Tuesday, September 16, 2008

A Statement Of Purpose

When trolling through the back issue's of David Kehr's excellent DVD column, I found this comment about Dreyer's Vampyr, that more or less sums up what I look for in film. 

"Worse, it was a genre 
picture from an avant-garde filmmaker: too obscure for the general public, too sensational for those who sought a refined artistic experience." -David
 Kehr-


Though I'm not sure the man meant it as a complement it struck a chord with me. Filmmaker's have an odd desire to pigeonhole themselves. Either as artists or entertainers, ignoring the fact that the strength of film, is that it allows a picture to seamlessly combine the two. As of course the best films always do. 

In short I want, the art film that isn't afraid of vitality and the entertainment that's not afraid to be esoteric and intelligent. 

Such films are rare and looking for them can be thankless work. Recently I've been feeling a bit like the old grizzled prospector whose been panning for gold in the same damn creek for thirty years, and has found just that precious little amount to keep him going. 

I'm recently getting off a period where for the first time my love of film was, well it was never anywhere approaching gone, but it was definitely fatigued. But I'm back I've had a shift. I'm ready to start hunting again. 

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