I just watched Drowning by numbers, for the first time in many years. It was always one of my favorite films and it is so fun to revisit. Next up, A Zed and two Naughts!
Thanks for sharing. I remember me alone in a rerun movie theater, seeing "Drowning by numbers" First Greenaways's film I saw, having the sensation that I was witnessing something more than a weird film with an structure. The play to me led me to follow the numbers, the frames, to look for a meaning for the games they played and enjoying the whole broidered with Nyman's music. Being used to spot a movie star to foster a film this fabulous cast of actrices and actors is awesome fostering a cinematic creation. Peter Greenaway showed me a new cinematic language.
Wonderful, Thx for this video! Love Greenaway and his films, and only a week ago I pre-ordered the new 4k release of Drowning By Numbers from Severin Films; it releases on May 30th and is a dream come true!! Severin is not a boutique-label I've bought from before; their normal fare doesn't appeal to me, but if they keep releasing new restorations of Greenaway's films, I'll be buying more from them!! I deeply agree with Greenaway about the sort of films we (mostly!) see made in the world; illustrated novels, when film could be so much more; so different, more pictorially focused; more visually poetic, if you will. I love a great many films made in the "illustrated novel" vein, but would also love for more explorations of other avenue's film could take. But alas, most audiences want quick, formulaic stories with pictures to support that, and are mostly not interested in delving too much deeper than the average blockbuster expects them to. Greenaway, and other arthouse directors are an antidote to this, and to the ever-increasing speed with which we live our lives, and the ever-growing flow of information we take in.
I thought of George Antheil who composed quite a few film scores. Curious how Greenaway mentioned Scosese and not Kubrick, who did offer some new things to cinema, steadycam, and some framing ideas at least. It’s interesting how Greenaway misspoke about Sacha Vierney. Edmond Richard was cinemaphotographer on Luis Bunuel’s ‘Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie’. I think Greenaway meant to say Bunuel’s ‘Belle de Jour’ which Vierney did film.
Strange him and J.G. Ballard never worked on a film. The two men share much in common, though Ballard was more charming in his manner, perhaps. Greenway is a complex character, and something of a contradiction, in that he insists it's about the visual (which would be surely what Disney is all about) yet he makes high brow, intellectual games as the subject matter; though denies this.
THere are only a few people in cinema with principle . Bela Tarr ? Peter Greenaway ! Much insight here ans some nonsense - there are certainly important cinematic films that are purely visual . There are certainly more legacies than Eisenstein in cinema intelligence : look at experimental MayaDeren and many others who had serious questions . He talks about form and content but he doesn't know or see what's coming out . His days of being a rabid scholar and as he says he is not a good spectator -so...!
