Articles
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An open connection
Listing my favourite films of this closing decade would be a daunting task, because I have only recently started to log my viewings. What I can do, though, is picking one of them, the one which stands out not as the most revolutionary of the lot, but as the best example of what film-making is all about for me. And that would be Todd Haynes’ Carol.
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Once Upon a Time
I remember the first time I saw Pulp Fiction quite well. I was a sixteen-year old already settled on my path to becoming a proper nerd, which means I was your regular outsider in a valley of farmers and carpenters, far from any big city, and without a reliable internet connection. I relied on magazines to inform my cinephilia, and at that time some of those came with a VHS attached. That is how Pulp Fiction entered my life.
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The essence of kinesis
Without going too deep into Aristotle’s Physics, the Greek term kinesis can be translated as both change and movement. It’s a fascinating word, because it implies that every transformation is in fact a motion. It’s also a concept which popped up in my mind over and over again as I was sitting through Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge! for the first time.
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Grounding expressionism
Every time I grab a Tony Scott’s film from my shelves and put it on is a reminder of how much I miss him. Periodically revisiting their favourite directors is something all film lovers do, of course. When the director is dead, and his or her passing happens to be recent, it’s almost as if a close friend is gone. I do miss Charlie Chaplin, but he was a like a long gone grand-grandfather. A friend is a different thing altogether.
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Questioning the future
A work of art is ever-changing. It never ceases to approach you in unexpected ways and, even when you know what is coming, a work of art knows that it can surprise your mental agility in an instant. It’s as living as the artist, and just as the artist explores different directions, a work of art moves and challenges you constantly. If it doesn’t move or it stops fighting, then there is little art involved in it.