swo17 wrote:Or at least that's the definition I've settled on for today.
What is your take on the mixture of outright documentary elements hidden within a narrative?
Haxan or
Different from the Others come to mind -where the narrative can be seen as a protracted "recreation" of events (and they throw in some lecture bits too).
Innocence Unprotected is also a strange case - since it hybrids a 'making of' alongside the actual film it is discussing. Or there's also Kluge's
In Danger and Deep Distress the Middle-way spells Death -which focuses around 4 narrative plots - but the characters interact with actual events/footage (parades, youth revolts, etc).
I was planning on all four of those making my list, but I'd like to hear other's thoughts on this particular structure - of mixing both documentary and narrative structures in unusual manners. I think it makes both elements stronger - since the documentary aspects are given better life/depth and the narrative has a greater sense of credibility. Anyone have any other suggestions that are similar to the four I've listed?
If it helps at all,
the BFI seem to think Close-up, My Winnipeg, Spinal Tap and Las Hurdes are all documentaries.
Since I'm posting, I'll give one of my famous "too late to make a difference anymore" recommendations:
Many of the Eames films are superb. There's of course the overplayed
Powers of Ten (though excellent regardless). I do prefer the film
901: After 45 Years of working - which documents their workshop/living space prior to the interior being dismantled and shipped off to different institutions. The narrator can be a tad annoying at times, but he often drops out and lets the space showcase itself.
For early actuality films - perhaps people should check out the Westinghouse series (things like
Assembling and Testing Turbines) - of which my favorite is
Girls Taking Time Checks - since you get a fairly humorous mixture of embarrassed camera shyness, prude gentility, and a few hams - all in an odd assembly line of women clocking out for the day. There's also Edison's
Pan-American Exposition by night - with its contrast between day and the night's illuminations (still quite impressive).
I'll lastly make a final case for
Huell Howser's Newberry Springs episode. He travels to the small town in the middle of the desert - in search of a buffalo ranch and ostrich farm (which he never finds, and the locals seem to not know about either). Instead he comes across a bizarre array of desert people - by just wandering around the town and talking to people - like the lady who collects donkey and elephant things (stuffed animals, etc), or the "agate licker" - guy with all of his rocks, and the infamous
Bagdad Cafe. The Cafe is perhaps Huell's best known visit - since its such a surreal experience with its swearing "general of the world" crazy old man, picture of Burt Lancaster that nobody is sure why its there, and store employee who seems to be terrified of Huell at first. Its all wonderfully strange. Unfortunately, I can't find the episode online (other than the Bagdad Cafe clip) - but if you have Itunes, you can download the episode as part of the California's Gold Huell Howser podcast - so I believe that's the only way to see it presently.