outer space only to become involved in an international incident. Reminiscent of both Méliès and Gilliam, it is recommended to those who would prefer a bit of less abstract, more whimsical fun.
Concert (1962)
Monsieur and Madame Kabal attempt to put on a concert which ultimately concludes in comical carnage. (And a dance number!) M. and Mme. Kabal returned in Borowczyk’s first and only animated feature, Le théâtre de monsieur et madame Kabal (1967).
Renaissance (1963)
A burnt out room filled with debris. Through the magic of stop motion animation, the room and its contents, a horn, a stuffed owl, a doll, a family portrait, a book of law, etc. reconstitute until… This metaphysical puzzle is one of Boro’s best.
Grandma’s encyclopedia aka L’encyclopedie de grand-maman en 13 volumes (1963)
In what was apparently intended to be the first of a series, Borowczyk uses cut outs from Victorian literature to animate automobiles, balloons and locomotives as they race, perambulate, and blow up.
The Games of Angels aka Les jeux des anges (1964)
“Arguably Borowczyk’s masterpiece, Angels’ Games is, according to the artist, a reportage in the city of angels.” A harrowing semi-abstract animation inspired by the Nazi camps and the Soviet Gulag, with an excellent score by Bernard Parmegiani which incorporates a Polish chant from the camps.
Love Express: The Disappearance of Walerian Borowczyk (Kuba Mikurda 2018)
A documentary about Borowczyk’s career from beginning to end. At only 75 minutes, it can’t help but give short shrift to many works that arguably deserve better, but it still provides a good overview to the newcomer. Featuring friends, collaborators, and admirers, Terry Gilliam, Andrzej Wajda, Neil Jordan, and Slavoj Žižek, among many others.
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Cara, I love Mr. Combs, but this movie is unwatchable.
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There is an MST3k treatment, which helps.
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Yay!
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Huh. Who could have guessed that ditching the brand name with the best reputation for the brand name with a lesser reputation wouldn’t have been a good idea?
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Suits LA was sooooooo bad.
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I’d previously heard he was going to essentially make All Star Superman, but the preview didn’t show that. It was an interesting take, and thankfully, positive. I detested Snyder’s dark take.
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Yeah, I like Gunn far more than Synder… not just because Gunn came from Troma, either. He’s just a better director, me thinks.
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