David Fincher: Die Hölle Auf Erden Oder Dav I D Finchers Negative Theologie Der Offenbarung

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

David Fincher: Die Hölle Auf Erden Oder Dav I D Finchers Negative Theologie Der Offenbarung CHARLES MARTIG DAVID FINCHER: DIE HÖLLE AUF ERDEN ODER DAV I D FINCHERS NEGATIVE THEOLOGIE DER OFFENBARUNG Auf dem reichhaltigen Terrain der Independent-Szene in den USA gibt es seit den 1980er Jahren eine Reihe von Talenten, die sich im Umfeld des Sundance Festivals trafen und hier ihre ersten Meriten holten. Talente wie Steven Soder- bergh, Quentin Tarantino oder Bryan Singer sind hier entdeckt worden, die in den 1990er Jahren weltweit Furore machten. Den weniger ideologisch und au- tortheoretisch ausgerichteten Jungfilmern blieb der Weg über die Industrie der Werbespots und Videoclips. Zu dieser zweiten Gruppe seiner Generation ge- hört David Fincher, der 1962 in Denver, Colorado, geboren wurde und nörd- lich von San Francisco aufwuchs. Nur einige Häuser entfernt lebte George Lucas. Lucas war seit dem Erfolg von AMERICAN GRAFFITI (American Graffiti, USA 1973, R: George Lucas) das erste große Vorbild. Von 1981 bis 1983 arbeitete Fincher bei Lucas’ Firma Industrial Light and Magic. Hier lern- te er die Spezialeffektherstellung in allen Facetten kennen. Er wirkte unter an- derem bei der Produktion von Blockbustern wie INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM (Indiana Jones und der Tempel des Todes, USA 1983, R: Steven Spielberg) mit. In den 1980er Jahren gründete er mit Propa- ganda Films seine erste Firma. Das dahinter stehende Produzenten- und Regis- seurekollektiv war ausgesprochen erfolgreich. Die Videoclips für die Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson und Madonna prägten den Stil von MTV. Die Wer- befilme für Nike, Coca-Cola, Heineken und Levi’s brachten finanzielle Mittel ein für die geplante Spielfilmproduktion. 1992 trat David Fincher erstmals als Regisseur eines Spielfilms international auf. Er konnte die von Ridley Scott und James Cameron aufgebaute Alien-Saga weiterführen und war mit der dys- topischen Science-Fiction von ALIEN 3 (Alien 3, USA 1991, R: David Fin- cher) auf Anhieb ein international bekannter Regisseur. Doch diese Arbeit blieb wohl seine unpersönlichste, weil er sich noch stark den Genre- Konventionen unterordnete. Seine visionäre Kraft und ästhetische Virtuosität entwickelte sich vor allem im religiös überhöhten Serienkiller-Drama SE7EN (Sieben, USA 1995, R: David Fincher) und mit der Achterbahnfahrt durch den Kopf eines Psychopathen in FIGHT CLUB (Fight Club, USA 1999, R: David Fincher). Seither gilt Fincher als einer der führenden amerikanischen Film- schaffenden, die im Mainstream erfolgreich gegen den Strom schwimmen. Ohne Berührungsängste zum kommerziellen Kino setzt er seitdem seine Visi- on des Kinos durch. 202 CHARLES MARTIG Gibt es so etwas wie eine religiöse Botschaft bei David Fincher? Auf den ersten Blick sind es Höllenfahrten, auf denen sich die Hauptfiguren seiner Filme befinden. In ihrer Verstricktheit und Unerlöstheit stehen sie am Ab- grund einer Gesellschaft, die sich selbst zu einem System der Dekadenz, des Sicherheitswahns und des Konsumismus entwickelt hat. Im innersten Kern ist David Fincher ein Moralist. Er treibt das Spiel von Terror und Moral bis ans bittere Ende. Dabei verfolgt er eine Doppelstrategie. In einem virtuosen Spiel, bestehend aus Tricks und Täuschungen, lockt er den Zuschauer auf dünnes Eis, das jeden Moment einbrechen kann. Auf die dünne Schicht der Zivilisation ist in diesem filmischen Universum kein Verlass mehr. In atemberaubenden Wendungen führt er durch seine philosophisch- moralischen Gleichnisse: Sei es der Monsterfilm (ALIEN 3), Serienmörderge- schichten (SE7EN), die tollkühne Gesellschaftskritik (FIGHT CLUB, THE GAME; The Game, USA 1997, R: David Fincher) oder der Thriller (PANIC ROOM; Panic Room, USA 2001, R: David Fincher), immer sind sie mit einer gewaltigen Bildwirkung aufgeladen und stets geht es um mehr als den bloßen Unterhaltungswert. Welche Bedeutung hat diese seltsame Welt der Fincherismen, dieses Spiel des Terrors und der Täuschungen für eine Theologie, die sich aus der christli- chen Perspektive mit der Heilsgeschichte beschäftigt? In vier Schritten soll ei- ne Antwort versucht werden: Ausgehend von der Figurenzeichnung in den fünf bisherigen Kinospielfilmen untersuche ich das Menschenbild, gehe weiter zu den Merkmalen der Gesellschaft anhand von Bildräumen, analysiere exem- plarisch die religiösen Codes im Film, um darauf aufbauend eine „Theologie des Unenthüllten“ bei David Fincher darzustellen. Figuren am existentiellen Nullpunkt Das Alleinsein und die Konfrontation mit der Kontingenz ist eine Grundprä- gung der Hauptfiguren. Unbarmherzig konfrontiert Fincher seine „Helden“ mit dem Faktum, dass sie Teil eines Systems oder Spiels sind, das sie nicht durchschauen und das außerhalb ihrer Kontrolle abläuft. In diesem Spiel sind die Menschen selbst der Einsatz und stehen im Verlauf der Handlung immer als Verlierer da. Die Unverfügbarkeit des eigenen Lebensentwurfs stürzt die Hauptfiguren in einen Zustand der Einsamkeit und der existentiellen Unbe- haustheit. „Schlag mich!“, ruft Tyler Durden seinem Gegenüber in FIGHT CLUB zu, einem schwachen, verstörten Angestellten, dem Ich-Erzähler, der schizophren wird und als sein kraftvolles Alter Ego Durden eine Terrororganisation auf- baut. Der „Held“ lernt den Weg des Geschlagen-Werdens. Unter Schmerzen .
Recommended publications
  • FILMS MANK Makeup Artist Netflix Director: David Fincher SUN DOGS
    KRIS EVANS Member Academy of Makeup Artist Motion Picture Arts and Sciences IATSE 706, 798 and 891 BAFTA Los Angeles [email protected] (323) 251-4013 FILMS MANK Makeup Artist Netflix Director: David Fincher SUN DOGS Makeup Department Head Fabrica De Cine Director: Jennifer Morrison Cast: Ed O’Neill, Allison Janney, Melissa Benoist, Michael Angarano FREE STATE OF JONES Key Makeup STX Entertainment Director: Gary Ross Cast: Mahershala Ali, Matthew McConaughey, GuGu Mbatha-Raw THE PERFECT GUY Key Makeup Screen Gems Director: David M Rosenthal Cast: Sanaa Lathan, Michael Ealy, Morris Chestnut NIGHTCRAWLER Key Makeup, Additional Photography Bold Films Director: Dan Gilroy HUNGER GAMES MOCKINGJAY PART 1 & 2 Background Makeup Supervisor Lionsgate Director: Francis Lawrence THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE Background Makeup Supervisor Lionsgate Director: Francis Lawrence THE FACE OF LOVE Assistant Department Head Mockingbird Pictures Director: Arie Posen THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST Makeup Department Head Cine Mosaic Director: Mira Nair Cast: Riz Ahmed, Kate Hudson, Kiefer Sutherland ABRAHAM LINCOLN VAMPIRE HUNTER 2012 Special Effects Makeup Artists th 20 ​ Century Fox Director: Timur Bekmambetov ​ THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2012 Makeup Artist Columbia Pictures Director: Marc Webb THE HUNGER GAMES Background Makeup Supervisor Lionsgate Director: Gary Ross THE RUM DIARY Key Makeup Warner Independent Pictures Director: Bruce Robinson Cast: Amber Heard, Giovanni Ribisi, Amaury Nolasco, Richard Jenkins 1 KRIS EVANS Member Academy of Makeup Artist
    [Show full text]
  • The Hire – the Acclaimed Film Series by Bmw – Will End a Four and a Half Year Internet Run October 21St
    THE HIRE – THE ACCLAIMED FILM SERIES BY BMW – WILL END A FOUR AND A HALF YEAR INTERNET RUN OCTOBER 21ST Woodcliff Lake, NJ, October 11, 2005…BMW announced today that its award-winning internet short-film series, The Hire, will end its internet run on October 21, 2005. The debut of the first two films in The Hire series was online in 2001. The third film entitled, “The Follow,” by Wong Kar Wai, made its debut at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2001 to international acclaim. The Hire was one of the leading examples of convergence in the media industry – an unprecedented, groundbreaking effort. In total, eight films were created in the series. And, since its debut, The Hire has received more than 100 million film views. BMW took its place alongside the major movie studios with the production of The Hire short-film series on the internet, bringing together high-level talent from a number of diverse fields – a synergistic effort that crossed and pushed boundaries. Key producers included David Fincher, Ridley and Tony Scott. Other prominent directors that made up the dream team included John Frankenheimer, Ang Lee, Wong Kar-Wai, Guy Ritchie, Alejandro González Iñárritu, John Woo, Joe Carnahan. The Hire has been showered with praise. The New York Times said, “The BMW films tingle with zest,” while Time Magazine added, “It surely deserves the attention of discerning movie watchers.” In 2002, the Cannes International Advertising Festival awarded The Hire with the Cyber Lion Grand Prix prize. Additional accolades include the "Best Excuse for Broadband" award at WIRED Magazine's third annual Rave Awards in 2001 and the 2002 Los Angeles International Short Film Festival’s “Best Action Short” award, which was given to director John Woo for Hostage, the sixth film in The Hire.
    [Show full text]
  • Reading for Fictional Worlds in Literature and Film
    Reading for Fictional Worlds in Literature and Film Danielle Simard Doctor of Philosophy University of York English and Related Literature March, 2020 2 Abstract The aim of this thesis is to establish a critical methodology which reads for fictional worlds in literature and film. Close readings of literary and cinematic texts are presented in support of the proposition that the fictional world is, and arguably should be, central to the critical process. These readings demonstrate how fictional world-centric readings challenge the conclusions generated by approaches which prioritise the author, the reader and the viewer. I establish a definition of independent fictional worlds, and show how characters rather than narrative are the means by which readers access the fictional world in order to analyse it. This interdisciplinary project engages predominantly with theoretical and critical work on literature and film to consider four distinct groups of contemporary novels and films. These texts demand readings that pose potential problems for my approach, and therefore test the scope and viability of my thesis. I evaluate character and narrative through Fight Club (novel, Chuck Palahniuk [1996] film, David Fincher [1999]); genre, context, and intertextuality in Solaris (novel, Stanisław Lem [1961] film, Andrei Tarkovsky [1974] film, Steven Soderbergh [2002]); mythic thinking and character’s authority with American Gods (novel, Neil Gaiman [2001]) and Anansi Boys (novel, Neil Gaiman [2005]); and temporality and nationality in Cronos (film, Guillermo
    [Show full text]
  • David Fincher's Harsh Mercy: Guns in Hollywood Compositions
    Digital Collections @ Dordt Faculty Work Comprehensive List 5-2015 David Fincher's Harsh Mercy: Guns in Hollywood Compositions Joshua Matthews Dordt College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcollections.dordt.edu/faculty_work Part of the Christianity Commons, and the Film and Media Studies Commons Recommended Citation Matthews, J. (2015). David Fincher's Harsh Mercy: Guns in Hollywood Compositions. Retrieved from https://digitalcollections.dordt.edu/faculty_work/264 This Conference Proceeding is brought to you for free and open access by Digital Collections @ Dordt. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Work Comprehensive List by an authorized administrator of Digital Collections @ Dordt. For more information, please contact [email protected]. David Fincher's Harsh Mercy: Guns in Hollywood Compositions Keywords David Fincher, movies, gun violence, existentialism Disciplines Christianity | Film and Media Studies Comments Paper presented at the May 2015 Christianity and Literature West Conference in Seattle, WA. This conference proceeding is available at Digital Collections @ Dordt: https://digitalcollections.dordt.edu/ faculty_work/264 READ SLOW “David Fincher’s Harsh Mercy: Guns in Hollywood Compositions” Disclaimer about violent images. (SLIDE 1) Many of us have read and taught Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” which ends with a punchy final line. The murderous Misfit, who has just shot and killed the grandmother, says of her that: “She would of been a good woman if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life.” This line conflates morality, the threat of death, and behavior, implicating the Grandmother’s hypocrisy and renewed religiosity at the end of the story.
    [Show full text]
  • The Art of Talking Back to the Screen with Movie Critic Wesley Morris - November 7, 2014 - Newyork.Com 11/14/16, 4:47 PM
    The Art of Talking Back to the Screen with Movie Critic Wesley Morris - November 7, 2014 - NewYork.com 11/14/16, 4:47 PM HOME VISITING NEW YORK LIVING IN NEW YORK Search BROADWAY ▼ HOTELS THINGS TO DO TOURS & ATTRACTIONS EVENTS RESTAURANTS JOBS HOME › JOBS › Everything Jobs › The Art of Talking Back to the Screen with Movie C... REAL ESTATE HOT 5 COOL JOB Q&A The Art of Talking Back to the Screen with READ MORE ABOUT Movie Critic Wesley Morris Pulitzer Prize winner Wesley Morris takes us behind the scenes of his job as a » Broadway » Attractions movie critic » Tours » Restaurants Hotels Real Estate November 7, 2014, Craigh Barboza » » GET WEEKLY 2 Share Like 109 Share Tweet Jobs » NEWS AND One of the most frequent questions people ask Wesley Morris is how can he do his job and still enjoy EXCLUSIVE OFFERS going to the movies. Morris is a Pulitzer Prize-winning movie critic who writes for Grantland, a pop Enter your e-mail address SUBSCRIBE culture and sports website in New York. The perception is that because he is paid to intellectualize his responses to movies, he couldn’t possibly derive any pleasure from them. “They want to know if I turn my brain off,” says Morris, scrunching his eyebrows together. “I’ve never wished that I could turn my brain off while watching a movie.” Movie Critic Wesley Morris What would be the point? The reason Morris is as good a critic as he is (and why people care about what he thinks) is that he sees things others miss, and this knowledge heightens his appreciation of certain aspects of a film.
    [Show full text]
  • CLAY GRIFFITH Production Designer Claygriffith.Com
    CLAY GRIFFITH Production Designer claygriffith.com PROJECTS DIRECTORS STUDIOS/PRODUCERS HARVEST MOON Mark Waters MIRAMAX FILMS Mark Waters, Paul Bettany NATIONAL CHAMPIONS Ric Roman Waugh THUNDER ROAD Jeffrey Stott, Basil Iwanyk, Brendon Boyea GREENLAND Ric Roman Waugh THUNDER ROAD Carsten Lorenz CITY OF LIES Brad Furman FILMNATION ENT. / SABAN FILMS Bruce Wayne Gillies DOLEMITE IS MY NAME Craig Brewer NETFLIX Michael Beugg, John Davis John Fox TRIAL BY FIRE Ed Zwick THE BEDFORD FALLS COMPANY Kate Dean, Allyn Stewart, Kipp Nelson ROADIES Cameron Crowe BAD ROBOT / WB / SHOWTIME Pilot & Series Iain Paterson, Peter Schindler JACK REACHER: NEVER GO BACK Edward Zwick SKYDANCE / PARAMOUNT Herb Gains, Don Granger ALOHA Cameron Crowe NEW REGENCY / SONY Ilona Herzberg WE BOUGHT A ZOO Cameron Crowe FOX Ilona Herzberg, Julie Yorn LUCKY YOU Curtis Hanson WARNER BROS. Mari Jo Winkler, Carol Fenelon ELIZABETHTOWN Cameron Crowe PARAMOUNT Don Lee, Paula Wagner RADIO Mike Tollin SONY REVOLUTION Herb Gains SWEET HOME ALABAMA Andy Tennant ORIGINAL FILMS / DISNEY Michael Fottrell DOMESTIC DISTURBANCE Harold Becker PARAMOUNT Jim Dyer, Donald De Line ALMOST FAMOUS Cameron Crowe DREAMWORKS Nomination, Best Production Design – Ian Bryce ADG Winner, Best Picture – AFI AS GOOD AS IT GETS James L. Brooks TRISTAR PICTURES / GRACIE FILMS Set Decorator JERRY MAGUIRE Cameron Crowe TRISTAR PICTURES Set Decorator James L. Brooks SEVEN David Fincher NEW LINE Set Decorator Dan Kolsrud, Arnold Kopelson JUNIOR Ivan Reitman UNIVERSAL PICTURES Set Decorator Joe Medjuck SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE Nora Ephron TRISTAR PICTURES Set Decorator Gary Foster, Linda Obst SINGLES Cameron Crowe WARNER BROS. Set Decorator Art Linson In addition to Los Angeles, Mr.
    [Show full text]
  • Mank’, the New Netflix Film from David Fincher
    Recreating 1930s Hollywood for ‘Mank’, the new Netflix film from David Fincher ‘Mank’ is the highly anticipated Netflix biopic directed by David Fincher. The movie is told through the eyes of alcoholic Hollywood Erik Messerschmidt. Fincher wanted to re-create certain screenwriter, Herman J. Mankiewicz, as he battles with period elements in post, for example “black blooming” in the personal demons to finish the screenplay for Orson Welles’ shadows. renowned Citizen Kane. “In testing, we developed the 6k look in Baselight, and then we While Fincher and his team have worked with FilmLight’s had Fotokem make a shader version,” Weidt explained. “So Baselight colour grading system since the 2008 filmThe the period feel was even baked into the dailies”. Curious Case of Benjamin Button and the Netflix TV series House of Cards, it was with Netflix’s Mindhunter that the director established his own in-house DI facility in Hollywood. Colourist Eric Weidt was brought on to lead colour development on the facility’s Baselight X system. Weidt had previously developed custom film emulation profiles for traditional film photographers, and brought his considerable experience in post-production for fashion stills and films to the grading suite. “Erik [Messerschmidt] made beautiful choices, shooting with Fincher and Messerschmidt went with a monochrome an orange filter for darker skies, camera because of its sensitivity to light. However, that meant that in the grading suite, Eric Weidt had no chromatic for example – and we had whole information to cheat with. “I think I wore out the luminance segments shot day for night that key knobs,” said Weidt.
    [Show full text]
  • Works Cited – Films
    Works cited – films Ali (Michael Mann, 2001) All the President’s Men (Alan J Pakula, 1976) American Beauty (Sam Mendes, 1998) American History X (Tony Kaye, 1998) American Psycho (Mary Harron, 2000) American Splendor (Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, 2003) Arlington Road (Mark Pellington, 1999) Being There (Hal Ashby, 1980) Billy Elliott (Stephen Daldry, 2000) Black Christmas (Bob Clark, 1975) Blow Out (Brian De Palma, 1981) Bob Roberts (Tim Robbins, 1992) Bowling for Columbine (Michael Moore, 2002) Brassed Off (Mark Herman, 1996) The Brood (David Cronenberg, 1979) Bulworth (Warren Beatty, 1998) Capturing the Friedmans (Andrew Jarecki, 2003) Control Room (Jehane Noujaim, 2004) The China Syndrome (James Bridges, 1979) Chinatown (Roman Polanski, 1974) Clerks (Kevin Smith, 1994) Conspiracy Theory (Richard Donner, 1997) The Conversation (Francis Ford Coppola, 1974) The Corporation (Jennifer Abbott and Mark Achbar, 2004) Crumb (Terry Zwigoff, 1994) Dave (Ivan Reitman, 1993) The Defector (Raoul Lévy, 1965) La Dolce Vita (Federico Fellini, 1960) Dr Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (Stanley Kubrick, 1964) Evil Dead II (Sam Raimi, 1987) 201 Executive Action (David Miller, 1973) eXistenZ (David Cronenberg, 1999) The Exorcist (William Friedkin, 1973) Fahrenheit 9/11 (Michael Moore, 2004) Falling Down (Joel Schumacher, 1993) Far From Heaven (Todd Haynes, 2002) Fight Club (David Fincher, 1999) The Firm (Sydney Pollack, 1993) The Fly (David Cronenberg, 1986) The Forgotten (Joseph Ruben, 2004) Friday the 13th
    [Show full text]
  • 101 Films for Filmmakers
    101 (OR SO) FILMS FOR FILMMAKERS The purpose of this list is not to create an exhaustive list of every important film ever made or filmmaker who ever lived. That task would be impossible. The purpose is to create a succinct list of films and filmmakers that have had a major impact on filmmaking. A second purpose is to help contextualize films and filmmakers within the various film movements with which they are associated. The list is organized chronologically, with important film movements (e.g. Italian Neorealism, The French New Wave) inserted at the appropriate time. AFI (American Film Institute) Top 100 films are in blue (green if they were on the original 1998 list but were removed for the 10th anniversary list). Guidelines: 1. The majority of filmmakers will be represented by a single film (or two), often their first or first significant one. This does not mean that they made no other worthy films; rather the films listed tend to be monumental films that helped define a genre or period. For example, Arthur Penn made numerous notable films, but his 1967 Bonnie and Clyde ushered in the New Hollywood and changed filmmaking for the next two decades (or more). 2. Some filmmakers do have multiple films listed, but this tends to be reserved for filmmakers who are truly masters of the craft (e.g. Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick) or filmmakers whose careers have had a long span (e.g. Luis Buñuel, 1928-1977). A few filmmakers who re-invented themselves later in their careers (e.g. David Cronenberg–his early body horror and later psychological dramas) will have multiple films listed, representing each period of their careers.
    [Show full text]
  • Following Is a Listing of Public Relations Firms Who Have Represented Films at Previous Sundance Film Festivals
    Following is a listing of public relations firms who have represented films at previous Sundance Film Festivals. This is just a sample of the firms that can help promote your film and is a good guide to start your search for representation. 11th Street Lot 11th Street Lot Marketing & PR offers strategic marketing and publicity services to independent films at every stage of release, from festival premiere to digital distribution, including traditional publicity (film reviews, regional and trade coverage, interviews and features); digital marketing (social media, email marketing, etc); and creative, custom audience-building initiatives. Contact: Lisa Trifone P: 646.926-4012 E: [email protected] ​ www.11thstreetlot.com 42West 42West is a US entertainment public relations and consulting firm. A full service bi-coastal agency, ​ 42West handles film release campaigns, awards campaigns, online marketing and publicity, strategic communications, personal publicity, and integrated promotions and marketing. With a presence at Sundance, Cannes, Toronto, Venice, Tribeca, SXSW, New York and Los Angeles film festivals, 42West plays a key role in supporting the sales of acquisition titles as well as launching a film through a festival publicity campaign. Past Sundance Films the company has represented include Joanna Hogg’s THE SOUVENIR (winner of World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic), Lee Cronin’s THE HOLE IN THE GROUND, Paul Dano’s WILDLIFE, Sara Colangelo’s THE KINDERGARTEN TEACHER (winner of Director in U.S. competition), Maggie Bett’s NOVITIATE
    [Show full text]
  • 12YAS Notes FINALX
    ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS STEVE M cQUEEN (Directed by, Produced by) is a British artist and filmmaker. In 2008, M cQueen’s critically acclaimed first feature HUNGER won the Camera d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival among countless other international prizes. He followed with 2011’s incendiary film experience, SHAME, a provocative drama about addiction and secrecy in the modern world. The film received numerous accolades and awards with M cQueen winning the CinemAvvenire Award and FIPRESCI Prize at the Venice Film Festival as well as nominations from BAFTA, the British Independent Film Awards, the London Film Festival, Evening Standard British Film Awards and the Independent Spirit Awards. In 1996, M cQueen was the recipient of an ICA Futures Award, in 1998 he won a DAAD artist’s scholarship to Berlin and in 1999 - besides exhibiting at the ICA and at the Kunsthalle in Zürich - he also won the Turner Prize. McQueen has exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Musee d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Documenta (2002 and 2007) and at the 53rd Venice Biennale in 2009 where he represented Britain. His work is held in museum collections around the world including Tate, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Centre Pompidou. In 2003, he was appointed Official War Artist for the Iraq war by the Imperial War Museum and subsequently produced the poignant and controversial project Queen and Country, which commemorated the deaths of British soldiers who died in the Iraq War by presenting their portraits as a sheet of stamps. In 2002, he was awarded the OBE and the CBE in 2011.
    [Show full text]
  • Celebrating Forty Years of Films Worth Talking About
    2 NOV 18 6 DEC 18 1 | 2 NOV 18 - 6 DEC 18 88 LOTHIAN ROAD | FILMHOUSEcinema.COM CELEBRATING FORTY YEARS OF FILMS WORTH TALKING ABOUT Move over, Braveheart! Last month saw the culmination of our 40th anniversary celebrations here at Filmhouse, and it has been hugely interesting time (for me at any rate!) comparing the us of now with the us of then. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed spending time talking to Filmhouse’s first Artistic Director, Jim Hickey, and finding out in more detail than I knew what myriad ways the business of running Filmhouse has stayed the same and the as many ways it has not (one of these days I’ll write it all down and you can find out how interesting it is for yourselves!). UK film distribution itself has changed immeasurably – the dawn of the multiplex in the latter half of the 1980s saw to that. Back in 1978, Filmhouse itself was part of a sort of movement that saw the birth of a number of similar venues around the UK whose aim was to show a kind of cinema (predominantly foreign language) that simply was not catered for within mainstream film exhibition. Despite 40 years having passed and much having changed, the notion of an audience-driven, ‘curated’ cinema like Filmhouse remains something of a film exhibition anomaly; and something Jim Hickey wrote 30+ years ago rings just as true today as it did then: “But best of all, the new cinemas are being run by those who care about audiences as well as the films that they have paid to watch.” Now, we’ve got a bit of a first for you in November, for we have metaphorically got into bed with Netflix to give one of their films a hugely deserved, exclusive, short run in a cinema – namely David Mackenzie’s splendidly entertaining Robert the Bruce epic, Outlaw King.
    [Show full text]