Month: June 2018

5th (1967): “To See and Be Seen” Show Notes

Ryan Swen Catalyst and Witness Leave a comment

Table of Contents: Description, Corrections/Clarifications, Housekeeping, General, Main Slate, Ephemera, Recurring Directors, Recurring Countries, One-Time Directors, Debuts, Festivals/Oscar Nominees, Events/Shorts, Discussions By Length, Specifications

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Description
The fifth episode of the Catalyst and Witness podcast, devoted to exploring the films and format of the New York Film Festival, hosted by Ryan Swen and Dan Molloy. This covers the fifth edition of the festival in 1967.

0:00-12:42 – Opening
12:43-1:00:37 – Part One [The Battle of Algiers to Napoléon]
1:00:38-1:34:58 – Part Two [Funnyman to The Taking of Power by Louis XIV]
1:34:59-2:03:23 – Part Three [Barrier to The Other One]
2:03:24-2:38:47 – Part Four [Portrait of Jason to Far From Vietnam]
2:38:48-2:45:04 – Closing

Corrections/Clarifications

  • Elvira Madigan was Danish, while Sixten Sparre was Swedish.

Housekeeping

  • Hosted by Dan Molloy & Ryan Swen
  • Conceived and Edited by Ryan Swen
  • Recorded in Seattle and Portland on MacBook GarageBand, Edited in Audacity
  • Podcast photograph from Yi Yi, Logo designed by Dan Molloy
  • Poster by Roy Lichtenstein
  • Recorded June 21, 2018
  • Released June 29, 2018
  • Music (in order of appearance):
    • The Battle of Algiers (opening night)
    • Le Départ (favorite soundtrack)
    • Napoléon (favorite of the first section)
    • The Taking of Power by Louis XIV (favorite of the second section)
    • Made in U.S.A (favorite of the third section)
    • Applause (favorite of the fourth section)
    • Far From Vietnam (closing night)

General

  • Selection Committee: Richard Roud (program director), Amos Vogel (festival director), Arthur Knight, Andrew Sarris, Susan Sontag
  • Location: Philharmonic Hall
  • Prices: 2 for terrace, 2.50 or 3 for orchestra, 3.50 or 4 for loge, with 1 added to all seats for opening night
  • Films seen for the podcast:
    • Ryan
      • Seen before podcast watching period: The Battle of Algiers
      • Seen for the podcast: All available; all rewatched
      • Favorite films: Napoléon, The Battle of Algiers, The Taking of Power by Louis XIV, Applause, Portrait of Jason
      • Least favorite films: Memorandum, Tonite Let’s All Make Love in London
      • Catch-Up Corner: Raven’s End (3rd)
    • Dan
      • Seen before podcast watching period: The Battle of Algiers, Samurai Rebellion
      • Seen for the podcast: All available except Memorandum; none rewatched
      • Favorite films: Napoléon, Portrait of Jason, The Battle of Algiers, The Taking of Power by Louis XIV
      • Least favorite films: Young Törless, Le Départ, Barrier, Let’s All Make Love in London
      • Catch-Up Corner: The Wedding March (3rd)
  • Discoveries of the festival: Far From Vietnam, Applause, Yesterday Girl
  • Unavailable films: Hot Years, Funnyman, Puss & Kram, Benefit of the Doubt, The Other One, A Mother’s Heart

Main Slate

Opening Night: The Battle of Algiers [La battaglia di Algeri] (1966, Gillo Pontecorvo)
September 20, 9:00
Released 1967
Hot Years [Tople godine] (1966, Dragoslav Lazić)
September 21, 6:30
Never released
Yesterday Girl [Abschied von gestern/Farewell to Yesterday] (1966, Alexander Kluge)
September 21, 9:30
Never released
Love Affair, or the Case of the Missing Switchboard Operator [Ljubavni slučaj ili tragedija službenice P.T.T./Love Affair, or the Tragedy of a P.T.T.] (1967, Dušan Makavejev)
September 22, 6:30
Released 1968
Le Départ [The Departure] (1967, Jerzy Skolimowski)
September 22, 9:30
Released 1968
Retrospective: Napoléon [Napoléon vu par Abel Gance] (1927, Abel Gance)
September 23, 1:30
Released 1929
Funnyman (1967, John Korty)
September 23, 6:30
Released 1971
Hugs and Kisses [Puss och Kram] (1967, Jonas Cornell)
September 23, 9:30
Released 1968
Young Törless [Der junge Törless] (1966, Volker Schlöndorff)
September 24, 6:30
Released 1968
Samurai Rebellion [Jōi-uchi: Hairyō tsuma shimatsu/Rebellion: Receive the Wife] (1967, Kobayashi Masaki)
September 24, 9:30
Released 1968
The Lion Hunters [La chasse au lion à l’arc/The Lion Hunting at the Bow] (1965, Jean Rouch)
Also: Memorandum (1965, Donald Brittain & John Spotton)
September 25, 6:30
Never released/Never released
The Taking of Power by Louis XIV [La Prise de pouvoir par Louis XIV] (1966, Roberto Rossellini)
September 25, 9:30
Released 1970
Barrier [Bariera] (1966, Jerzy Skolimowski)
September 26, 6:30
Never released
“The London Scene”
Tonite Let’s All Make Love in London (1967, Peter Whitehead)
Benefit of the Doubt (1967, Peter Whitehead)
September 26, 9:30
Never released/Never released
Retrospective: Les Carabiniers [The Riflemen] (1963, Jean-Luc Godard)
September 27, 6:30
Released 1968
Made in U.S.A (1966, Jean-Luc Godard)
September 27, 9:30
Released 1981
Father [Apa] (1966, Szabó István)
September 28, 6:30
Released 1967
The Other One [L’une et l’autre/The One and the Other] (1967, René Allio)
September 28, 9:30
Released 1967
Portrait of Jason (1967, Shirley Clarke)
September 29, 6:30
Released 1967
Elvira Madigan (1967, Bo Widerberg)
September 29, 9:30
Released 1967
Retrospective: Applause (1929, Rouben Mamoulian)
Also: Show People (1928, King Vidor)
September 30, 3:00
Released 1929/Released 1928
A Mother’s Heart [Serdtse materi] (1966, Mark Donskoy)
September 30, 6:30
Released 1967
“Closing Night”: Far From Vietnam [Loin du Vietnam] (1967, Jean-Luc Godard & Joris Ivens & William Klein & Claude Lelouch & Chris Marker & Alain Resnais & Agnès Varda)
September 30, 9:30
Released 1968

Ephemera

  • “A Tribute to Abel Gance”: 8 films presented in conjunction with the Cinémathèque Française, shown at the Library and Museum of Performing Arts in Lincoln Center, all free
  • “The Social Cinema in America”: 21 events investigating current trends in American documentary cinema, held at the Library and Museum of Performing Arts in Lincoln Center, all free

Recurring Directors
Key: films in this iteration excluding shorts/omnibus/retrospectives, films in this iteration including, films in the festival up to this point excluding, films up to this point including, number of gala spots (when applicable), number of festivals with more than one film shown (when applicable); † indicates their last appearance, fraction in parentheses indicates number of features shown from oeuvre, features released in the eligible timeframe, features in oeuvre

  • Jean-Luc Godard: 2/3/7/11/2/4
  • Jerzy Skolimowski: 2/2/4/4/0/2
  • Peter Whitehead: 2/2/2/3/0/1†(2/8/8)
  • Alain Resnais: 1/1/3/3/2
  • Chris Marker: 1/1/3/3/1
  • René Allio: 1/1/2/2
  • Kobayashi Masaki: 1/1/2/2†(2/10/22)
  • Agnès Varda: 1/1/2/2/1
  • Bo Widerberg: 1/1/2/2
  • Joris Ivens: 1/1/1/2/1
  • Roberto Rossellini: 1/1/1/2
  • Jean Rouch: 1/1/1/2†(1/32/38)
  • Alexander Kluge: 1/1/1/1
  • Dušan Makavejev: 1/1/1/1
  • Volker Schlöndorff: 1/1/1/1
  • Szabó István: 1/1/1/1
  • Abel Gance: 0/1/1/2
  • Rouben Mamoulian: 0/1/0/1

Recurring Countries
Key: films in this iteration excluding shorts/retrospectives, films in this iteration including, films in the festival up to this point excluding, films up to this point including, number of gala spots (when applicable)

  • France: 5/7/27/34/4
  • USA: 2/4/12/21
  • UK: 2/2/5/7
  • Sweden: 2/2/4/4
  • West Germany: 2/2/3/3
  • Yugoslavia: 2/2/3/3
  • Italy: 1/1/12/16/1
  • Japan: 1/1/9/10/1
  • Poland: 1/1/6/6
  • Canada: 1/1/3/4
  • USSR: 1/1/3/3/1
  • Hungary: 1/1/3/3
  • Belgium: 1/1/2/2

One-Time Directors

  • Donald Brittain & John Spotton
  • Shirley Clarke
  • Jonas Cornell
  • Mark Donskoy
  • William Klein (gala)
  • John Korty
  • Dragoslav Lazić
  • Claude Lelouch (gala)
  • Gillo Pontecorvo (gala)
  • King Vidor (retrospective)

Feature Debuts

  • Jonas Cornell
  • Alexander Kluge
  • Dragoslav Lazić
  • Rouben Mamoulian (retrospective)
  • Volker Schlöndorff

Festivals

  • Cannes
    • Young Törless (1966, FIPRESCI)
    • Elvira Madigan (Best Actress)
    • Love Affair, or the Case of the Missing Switchboard Operator (Critics’ Week)
  • Berlin
    • Le Départ (Golden Bear)
  • Venice
    • The Battle of Algiers (1966, Golden Lion, FIPRESCI)
    • Yesterday Girl (1966, Special Jury Prize)
    • Samurai Rebellion (FIPRESCI)
    • The Lion Hunters (?)
    • The Other One (?)
    • The Taking of Power by Louis XIV (?)
  • Other
    • A Mother’s Heart (San Sebastian)
    • Barrier (Bergamo, Grand Prize)
    • Far From Vietnam (Montreal)
    • Father (Moscow, Grand Prize)
    • Hot Years (Mannheim; Pesaro)
    • Hugs and Kisses (Pesaro)
    • Made in U.S.A (London)
    • Memorandum (San Francisco)
  • N/A
    • Applause
    • Benefit of the Doubt
    • Les Carabiniers
    • Funnyman
    • Napoléon
    • Portrait of Jason
    • Show People
    • Tonite Let’s All Make Love in London

Oscar Nominees

  • The Battle of Algiers: 1966 Best Foreign Film, 1968 Best Director, 1968 Best Screenplay

Events/Shorts

events
shorts

Discussions By Length (Approximate)

  • 21:34 Napoléon (39:03-1:00:37)
  • 10:05 Far From Vietnam (2:28:42-2:38:47)
  • 9:14 The Taking of Power by Louis XIV (1:25:44-1:34:58)
  • 8:09 Portrait of Jason (2:04:21-2:12:30)
  • 7:54 The Battle of Algiers (13:41-21:35)
  • 6:50 “The London Scene” (1:40:02-1:46:52)
  • 6:30 The Lion Hunters (1:14:24-1:20:54)
  • 6:28 Made in U.S.A (1:52:03-1:58:31)
  • 5:51 Yesterday Girl (22:35-28:26)
  • 5:35 Le Départ (33:27-39:02)
  • 5:33 Applause (2:17:18-2:22:51)
  • 5:09 Les Carabiniers (1:46:53-1:52:02)
  • 4:59 Love Affair, or the Case of the Missing Switchboard Operator (28:27-33:26)
  • 4:55 Young Törless (1:04:41-1:09:36)
  • 4:48 Memorandum [One Person] (1:20:55-1:25:43)
  • 4:46 Samurai Rebellion (1:09:37-1:14:23)
  • 4:46 Elvira Madigan (2:12:31-2:17:17)
  • 4:18 Show People (2:22:52-2:27:10)
  • 4:06 Barrier (1:35:55-1:40:01)
  • 3:32 Father (1:58:32-2:02:04)
  • 1:47 Funnyman [Unavailable] (1:01:42-1:03:29)
  • 1:30 A Mother’s Heart [Unavailable] (2:27:11-2:28:41)
  • 1:18 The Other One [Unavailable] (2:02:05-2:03:23)
  • 1:00 Hugs and Kisses [Unavailable] (1:03:30-1:04:40)
  • 0:58 Hot Years [Unavailable] (21:36-22:34)

Specifications

  • Gillo Pontecorvo, La battaglia di Algeri, 1966, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 121 minutes, 1.85:1, Arabic and French, Italy.
  • Драгослав Лазић, Топле године, 1966, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 85 minutes, 1.66:1, Serbo-Croatian, Yugoslavia. (?)
  • Alexander Kluge, Abschied von gestern, 1966, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 88 minutes, 1.37:1, German, West Germany.
  • Душан Макавејев, Љубавни случај или трагедија службенице ПТТ, 1967, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 79 minutes, 1.66:1, Serbo-Croatian, Yugoslavia.
  • Jerzy Skolimowski, Le Départ, 1967, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 93 minutes, 1.66:1, French, Belgium.
  • Abel Gance, Napoléon, 1927, 35 mm, black-and-white, silent, 333 minutes, 1.33:1 and 4.00:1, French, France.
  • John Korty, Funnyman, 1967, 35 mm, black-and-white and color, mono sound, 102 minutes, 1.85:1, English, USA.
  • Jonas Cornell, Puss och Kram, 1967, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 94 minutes, 1.66:1, Swedish, Sweden.
  • Volker Schlöndorff, Der junge Törless, 1966, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 87 minutes, 1.37:1, German, West Germany.
  • 小林正樹, 上意討ち 拝領妻始末, 1967, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 128 minutes, 2.35:1, Japanese, Japan.
  • Jean Rouch, La chasse au lion à l’arc, 1965, 16 mm, color, mono sound, 81 minutes, 1.37:1, French, France.
  • Donald Brittain & John Spotton, Memorandum, 1965, 16 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 58 minutes, 1.37:1, English, Canada.
  • Roberto Rossellini, La Prise de pouvoir par Louis XIV, 1966, 16 mm, color, mono sound, 100 minutes, 1.37:1, French, France.
  • Jerzy Skolimowski, Bariera, 1966, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 77 minutes, 1.66:1, Polish, Poland.
  • Peter Whitehead, Tonite Let’s All Make Love in London, 1967, 16 mm, color and black-and-white, mono sound, 57 minutes, 1.37:1, English, UK.
  • Peter Whitehead, Benefit of the Doubt, 1967, 16 mm, black-and-white and color, mono sound, 70 minutes, 1.37:1, English, UK.
  • Jean-Luc Godard, Les Carabiniers, 1963, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 80 minutes, 1.37:1, French, France.
  • Jean-Luc Godard, Made in U.S.A, 1966, 35 mm, color, mono sound, 90 minutes, 2.35:1, French, France.
  • Szabó István, Apa, 1966, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 88 minutes, 1.37:1, Hungarian, Hungary.
  • René Allio, L’une et l’autre, 1967, 35 mm, color, mono sound, 90 minutes, 1.66:1, French, France. (?)
  • Shirley Clarke, Portrait of Jason, 1967, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 105 minutes, 1.37:1, English, USA.
  • Bo Widerberg, Elvira Madigan, 1967, 35 mm, color, mono sound, 91 minutes, 1.66:1, Danish and Swedish, Sweden.
  • Rouben Mamoulian, Applause, 1929, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 80 minutes, 1.20:1, English, USA.
  • King Vidor, Show People, 1928, 35 mm, black-and-white, silent/mono sound, 83 minutes, 1.20:1, English, USA.
  • Марк Донско́й, Сердце матери, 1966, 35 mm, black-and-white, mono sound, 100 minutes, 2.35:1, Russian, USSR.
  • Jean-Luc Godard & Joris Ivens & William Klein & Claude Lelouch & Chris Marker & Alain Resnais & Agnès Varda, Loin du Vietnam, 1967, 16 mm, color and black-and-white, mono sound, 115 minutes, 1.37:1, French, France.

June 2018 Capsules

Ryan Swen Reviews Tags: Leave a comment

That Day, on the Beach
Yang’s sensibility and perspective eventually becomes unmistakeable throughout That Day, on the Beach, but, aside from perhaps “Expectations,” this is the first work I’ve seen from him where the perspective is so heavily colored by a single character’s viewpoint, whether it be Jiali’s or someone else’s. For a director so otherwise forthright in his storytelling – though, of course, the rapid changes in character focus are a key component of his expansive and all-encompassing vision – Yang goes for a full-bore elliptical approach. Memory slips in and out of the viewer’s headspace, some “flashbacks” (although clearly the past is meant to be fully present) lasting mere moments and others lingering for seemingly close to an hour. Incredibly, all this happens while the film operates on an emotional register that manages to evoke melodrama while ostensibly remaining within the restraint and distance that Yang deployed even more skillfully in the films to come.

And what makes this structure – which folds in on itself to access the most formative moments – so vital is this feeling of transience. To say Yang’s films are fundamentally about modernity is far too general, but it manifests itself even in the moments that are meant to be past: society and the codes of conduct (in the home, in the workplace, in the city) are never far away, and they bear down on the individual and the marriage in ways both plainly visible and achingly invisible. The prospect of escape is tantalizing, but even with a triumphant final image the viewer (and Yang) is all too aware of the cost, the long, meandering, jumbled journey required to get there. And in that, seemingly all of human emotion and experience can be found.

My Blueberry Nights
Rather than, as I feared, a simple recapitulation or dilution of Wong’s trademark themes and style, My Blueberry Nights feels almost like a doubling down or an elaboration, transplanting his concerns and slightly but noticeably modifying them. This is as much a film about outsiders trapped in their own orbits as his other movies: a café owner who uses keys, pies, and videotapes as totems of memory; a cop who drinks like every day’s his last; an impulsive, confident gambler who seems to traverse the same landscapes that Tony Leung and Leslie Cheung crossed. It’s not an especially difficult task to assign certain roles – Norah Jones as Faye Wong (down to the use of their respective music), Jude Law as an exceptional mirror of Takeshi Kaneshiro – and indeed the three sections almost seem to follow a progression from Chungking Express to Fallen Angels to Happy Together. And the look and the music, the repetitions and the way images jump and flow into each other, the loneliness, the often intentional goofiness; all of these are universal, captured by Wong in a look, in a glance, in a frame.