![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Film: This is New Zealand
This afternoon we went to see a ground-breaking and wordless NZ film, This is New Zealand, made in 1969 for the 1970 Expo in Japan. I saw it many years later in the UK, but till now it hasn't been shown that much because it needs three screens. I thought it might have dated, but damned if it didn't give me goosebumps all over again as we soared over the Alps to the intermezzo movement of Silbelius's Karelius suite. It's only 20 minutes long, but it is a magnificent, glorious, emotional experience. My Irish friend who came with us said it gave her chills up her spine too. We got to talk to the director, Hugh McDonald, afterwards too which was fascinating. The film is only being shown now because Peter Jackson's company remastered it to be shown digitally without the specialised equipment once needed. If it's out on DVD next year as they hope, I'm so buying it.
The film was preceded by two other films from the era: a doco about the 1980 Expo by the same director (domes! monorails! living in the future!) and a travel film from the 70s made for Australia and shown for laughs, I think (bad puns, mini skirts, female tourists in elaborate hairdos, glittery blue eye-shadow, enormous false eyelashes, and what looked like fake tans).
Oh and I bought a coffee from Stark's Bar.
Why did I take this? Well, apart from the symbol on the napkin (is that or is that not a Stykera?) the little guy in the lower middle looks like Stark with his mask straps across his forehead. And yes, the flower in the right hand side background is a bird of paradise AKA the Scarran intellect-enhancing flower. OK, I'm an SF nerd. :-P
no subject
no subject
no subject
My father ever said that the day he had enough money he would move to New Zealand, the most civilized country in the world according to his taste.
Now is to late for him :S
no subject
The film is stunning, absolutely stunning, even almost 40 years later. Actually, a Keaton fan might enjoy the fact that it only has music and some occasional sly humour. I'll let you know when it comes out on DVD. I can send you one, but you'll really need a wide TV and a good sound system.
no subject
no subject
no subject
I guess the documentary was originally made to be shown in Cinerama, which requires three projectors and screen. The format is spectacular but too expesnive for both fimling and showing, so it never took off. There is a Cinerama screen in Bradford, but I've yet to visit and see anything in that format.
no subject
We weren't capable of filming Cinerama, or in fact even the larger mm sizes. This is quite different. Most of the film was done in three (or more) separate square images and was shown split screen, but there are a few done where the three images are of the same thing, mostly aerial shots with three cameras in the plane. It needed special equipment and three separate projectors to show it, but now it's in digital 5.1. It has not dated at all and won the Bronze World Medal at the New York Festivals Film and Video Competition in February this year. :-)
no subject
no subject