ஈட் (1963, அமெரிக்கா)

அண்ணாத்த படத்த பத்தி வசிக்கறதுக்கு மின்னால இத்த படிங்க.

வொரு வார பத்திரிகைல எல்லா பேபரும் வைட்டா (white) கீது. அட்டையில அந்த புக்கோட பேரு தவுர வேற ஒணீயும்மில்ல. இப்படி ஒரு புக்கு (பத்திரிக்கை) ஒரு தபா னெஜம்மாலும் வந்திசீ. இந்த நியுஸ்ச ஒரு ஓரமாவுட்டு படத்த பத்தி பாக்கலாம்.

Underground film-ன்னு இந்த படத்த சொல்லுவாங்க. 1963-ல அன்டி வார்ஹல்-ன்னு (Andy Warhol) ஒரு படம் வரையருவன் எடுத்த படம்தான் ஈட் (Eat).

படத்துல பாத்த கதை ஒணீயும்மில்ல. ராபர்ட் இண்டியான-னு (Robert Indiana) ஒருதன் காளாண்னை (Mushroom) துன்றான். அவன் காளான் துன்றத சொக்க 45 நிமிசம் படத்துல ஒடுது. அப்பல அப்பப்போ அவனோட பூன குறுக்கால வந்துட்டு போகுது. அவ்வளதான் வேர எதும் இல்ல. அட சவுண்டுகூட இல்ல பாஸ்.

Anti films-ன்னும் வகேரவுல அன்டி வார்ஹல் மூணு படங்கள எடுத்துருக்கான்.

• கிஸ் (Kiss, 1963)- வேற என்னக்கிதபோது 50- நிமிசம் கில்மாவ கிஸ்சுங்க தான்.
• ஸ்லிப் (Sleep, 1963)- இது மகா பேஜாரான படம். 6-ஹவர் ஒருதன் ஜபர்தஸ்தா தூங்குறத  மட்டும் தான் படம்.

மின்னால சொன்ன அந்த புக்கு பேரு துக்ளக். எமர்ஜன்சி டைம்முல சோ கவர்மெண்டுக்கு எதிர இப்படி வயுட் பேப்பரை மட்டும் வெச்சி வெளியிட்டாரு.

Andy Warhol - அன்டி வார்ஹல்

அன்டி வார்ஹல் பண்ணது எதோ பிக்காளி பசங்க கணக்க மொக்க போடுரான்னு நெனச்ச பிரிய வுடுங்க, பிலிங்கஸ் வேணாம். இல்ல அவன் எதோ கருத்து சொல்ல வரானு நெனச்ச think-பண்ணி பாருங்க. இப்போ என்ன free-யவுடுங்க. நான் ஜகா  வாங்குரென்.

The General ( USA - 1926 )

Eighty-five minutes of laugh riot                                                                                                 .

Language : English - Silent 

Country: USA

Director: Buster Keaton - Clyde Bruckman

Starring : Buster Keaton, Marion Mack 

Year : 1926

Comedy, a genre which is preferred by most of the filmmakers and also most sought after by audiences though out the world. Being one of the earliest genres, it wasn't easy in the silent era. Charlie Chaplin became a master in silent comedy, his films are world famous, his tramp silhouette is recognized by almost all movie goers, but what about Buster Keaton, not may know him, unless you are a movie-buff. He can do what Charlie Chaplin didn't do- mixing comedy with breath taking stunts, like Jackie Chan. FilmBulb is pleased to present the film “The General” (if you haven’t heard it). 

Buster Keaton

Plot

The story is set in 1860’s US civil war (between south and union) on the southern lines. Johnny Grey (Buster Keaton) is an Engine (train) driver. 

Annabelle, Johnny’ love, expects him to enlist in the Southern army and fight for the cause, but he is rejected by the recruiter because as an engineer he can be worth more than a soldier for the South.

The opposition Union troops plan a surprise attack on the South. They hijack his train (Engine – The General) to dismantle the tracks and communication (History – The Union won the civil war because of their grip in transportation and communication). Johnny persuades his quest to get back his engine, later he comes to know that his love Annabelle is also taken with the train accidentally. The rest of the story revolves around his adventures to get the engine and his love back.

Amazing Stunts
Hilarious is the least word that I can use, this film is more than the word. When Buster mixes comedy with stunts it is literally LOL. 85-minutes of laugh riot. The use of trains in action sequences is amazing. Laughs seem to emerge from almost all scenes, even in dialogues through the inter-title card, sample below, Johnny says when kicked out of the recruiter office.

A snapshot from The General

This film is not to be missed if you are a movie maniac.

Trailer of The General

Full Movie link in Youtube:- Link

Check out FilmBulb' other silent movie reviews - Tabu: A Story of South Seas ( 1931 ) | The Last Laugh ( 1924 )

The Last Laugh (1924)

A silent German film from the dawn of cinema

History claims that this film was the first to use the dolly shots

F. M. Murnau

After watching Tabu: Story of South Seas (1931) I was captivated by the silent film maker F. M. Murnau, Tabu was his last film and the director lost his life in a car accident at the age of 42. Prior to this Murnau has made a silent film named “The Last Laugh” (1924), which doesn’t even have an inter-title which was common in those silent era films.

It’s a story of an ageing doorman in a star hotel who is demoted to a meaner job as a washroom assistant. The doorman and his family members are proud of his uniform, this is the era of war and its natural for lower class bourgeois  section having proud of their uniform. Unable to bare the humiliation caused by the neighbours after the loss of the doorman job, he steals the uniform and get caught by the night watchman while returning it. The watchman takes pity on him and wraps his coat on the doorman in the washroom. Here the story ends with the card as below.

Only inter-title in the film

As the director took pity on the doorman and doesn’t want to end the story as a grey-tale, the doorman hits a fortune, by inheriting the wealth of an American millionaire. The story continues with the doorman and the night watchman enjoying a feast where caviar is thrown away as peanuts in the same hotel and leaves by tipping the entire staff.

Camera and Art work:

The script is very simple, but no the cinematography. The camera travels all the time, up, down, left and right, it also swings sometime in the air. The history claims that this film was the first to use the dolly shot, Point of view shots, playing with shadows and lightings. The scene in the revolving door where the ageing doorman enters and the new doorman exiting is an apt POV.

Also the opening shot which travels through the elevator (which is open as in olden days) follows through the hallway and exiting to the main door. Sometimes the camera is unmovable, like when the doorman is shocked due to an irate customer, the camera stands still with the swinging door coming in and out.

Miniature scene

This has to be a first film to take a miniature set, like a train passing through the camera with the hotel in the background. It seems the entire set of the bourgeois buildings were constructed real time.

Expressionist:

Ageing doorman is played by Emil Jannings, ever shot in the film follows Emil, who gives the expression which is easily decipherable. It’s not only Emil all the character in film gives expression which is easily comprehensible by all. Considering the dream sequence in the film the German expressionist played a profound role in the film.

The film will make you to revisit it again just to enjoy the fantastic camerawork and the acting.

TABU: A Story Of South Seas (1931)

I got intrigued after watching the silent movie, “The General” by Buster Keaton, having seen silent movies of Charlie Chaplin in my childhood I was not conscious about these kinds of silent films or never turned my attention on these. We always tend to go for innovative aspects like sound systems like DTS, Surround,, or visualization like CGI or 3D, but forget about the beginnings, the dawn the cinema. The talkies era was a pure visual medium of cinema.

So after the Buster Keaton film I was looking for a silent film and TABU: A Story Of South Seas (1931), fell into my torrent swarm.

Part 1 : Paradise

The story is the loss of ignorance or the paradise. A remote island in the South Sea of China, were the civilization haven’t affected it gives rise to a romantic tale of Matahi (Boy) and Reri (Girl). The film is divided in two parts, Paradise and Paradise Lost.

The islanders lead an ignorant, laid back life as tribal, here comes Hitu, an old warrior and a kind of guru from a neighbouring island in a small ship seeking for a virgin girl (Virgin Scared) and he names Reri as the Virgin Scared as a highest honour. The head of the island gives Reri to Hitu, heartbroken Matahi shows dissent to Hitu as no one can seek Reri as she is scared now and if any man even tries to see her, then its Tabu for them, that’s DEATH.

Part 2 : Paradise Lost

The second part, Matahi and Reri run away from the Hitu and settle in a neighbouring pearl island to a hidden life. With his sea diving capability Matahi finds pearl hunting at ease, but he is duped by a Chinese trader. Meanwhile Hitu arrives and meets only Reri, orders her to come with him else he will kill Matahi.

Unable to escape the island due to the debts to the Chinese trader, Matahi goes to the pearl hunting alone, while Reri leaves with Hitu. Matahi tries to rescue her, but Hitu sails through the waves leaving Matahi alone in the sea, presumably death to him.

Cast and crew

The cast predominantly include native islanders; they are agile, beautiful and intrigued. Tabu has a nice blend of a tribal musical notes with hip shaking dance. The film is noted for its cinematography, which won the academy award. The director of this movie is a prominent figure in the German expressionism F. W. Murnau of Nosferatu fame. Unfortunately Tabu was his last film and many of his films through the 1920 era were lost. 

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