by Brakhage: An Anthology

I first heard about by Brakhage slightly before it was announced, when I knew next to nothing of cinema, yet relished learning about each month's new Criterion announcements. I remember looking him up on imdb and learning that he'd done over 300 films in total, yet I'd never heard of him. I was always interested in seeing it, but at the time, had no access to most Criterions.

Later on, I got Netflix, and eventually got around to renting Disc 1 of by Brakhage. I watched Desistfilm and didn't get it. Watched some of Wedlock and Dog Star Man, and didn't get them either. Watched The Act of Seeing With One's Own Eyes and was disgusted. From then on, I hated Brakhage. For every great review that made me want to like Brakhage, like Dave Jesteadt's here, there was one like Mark Zimmer's that really resonated with me, made me pump my fist and go "yes, someone I can agree with!"

So, somewhere, I started to look at Brakhage again, and at his almost universal praise, and wondered if there was something I'd overlooked. Admittedly, I'd made a few mistakes in my viewing. I went in with extremely high expectations, didn't watch them in the right environment, didn't give them a chance. So, I rented the Criterion set from the library, and watched them again.

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Desistfilm - This was the first Brakhage film I saw when I Netflixed the disc, and is again the first one I watched. Through the supplements I learned that Brakhage was very influenced by Italian Neorealism and French Poetic Realism, or Surrealism if you will. This gave him points in my book already. So, Desistfilm is supposed to be about Desistialism (sp?), the opposite of existentialism. I really didn't get it. Camper's essay says that all the figures at the party were isolating themselves in a way, doing something to amuse themselves while not bothering with anyone else and that I can see. But, I kind of don't buy it. The soundtrack gives it a very out-of-control, oppressive kind of mood.

Wedlock House: An Intercourse - What incredible and haunting imagery this film has. The lighting is sparse and sporadic, as if lit by a swinging lightbulb. Since most of the film is pitch black, you never know what room or angle you will be seeing next. Captures the phrase 'wedlock' very well as the couple seems to be falling into a collective rhythm with one another, essentially trapping them. There were moments where I found myself completely absorbed, entirely forgetting the world outside the frame existed.

Dog Star Man - This is 74 minutes long. Brakhage said it is his try at making an 'epic' story. 74 minutes is extremely excessive, and I got very bored watching Dog Star Man. The first part, Prelude, is a dream sequence, which is pretty neat, as it presents visions of things to come, and swirling imagery much like that of our own dreams. But it stretches on for 25 minutes, which is far too long. The next sequence is the main narrative, which is simply Brakhage climbing a snowy mountain with his dog and rolling around in different shutter speeds. A pointless waste of 30 minutes. The next part is very interesting, it covers a kind of 'birth' and has some very cool effects and is only 5 minutes, so doesn't outstay its welcome. The final two segments are typical Brakhage weirdness, dragging on far too long at 13 minutes combined. I simply did not get this, and it bored me throughout. I think Brakhage is just better experienced on short bursts.

The Act of Seeing With One's Own Eyes - This was the film that made me despise Brakhage the first time I watched it. It's basically a filmed autopsy. I got fed up with Brakhage and went off, claiming that 'this isn't art' and all of that. I tried to watch it again this time, and just couldn't stomach more than a few minutes of it, but that's just me. I have the luxury of being able to turn the DVD off, though.

Cat's Cradle - I kind of didn't get this one, but it was still kind of cool. Brakhage's editing is great here, giving normal activities the impression of being sexual and vice versa.

Window Water Baby Moving - This one I really liked. It's Brakhage filming the home birth of his first child. That he could take something this real and turn it into a piece of experimental art says something about him, and those are the types of work I like most, from him anyway. It's unflinching and raw but never disgusting. In fast, intercutting between the birth and shots of Brakhage and his wife kissing, holding hands and lyrical shots such as water rolling off of her pregnant stomach, Brakhage has crafted a film of real beauty.

Mothlight - One of the films I just didn't get. It's really neat hearing the story behind why he did it, and the fact that it's so innovative, gluing moth wings to film, but it just doesn't do anything for me. The pictures move to fast to form anything more than a 3-minute montage of motion. It's one of those cases where I like the idea and effort more than the film itself.

Eye Myth - 9 Seconds of paint blotches with a vague-ly human shape in the center sometimes. I really don't see how this symbolizes the man being imprisoned and liberated by the paint.

The Wold Shadow - Strange little film. It's cool to see the trees fade in and out, only to fade back in brighter, then fade back out again.

The Garden of Earthly Delights - Another one like Mothlight, only this time with plantlife. I liked it a little more than Mothlight, because some of the compositions are striking, while the last, and it gives a better sense of feeling behind the images.

The Stars Are Beautiful - Oddly enough, the imagery in this Brakhage is pretty droll. It makes a little more sense to read Camper explain how the intercutting of shots of Brakhage's children clipping the wings of chickens is a way of showing how we clip their wings, but let our imaginations soar. The stories are all really interesting to hear and thought-provoking. I can see how Brakhage lets either the images or the sound tell the story, never both.

Kindering - This was one of my favorite films. Brakhage simply filmed his grandchildren with distorted lenses, doing odd things, and added a soundtrack of a little girl trying to sing along with the radio. It's pretty unsettling to witness, and probably says something about the horrors of childhood.

I...Dreaming - I didn't like this one as much as others. I liked the way the music was choppy and seemed to be independent of the visuals. It seemed to be like a snapshot of life in the father/child relationship, as we see Stan put on shoes and leave, then come back, sleep, wake up, intercut with fast-motion footage of his kids playing.

The Dante Quartet - I really liked The Dante Quartet. It has some great imagery because Brakhage made it with used 35mm film, scraping off the old movie and sometimes leaving a trace of human figures, moving around, so it appears that they're in the flames of Hell. It's very interesting to look at, even if some of the imagery does seem very repetitive.

Nightmusic - I kind of didn't like and didn't get this one. More blotches of paint splashed around. I must be missing something.

Rage Net - One of my favorites in the package. I loved hearing from Brakhage how it came out of an angry time in his life, going through a divorce and helped me to realize that this is how he deals with things, how he expresses himself in life. Visually, very interesting to watch, and you can almost feel the 'rage' he expresses by scratching up the film stock.

Glaze of Cathexis - This film is pretty good, although I don't think I quite understand what he's trying to say, what with all the Freud and psychological Cathexis and whatnot. But, hey, that's Stan Brakhage for ya. Camper reads a lot more into it than I do, but I just can't see most of what he refers to.

Delicacies of Molten Horror Synapse - At first I worried that I wouldn't 'get' this film, but as it went on, I began that realization process that happens during most of my Brakhage viewings, where I tell myself just to relax and feel it through. I kind of get what he's showing here, through the use of static, scan lines and such. What's really cool is the bright shapes that appear for a frame or two out of the blackness that create an impression in your eyes that you can still see once the screen goes black. I kept wondering if I was seeing subliminal things and sexuality as a statement on the content of Television, but then told myself it was made 14 years ago. I'm not entirely sure if things were different allll the way back then, I don't remember watching much television, nor do I remember the content too well.

Untitled (For Marilyn) - I like the way that Brakhage scrawls out his words here, and that they're constantly evolving- "here" becomes "Where". In most of the film, the sparse colors seem to rise up out of the darkness maybe the small bits of happiness Brakhage is thankful for. At the end, after he says "praise be to God" the screen erupts with almost-blindingly bright light, that has an angelic, ethereal presence over the darkness previously dominating the piece.

Black Ice - This is a great little film, inspired from Brakhage's fall on black ice which led to him needing two cataracts. It's kind of a re-telling of his fall, in the typical Brakhage way, with light-colored paint seemingly rushing into the camera. It creates a fantastic sense of motion, essentially, falling onto the black ice itself. Very cool.

Study in Color and Black and White - This is one of my least favorite ones. Just didn't do much for me at all.

Stellar - This is supposed to be outer space, as seen from Brakhage's eyes and paintbrush. The first few seconds looked amazing, because they really closely resembled the cosmos, painted by Stan. But then, it goes back into the whole 'paint splotch' thing, which left me fairly disappointed again.

Crack Glass Eulogy - An allegory on city life, supposedly. The electronic bleeping music sounded to me like a radar, as we're shown footage of a huge city, full of buildings, from an aerial view. Maybe it symbolizes the 'radar' of trying to find a living soul, down there in that sea of buildings. Then, Brakhage actually cuts to a shot of the sea. Later, he shows another shot of water, dwarfed by a city skyline as the camera whirls out of control, as if the viewer has suffered vertigo.

The Dark Tower - Very very cool. Incredible how Brakhage formed a black tower in the center of the frame by splattering paint everywhere but a strip in the center. I could swear that I saw little creatures jumping around in the foreground during this one. Extremely good short.

Commingled Containers - I was kind of disappointed in this one, as it wasn't what I expected. Once I got over the initial confusion, I really liked the imagery presented in this film. Flowing water, crosscut with light pouring through glass bottles full of water. The light, or what I assume is light, kind of distorts into small spots as it passes through the water, and is photographed, creating some very neat-looking shapes.

Love Song - Sex, as visualized through the mind's eye. Slowly, I begin to realize that Brakhage films aren't anything concrete, as they're always simply what you make of it. I started to see vague outlines of a couple making love, I thought. The colors swirled around one another, as if one yin and another yang. The footage speeds up and slows down in waves, much like lovemaking, as the colors change, as the amount of black paint in the image vary. At some points, you can see that Brakhage is not painting on the film anymore, but photographing a canvas that's been painted on. The light bouncing off the paint itself lends it a completely different quality. Almost like breaking-down-the-forth-wall, Brakhage style.

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Overall, I really liked Brakhage's films. Dog Star Man is overly long, and some are far too similar, but he's a man who expressed himself in incredibly unique and creative ways, and some of his work is just flat-out brilliant. I'm glad that I took a shot. It took time and effort to invest myself in seeing films the way I think they should be seen, but it was worth it.

In case anybody stumbles upon this and wants to take the plunge and try Brakhage, just a few general guidelines that will ensure you don't ABHOR his work, like I did at first. First off, throw out any and all expectations you have, good, bad or indifferent. You should try to get ahold of the Criterion set, complete with both discs and booklet. If not, get disc 2 first, and read Fred Camper's great essay to learn more about Brakhage beforehand. If you have noise-canceling headphones or earplugs, wear them during the film, or do anything you can to block out distracting outside noise. Darken the room as much as you can, and never pause the films themselves. Pick and choose films based on their title or whichever appeals to you most, so you can ease your way in. If there are Brakhage remarks about the title on its menu, listen to them first to gain insight. Then, open your mind and let it wash over you.

Brakhage isn't for everybody. It really sounds like a huge investment, but it's a very good exercise, overall, in trying to get into the practice of immersing yourself in film. If you're interested, give him a chance with an open mind. You may be pleasantly surprised, as I (eventually) was.