☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Histoire(s) du Cinema (1988-1998) -- J.-L. Godard
Godard made these
short "films" (really handmade videos) between the late '80s and late
'90s. They involve the layering and overlapping of multiple stills and clips
from film (and art) history along with a dense slathering of text, sometimes
read by Godard himself but also read by others. This 3 DVD set contains two
sets of subtitles, one for the spoken and written (French) text and the other to
try to footnote the source of all of the images (seemingly an impossible task).
I've watched a few of the episodes twice now and the text and images are
occasionally complementary but more often contrasting. In fact, the whole thing
is a gargantuan poetic beast that will take a thousand viewings to understand,
if understanding is even possible. The sheer density of it all and the focus
required means that I've fallen asleep more than once, with my dreams merging
with Godard's flow to create a weird non-reality. Five stars.
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