JANUARY 1983, STOCKHOLM, WEST BERLIN

STOCKHOLM
A Day's Pleasure / Huviretki. US 1919. Charles Chaplin. tv. Good old slapstick, done with relish, without fuss.
The Kid. tv [2] C's true style could evolve in his features. In his shorts there was not enough room for such an emotional register.
The Roots of Rock'n'Roll 6. US. Fox TV. VHS. The conclusion of the lousy series. The narration of Pat Boone, Frankie Avalon, etc., provided unintentional comedy. Yet most clips (Bowie, Devo, Lovich) were brilliant.
Les Maîtres fous. FR 1955. D: Jean Rouch. VHS. The anthropologist's wild vision of the initiation rites of the Hauka.
La Chasse au lion à l'arc / Hunting the Lion with Bow and Arrow. FR 1965. D: Jean Rouch. VHS. An exciting account of an African ritual lion hunt that goes on for years.
Jaguar. FR 1967. D: Jean Rouch. VHS. Ethnofiction. A young black man moves from a village to a port town. A Bildungsroman in the form of an anthropological movie. Humoristic and sensual as seems to be the case with R. always.
Fanny och Alexander (cinema version). Astoria. The three-hour version is a disappointment. Gaudy and cliché-ridden. A homage to the "banal waltz tempo of life" (T. Mann).
The Entity / Entity - tuntematon voima. US 1981. D: Sidney J. Furie. Barbara Hershey. Rigoletto. Partially impressive visionary fantasy. But the makers seem to take the parapsychological phenomena seriously.
Cat People / Kissaihmiset. US 1982. D: Paul Schrader. Göta Lejon. Special effects shocks instead of horror. Contrived, guilt-ridden sex instead of sensuality.
...
WEST BERLIN
11.1.1983 a video evening with Helmut Arlt. Clips from Hit the Deck / Meripojat ankkurissa (US 1955, Roy Rowland), The Best Things In Life Are Free / Kaikki riippuu sinusta (US 1956, Michael Curtiz, Sheree North's dance in front of the prison is among the most electrifying things I have seen), Die Drei von der Tankstelle / Rakkautta ja bensiiniä (DE 1930, Wilhelm Thiele), and A Damsel in Distress.
Boudu. tv [3]
Poltergeist / Poltergeist. US 1982. D: Tobe Hooper. DF. Palast. An excellent and original horror movie, in which the mix of horror and comedy is right.
The Thing / The Thing - "se" jostakin. US 1982. D: John Carpenter. DF. Alhambra. Mostly just a vehicle for the terrifying effects.
Der Verlorene. DE 1951. D: Peter Lorre. tv. Acclaimed as the best post-war West German film. Tapping into the excitement of Weimar cinema, a circle of guilt and crime during the Third Reich.
Le Carrosse d'or / Kultavaunut / Die goldene Karosse. IT/FR 1953. D: Jean Renoir. tv. DF. A stylized musical colour film inspired by commedia dell'arte. The master of realism as the master of spectacle. Focus on Anna Magnani.
Holiday / Vakka kantensa valitsee. US 1937. D: George Cukor. tv. DF. Fast screwball comedy slaughtered by German dubbing.
The Love Goddesses / Kauneuden jumalattaret. US 1965. D: Saul J. Turell & Graeme Ferguson. Helmut Arlt, 35mm. A wonderful introduction to the great love stars since Edison's Kiss. Louise Brooks, Brigitte Helm, Clara Bow, Marlene Dietrich, Jean Harlow, etc.
The Black Room. US 1935. D: Roy William Neill. tv. A discovery from the golden age of horror. Boris Karloff in a dual role portrays the good and the bad brother. Good story, good art direction, Karloff at his best, Neill's directorial grip is strong.
29.1.1983 a 8mm film evening at Gib Acht. DE c1982. Teufelsberg-Produktion: Vorfilms-Aufschnitt. Ropotow im Kampf gegen Terragörcs. Die Fanatischen oder Devil's Daughter. Wunderbarer Industru. Half-amusing. Goes to show that with a mini budget you can do almost as funny a film as with a super budget. But nothing earth-shaking.
Wayne and Shuster Take an Affectionate Look at: W.C. Fields. TV episode. US 1965. A funny 45 min introduction, pretty lightweight.
Mephisto / Mephisto. DE/HU/AT 1981. D: István Szabó. tv. I was not yet impressed.