An Evening With Kenneth Anger. Friday night at 7:30 at the Walker Art Center Cinema.
Holy tapdancing cats, there’s a ton of intriguing movie choices opening Friday. Army of Shadows, the crazy Existentialist-Noir-French Resistance picture, is in town for a few days at the Oak Street Cinema (and here’s my review, from an earlier showing this summer). Then Venus is opening at the Uptown Theatre, while Anthony Minghella’s intelligent and deeply flawed Breaking and Entering is opening around town. All three films offer a fascinating night out, and the latter two are sexually honest pictures (a rarity). Of the last pair, the first is a sweet story that doesn’t pull any punches about the hungry libido of a very old man, played by Peter O’Toole, who deserves this year’s Oscar, and not just because he’s due. The role is often unappealing and brutal, and well worth watching. B & E is surprising emotionally, though it spins out of control, losing focus and relying on a horribly pat ending. But the sex scenes betwixt Jude Law and Juliette Binoche are heart-thumping and real. I guess old Jude is the only actor willing to go down on his lady love in Hollywood today…
But I would really like to point you in the direction of the Walker, who are bringing in our favorite Satan-worshipping, homoerotic short filmmaker, a man who’s influenced Scorsese (by his own admission) and David Lynch (my own observation, though you’d have to be blind not to notice the comparisons), in the guise of former child-actor Dr. Kenneth Anger. Anger might be most famous for his wicked tell-all book Hollywood Babylon, which at times is so mean-spirited and gruesome it’ll give you nightmares during your afternoon nap.
Anger will be in town to plug a new DVD collection of his works, and mesmerized theatergoers will also be treated to his films Fireworks, Rabbit’s Moon, Scorpio Rising, Kustom Kar Kommandos and Invocation of My Demon Brother. Scorpio is an obvious precursor to Blue Velvet, with its soundtrack of rippin’ 50s and 60s hits, including Vinton’s “Blue Velvet”, all this playing while leather-clad bikers stroke their motorcycles, and other objects. Fireworks is startling, if only for the fact that it’s an American film from 1947, and its rampant homosexuality is shocking even today (a man has to be torn to pieces by angry sailors in order to finally enjoy a relationship). These films really beggar description, but are beautiful, moving at times, and well worth watching. I imagine that Mr. Anger will be giving us some interesting commentary to accompany them. To say the least!
In other words, if you’re interested in a movie and have your thoughts provoked, there’s a veritable smorgasbord in town–not to mention all the good stuff that’s already here.
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