MEMORIES OF UNDERDEVELOPMENT. (1968) REVIEW BY SANDRA HARRIS.

Blu-ray Review - Felini's Casanova (1976)

DVD Review - The Immortal Story (1968)

Blu-ray Review - Chimes at Midnight (1965)

Blu-ray Review - Too Much Johnson (1938)

Marcelo Marcheda's Topicalaa To Get An Limited UK Cine Release Watch Trailer

Tropicalia, or Tropicalism, is one of Brazil's most significant cultural movements. Born in the late 1960s by a collective of like-minded souls, it used music and visual arts as a voice to confront the cultural and political establishment. And now the scene and its key players are explored in Marcelo Machado's fascinating new film Tropicalia.

This vibrant feature documentary explores this iconic and era-changing time in Brazil's history with material lovingly gleaned from the archives, stunning images, and the testimony of the group's protagonists including Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Tom Ze, Arnaldo and Sergio Dias, from the band Os Mutantes, whose controversial thoughts, music and behaviour resulted in prison and exile for its leaders.

Then of course there is the music, the 'Tropicalistas' created pop songs, mixing traditional Brazilian folk and the north hemisphere's rock which created a sound never heard before and which has since inspired and influenced many high profile musicians including David Byrne, Damon Albarn and Beck.

Director Marcelo Machado grew up listening to the music and was inspired to document this influential, important scene in Tropicalia which comes to UK cinemas on 5 July 2013 followed by a DVD release on 7 July 2013 from Mr Bongo Films.

Outskirts DVD Review

Outskirts is a early Soviet film which is post-Potemkin and was made in 1933. It was directed by noted Soviet director Boris Barnet who has another film By The Bluest of the Seas that is also getting reissued by Mr. Bongo films.

The film tells the story of this Russian town and it’s inhabitants in the 1910s on the cusp of World War 1. The film has a very loose collection of episodes. The most affective scene is the very harrowing war scenes which Kubrick must have studied for his masterpiece Paths of Glory. The least successful aspects of the film are it’s structure which all over the place. It also anticipates some of Samuel Fuller’s war films in uncompromising work at warfare. It’s all about the mirror of the conflict on war on the homefront and frontlines. This is very effectively done near the end which innovative editing of the soldiers and fast cuts back and forth to a bunch of workers making shoes.

The film is noted for it’s use of sound which at times are horribly done, the sound effects are used in a humours matter and really distracts from the images on screen. The film would be much greater if it was done a lot more seriously because the film’s subject matter is so serious. It’s also not done in the way something like Life is Beautiful, which has a pitch perfect juxtaposition of tragedy and comedy.

The film has some brilliant cinematography, which is always expected with Soviet cinema. The scenes of the trenchs are amazing and some amazing landscape photography as well. Despite some previously mention moments the editing is very poor which is sad cause the film could really use some more focus and strange because after all modern film editing owes everything to the Soviets.

Overall it’s really interesting piece of early Soviet cinema but I think it would have been a much greater had it been Silent; you don’t hear that one everyday.

Ian Schultz

★★★1/2☆

Rating: U
UK Release Date: 12 November 2012
Directed By: Boris Barnet
Cast: Aleksandr Chistyakov, Sergei Komarov , Yelena Kuzmina
Buy Outskirts: DVD

Grigori Kozintsev's Don Quixote DVD Review

Don Quixote is obviously an adaptation of Miguel de Cervantes’ mammoth novel of the same name. It was the first adaptation to be shot in colour and widescreen but the first Quixote adaptation was over a century ago in 1906. It was also a Russian production and was entered into the Cannes film festival where it left empty handed. It was directed by noted Russian director Grigori Kozintsev, who starting working in film back in the days of Eisenstein. Kozintsev who like Eisenstein was also a member modernist avant-garde movement “Eccentricism”. After Quixote he did some Shakespeare adaptations of King Lear and Hamlet. The actor who plays Quixote Nikolai Cherkasov also starred in some Eisenstein films.

★★★★☆

The adaptation of Quixote is supposedly relatively faithful to the novel according to some reviews (I haven’t read the novel). It however chronologically changes the order of adventures is changed drastically. Don Quixote de la Mancha is a aging old gentleman who’s real name is Alonso Quixano. He reads many books of chivalry and starting believing he is a knight. He meets with his trusty squire Sancho Panza. They have adventures, Quixote falls in love the possibly imaginary Lady Dulcinea, they however treated like fools but their humour and dreams help them along.

The film is a really well done adaptation; it’s a relatively short 100 minutes or so. The film is beautifully shot and I wish the dvd release wasn’t letterbox but a anamorphic widescreen transfer which would really show the beauty of the photography. I am however happy a film this obscure is even released in the UK. The best scene for me was the scene when you actually see what Quixote sees and it’s done very surreally and will stick in my mind for a time. The film is a somewhat more serious version of the story than some adaptations, which is partly in tone with the 2nd half of the novel but it does have the expected humour of Quixote. It will be probably the best film of Don Quixite till Terry Gilliam does his.

Ian Schultz

Rating:PG
UK DVD Release Date: 24th September 2012
Directed  By:Grigori Kozintsev
Cast: Nikolai Cherkasov, Yuri Tolubeyev, Tamilla Agamirova, Lyudmila Kasyanova
Pre-Order/Buy:Don Quixote On DVD