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4.235.206.156
films of all time but one of the greatest artistic achievements...period.
And I say this after only seeing the middle-half (eight hours) of the film.
I was lucky enough to be in NYC this week as MoMA presented it on four successive evenings: the first segment was sold out and I was leaving on the last day so I had to settle for the middle eight segments; still, the towering brilliance clearly was visible: any one of the eight segments I saw could stand alone as a masterpiece.
Great news: Criterion this fall will release the work on DVD!
I can't wait.
The plot?
Well, it's more an historical account of Weimar Germany told through the life of Franz Biberkopf, a lowlife who one day beats his woman to death with his bare hands.
He serves his prison sentence yet emerges still tortured by the act.
The performances, cinematography, music and writing are above the very high level of previous Fassbinder works. Imagine late Rembrandt self-portraits wherein pain and, occasionally, rage burst forth with volcanic force.
One needn't view the entire Sistine Chapel to know its supreme stature. Though I haven't seen the completed work, I safely elevate "Alexander" to the highest level of film artistry.
It will overpower you as only sublime works can. It almost is futile to use reason to describe this film: it assaults the viewer like a force of nature.
Follow Ups:
...although I rarely buy DVDs I'll probably get this one. Saw it complete in a theater over a 2-day period when it first came to the US and thought it was astonishing. I read the novel upon which it was based and although it was very worth reading I consider the film far superior. I still remember how Fassbinder's seemingly never-still camera made perfect sense and created an incredibly dynamic film experience.
cinematography by Xavier Schwartzenberger is second to none.
An amazing film which transcends, as all great art does, its medium.
BTW, your Paper Clip film is showing locally. Looks like it has "legs."
...and entering the region of absurdity. "The definitive male performance in film history." ???There's no such thing except in a fevered imagination. Perhaps, in your view, an "unsurpassed" performance or something like that. But there can't be just one.
A machine isn't saying so, it's me. So... need I mention it's my opinion, which I'm sure you'd agree I have a right to express, however strongly?
For its range, lack of any remote reliance on visible technique or histrionics, and ability to expose the humanity of what ultimately is a despicable character..there is no equal in film.
Lamprecht also is not a wonderful physical specimen, seemingly a glob of fat and muscle with nary a "beautiful" physical trait to help him.
I have long considered Brando's performance in "Last Tango" the ultimate screen performance but no longer: Lamprecht bests him, considerably.
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