Movies...Movies...Movies... by Joe Carduccie Nosferatu, Werner Herzog’s new film of the Dracula story has many things wrong with it. Though the idea of Herzog producing an adaptation of the classic vampire tale is certainly provocative. In films like Aguirre and Kaspar Hauser, Herzog examines the human situation with an awareness of the mysterious — mundane objects or events appear or occur out of context. The elusive truth, the grasp on reality is always just ahead of his characters. The Dracula story, like many classic horror stories, uses a basic plot device—the attempt by those who know the horror’s reality to convince the authorities (men of law and science) of that reality. The authorities live in cool conviction that they alone understand the nature of the world and they therefore deserve their positions of power. In Kaspar Hauser, Herzog introduced an empty man—devoid of Social, scientific, and even selfknowledge—into society. The man is aided by townspeople, but, upon coming to the attention of “ real” society, he quickly becomes a novel entertainment. The man who understands nothing—not even how to conceal his ignorance to protect his ego—becomes an amusing caricature of human reality and is played with momentarily by the social class which, due to its own rapacious ego, has convinced itself that it knows, if not everything, at least enough to dictate what is best for all classes. These people quickly tire of Kaspar when his questions become focused and persistent. In Nosferatu an equally primal aspect of our reality is explored. But, where Kaspar Hauser is basically intrasocial in its concern, Nosferatu is more concerned with us as a species and our uneasy pact with the cycle of life feeding off the rot of death. The Dracula myth is a powerful one because of this contradiction and the fear and guilt it provokes. The film then should hav6 been excellent. The plot of the original Stoker novel was streamlined to allow Herzog to work more in his style. Herzog works subliminally, by mood rather than exposition and plot. Nosferatu fails at this because, despite all the ingredients for success, Herzog has allowed purely physical characteristics of the production itself to undermine everything. One is suspicious from the beginning as the 20th Century Fox logo hits the screen. Then you read in thecredits the words, “English dialogues by. . .’’and you cringe and hope for the best. It doesn’t come. Klaus Kinski, Isabelle Adjani, and Bruno Ganz play the lead characters and they are fine actors but none of them know the English language. They nevertheless read their dialogue—translations from Herzog’s German—in phonetic English which, as might be guessed, totally subverts the art of acting. Inflections are out of place, words are mispronounced and more than once there are laughs where none should be. It is all too clear that the politics of American distribution and its effect on whether production money would be forthcoming in the first place have rumed this film. It is all the more upsetting when you find that quite a lot of the film’s images stick with you long after you’ve seen the film, film. It could have been the ultimate articulation of the Vampire myth. adm ission: $1s tuden ts 13seniors, $1.50 general May 11 & 12: IRELAND: BEHINDTHE WIRE; Berwick BRITISH FILM INSTITUTE FILMS AT PSU all show ings beg in at 8pm in 75 LH April 20 & 21: ABOVE US THE EARTH; Karl Francis; April 6 & 7: 1977. 90 min. RESISTANCE; Ken M cMu llen and Chris Rodrigues; 1976, 90 min. emphe resetan i AN IM AT ION FOR LIVE ACT ION ; Vera Neubauer; 1978, 25 min. W HO CARES?; Ih e h im is a< om h tn a l io n o t hsea i t io n a nd amma tm i Nick Broomfield; 1971, an im a tion ,i num h e i 18 min. a nd a i lu a h ls Ih e M1"' s o lu t ion ' n"" April 13 & 14: CENTRAL BAZAAR; Stephen Dwoskin; 1976, 157 min. C en t ra l Bazaar addre in te rp e l la t io n id the viewer. toge the r w ith a steadfast ^ p ro b lem a t ic po s it ion w ith o u t any anchorage po in ts in the diegesis, i.e. no id e n t if ic a t io n p rocedures are used. o n ly a m o b i l ia t io n o f the scopic d rive d imed al de r iv in g pleasure from v iew ing images Stephen Dwoskin will be present the screening of Central Bazaar to introduce and ^o'discuss the film. It should be extremely exciting to have the opportunity to discuss a film with its creator-heralded as “ the leading avant garde filmmaker working today.” th ” Now, distributors being the venal people they are, the film may never see general distribution in America. Street Collective; 1974, 110 min. We will have the pleasure of having Ih ad d tu ' O ’Sullivan with us during the screening of hi*- two films. He has worked with Dwoskin and is turrentlv at the Museum of Modern Art. I he insights whic h he should be able to provide on Ireland as well as his films should enlighten us vis the final two weeks of our spring films. DARLING DO YOU LOVE ME; Martin Sharp and Bob Whittaker; 1968, 4 min. w ith G erma ine Greet May 18 & 19: ON A PAVING STONE MOUNTED ; Thaddeus O'Sullivan; 1978, % min. A PINT OF PLAIN; Thaddeus O ’Sullivan; 1975, 40 min. THURSDAY F ilm Series April 12:WAY DOW N EAST D.W. Griffith, 1920, 110 min. April 19:THE BICYCLE THIEF (53 CH) V. deSica, 1949, 87 min. May 3: MOANA R. Flaherty, 1926, 85 min. May 10: THE FEAST; THE STREET K. Grune, 1923, 80 min; FOUR FAMILIES, 1961, 60 min. MAY 17:THE ADVENTURES OF TARZAN R.F. Hill, 1921, 70 min.; KNOW YOUR ENEMY: JAPAN 1943?, 60 min. May 24: OLYMPIA L. Riefenstahl, 1938 May 31: SWORD OF DOOM K. Okamoto, 1967, 122 min. APRIL 20 & 21 All showings will begin at 8 p.m. and are free All showings will be in 75 LH except for BICYCLE THIEF which will be shown in 53 CH HARD TIMES FILM FESTIVAL „. step- a'/i .0” APRIL 27 & 28: MAY 4 & 5: &SMAY MAY 11 & 12: 18 & 19: W ’ 0 ■ fr'1" MAY 25 & 26: JUNE I & 2: “ LAST GRAVE AT D IMBAZA” - dir. by Mohomo (1975) - South Africa - 55 min. “THE WHITE LAAGER” - dir. by Davis (1978) - South Africa - 58 min. "BLOW FOR BLOW” - dir. by Marin Karmitz (1972), 100 workers and a film crew - 89 tnin. "LITTLE WHITE SALMON IND IAN SETTLEMENT" - dir. by Harry Dawson, Jr. (1972) - 30 min. "BROKEN TREATY AT BTiLE M O UN TA IN ” - dir. by Freedman (1974) - 60 min. “ IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILDREN” - by Iris Films (1978) - 53 min. "WE WILL NOT BE BATEN" - by Transition House - 35 min. "A M INOR ALTERCATION" - by Jackie Shearer, Terry Signaigo, Mary Tiseo and Jay Watkins (1976) - 30 min. "BUSH M AM A " - by Haile Gerima (1975) - % min. "CONTROLLING INTEREST” - by California Newsreel (1978) - 45 min. " INTO THE MOUTHS OF BABES” - by CBS (1978) - 30 min. "TESTIMONY” - by Amalgamated Clothing & Textile Workers Union (1975) - "O N THE LINE” - by Barbara Margolis - 50 min. "SONG OF THE CANARY” - by Josh Hanig and David Davis - 58 min. Friday films will be shown at Sunnyside Church, 3520 SE Yamhill, «21 bus; Saturday films will be shown at Mallory Ave. Church, 126 NE Alberta, «6 bus 27 min. 28
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