yes. very different. expect long, thoughtful takes of people in india and jarring compositions. be prepared to see things you make not have wanted to see. calcutta is also a wonder of a film, and even more startling that phantom, somehow
I’d really have to watch it again.
So much of it washed over me in a haze.
I’m glad a thread has been started about it.
If you want an idea of what you’re in for…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JB_Mqm1tV8
…check that out.
Calcutta seems to be a very interesting creature as well, and I think I’ll order that after Phantom India if I enjoy it. I figure that Malle might have had the same reaction as you, as it was originally intended to be part of Phantom India. The footage must have been pretty powerful to deserve it’s own film…
The thing I notice with documentaries by fiction directors, and their home movies is the immense amount of depth and improvised mise en scene that accompanies each shot. Of course, this is different with every director, but Derek Jarman’s Glitterbug astounded me like that and it was incredible how much thought was put into every segment while still being rough (probably even because it was footage assembled by others).
Derek Jarman & Louis Malle are two of my favorite modernist filmmakers. Easily.
I didn’t enjoy Au Revoir, Les Enfants as much as I wanted to, and the only Jarman films I’ve seen are Blue and Glitterbug. But ARLE made me very anxious to see what else he has done in both the fiction and nonfiction categories.
Moderated
Au
Revoir
Les
Enfants
I would highly recommend Derke Jarman’s Wittgenstein, as well as Caravaggio.
Ah, I have Wittgenstein in my Q. I believe I’ll watch it after Phantom India- the use of color in it seems to be extraordinary.
The two Malle doc’s also worth Q-ing are his two pieces on americana: Gods Country & …& the pursuit of…
I get these tomorrow.
Both of those are in my Q, btw.
brady qw
This documentary seems very interesting to me, and right now it’s at the top of my Netflix Q. What should I suspect? Is Malle’s documentary style all that different from his fiction? The only other Malle I’ve seen is Au Revoir, Les Enfants.