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Ludwig (Luchino Visconti, 1973)
Mar
25
Elton John – 1947
Elisabeth “Sissi” of Austria (Romy Schneider) and King Ludwig II of Bavaria (Helmut Berger) in his beloved Venus Grotto below Schloss Linderhoff. Ludwig wanted blue light in reference to the Grotta Azzurra in #Capri, and had electricity installed in the grotto, which was the first usage of electricity in Austria. DP: Armando Nannuzzi.
A flamboyant character for Elton John’s birthday (1947).
“I want to remain an enigma forever. To others, and also to myself.”
– Ludwig II
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Die große Ekstase des Bildschnitzers Steiner [The Great Ecstasy of Woodcarver Steiner] (Werner Herzog, 1974)
Mar
13
Walter Steiner, flying. DP: Jörg Schmidt-Reitwein.
“Ich sollte eigentlich ganz allein auf der Welt sein, ich, Steiner, und sonst kein anderes lebendes Wesen. Keine Sonne, keine Kultur, ich nackt auf einem hohen Fels, kein Sturm, kein Schnee, keine Straßen, keine Banken, kein Geld, keine Zeit und kein Atem. Ich würde dann jedenfalls keine Angst mehr haben.”
– Walter Steiner
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Le tombeau d'Alexandre [The Last Bolshevik] (Chris Marker, 1993)
Feb
25
Warsaw Pact
Still from a Medvedkin film. Silhouettes in light of Lenin and Stalin facing each other are projected above a crowd of people. DP of Le tombeau d'Alexandre: Chris Marker.
“Alexandre Ivanovitch Medvedkine est le seul cinéaste russe né en 1900. (…) Son énergie, son courage, ses illusions, ses désillusions, ses compromissions, ses bagarres avec les bureaucrates, ses illuminations prophétiques, ses aveuglements, volontaires ou non, son humour indestructible et la lumière déchirante que l’effondrement de l’URSS jette rétrospectivement sur toute sa vie, ce sont ceux de toute une génération, et c’est le portrait de cette génération que j’entends tracer à travers le portrait d’un ami.”
– press kit (via)
A film essay using the life and work of filmmaker Aleksandr Medvedkin to tell the story of communism. Medvedkin traveled the Soviet Union with his Kinopoezd or Cinetrain (also Agit-train), a moving film production train with the sole purpose to create Agitprop while documenting the Five Year Plan.
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Les abysses [The Depths] (Nikos Papatakis, 1963)
Feb
18
pancakes
Michèle and Marie-Louise (real-life sisters Francine and Colette Bergé) as the real-life Papin sisters prepare crêpes for Monsieur. DP: Jean-Michel Boussaguet.
– Why are we making pancakes?
– Monsieur likes them. Besides, what else is there?
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Assalto ao Trem Pagador [Assault on the Pay Train] (Roberto Farias, 1962)
Feb
17
WH helicopter incident – 1974
The favelados-turned-train-robbers. DP: Amleto Daissé.
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Amerikai anzix [American Torso] (Gábor Bódy, 1975)
Feb
12
Lincoln born
Yet another [American] Civil War, for Abraham Lincoln's birthday (1809).
Shot as fainted fragments* based on an Ambrose Bierce story, and outtakes from Karl Marx's diary, Amerikai anzix (litt. American Postcards) follows Hungarian-American cartographer Fiala, one of many of his countrymen fighting in the American Civil War.
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Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story (Todd Haynes, 1987)
Feb
4
A brunette Barbie doll representing Karen Carpenter makes a statement in front of the White House. DP: Barry Ellsworth.
“Mother, didn't you know there are children starving in Africa?”
– “Karen Carpenter”
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Die große Ekstase des Bildschnitzers Steiner [The Great Ecstasy of Woodcarver Steiner] (Werner Herzog, 1974)
Jan
25
Chamonix 1924 Winter Olympics
Winter sports in celebration of the Chamonix 1924 Winter Olympics.
“Ich sollte eigentlich ganz allein auf der Welt sein, ich, Steiner, und sonst kein anderes lebendes Wesen. Keine Sonne, keine Kultur, ich nackt auf einem hohen Fels, kein Sturm, kein Schnee, keine Straßen, keine Banken, kein Geld, keine Zeit und kein Atem. Ich würde dann jedenfalls keine Angst mehr haben.”
– Walter Steiner
In a film that is as much about Herzog as it is about Steiner, we follow the soft-spoken woodcarver in preparation of his definitive ski flight in Planica, Yugoslavia.
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Orlando (Sally Potter, 1992)
Jan
24
Billy Zane's birthday
Orlando (Tilda Swinton) and Shelmerdine (Billy Zane) in intimate embrace. DPs: Aleksey Rodionov & Andrew Speller.
A [favourite] Billy Zane film for his birthday (1966).
“This future of yours Shelmerdine, when it's gonna begin? Today? Or, is it always tomorrow?”
– Orlando
As ordered by Queen Elizabeth I (Quentin Crisp), nobleman Orlando remains young and traverses exotic scenery, civilisations, time, and gender.
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کلوزآپ ، نمای نزدیک [Klūzāp, nemā-ye nazdīk / Close-Up] (Abbas Kiarostami, 1990)
Jan
19
Hossain Sabzian on the back of a motorcycle on a busy tree-lined, four lane street. He's holding a large potted rose-red dahlia. DP: Ali Reza Zarrindast.
– Is there anything I can do for you?
– You could make a film about my suffering.
