Directors Complimenting Other Directors

Even though they did not specifically say much about each other, Jean Luc Godard, Jacques Rivette and Francois Truffaut, had a fairly clear understanding of each other and all three wrote a lot towards the periodical "Cahier du Cinema" ... 

There is one film, though, that really brings out a lot of that, but it is not directors talking. It is cinematographers, that explain some of the things they did with a director ... VISIONS OF LIGHT is a magnificent film that shows how some things worked, and also shows how some things ... were accidental and ended up being magic in the screen. 

Akira Kurosawa was, likely, the most appreciated of these, and he had to go find money elsewhere because no single Japanese company would help him ... he was a problem for them, and he would not come down to their greed level, and often did a film almost with no money at all. But several folks in America went to bat for him many times. George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino, and probably many others I did not mention that helped a lot by producing various films and helping them get distributed elsewhere, which upset the Japanese studios even more ... the song of a gun could make more money than their films most of which never went out of the country just about!

There are some things that kinda give away the appreciation of a director for another. The best, and most impressive example, is the ending of CHIMES AT MIDNIGHT with Falstaff walking away into the dark tunnel ... in the end, almost exactly as the character in Luis Bunuel's film EL ending with him walking into a dark tunnel.

There are some other examples, and Quentin Tarantino just copied Jean-Luc Godard silly, and it would be fun to sit and break down all the moments but it is not just a single moment, or a shot ... it's a lot of other bits and pieces. I have often thought that if we don't find 12/15 Godard films in there, we're not paying attention, and of course, the look that copied Anna Karina way too much for my tastes including how Anna carried her cigarettes and smoked at various times. 

But it is a very difficult thing to work on/with. For example, we watch Peter Greenaway and never really think of anything, but he is a very "visual" director and I think that he might even shoot some of it on his own to ensure he gets what he is looking for. This, however, is not clear for several films, even though they all possess an incredible talent for creating images that are insane and crazy and everything else ... and you won't really learn much about it until you get the DVD for NIGHTWATCHING ... and specifically for the special "lecture" that is with that DVD of Peter talking about Rembrandt ... and you know right away that there aren't many professors anywhere, that can do this, so incredibly well ... no doubt one of the best and most knowledgeable folks about Rembrandt and his time and work. All of a sudden, when you start looking at your memory of a few of his films, you find some details that seem very clear ... and likely defined by his knowledge of the art of painting over the years, and specifically how LIGHT was used ... and that is his strength in his directing. I don't even want to get into the whole thing about nudity in his films, but when you see NOT MOZART his opening piece is something that makes most folks very uncomfortable, but it is by very far, one of the craziest and features some amazing choreography that Bob Fosse likely wanted to put on the stage but couldn't at the time in NY. He might have been able to do it in Paris or London, but not America!

Jean-Luc Godard makes fun of a lot of different moments in a lot of American films, but generally the moments are so quick and fleeting that saying something, makes it seem silly and not on par with the film at all ... specially the film noir stuff that he loved dong something with and resulted in ALPHAVILLE, though he did not exactly copy all that anymore after that ... I think he really got tired of the American folks making fun of it, and the film bombed here, except in Film Classes in various places for many years.

Tough subject and a cool one at the same time!

(I'm checking my film listing to see what I can find and remember)

The film classes, at UCSB when I was there (graduated 1982), used some interesting things that were not quite published as far as I knew it.

Bergman on Bergman

Fellini on Fellini

Welles on Welles

I don't know where these came from, although I think that it was compiled off a lot of things. And there were others that were also done, and I have to look at my trusty file cabinet where I still have a lot of that film stuff. I have not seen these on a book.

Altman on Altman is a fantastic book.

Cahier du Cinema ... I have to check. Have not gotten any issues since 1910 or so, Couldn't afford them anymore. Jacques Rivette is not quite known here in America but his films are always a wonderful exercise in acting ... he allows his actresses to roam, and fly ... and some performances are really special.

On James Cameron. Not surprised to see that comment about his directing since so much of his films are defined by the set, scenery and technical details which often leave the actors dry, and not as well defined as otherwise ... compare this to how Peter Jackson got all of his actors on the same page! 

Comments on Fellini, were interesting, because at times his films don't exactly have a story ... it just a day in the life of ... something, or nothing. And, often, one moment eats up the screen and the church goes nuts and wants the film removed from circulation! Good gracious ... they could not even appreciate a papal dress fashion show ... !!! 

Funny moment and test for you ... Ken Russell film that made fun of a moment in "Death in Venice" ... it was how Ken made fun of some folks ... though in general he did not have to comment on anyone, as he was too busy with the artist his film was about! His early films were better than some of the crap he did way later when he could get the money! I think he was done after "The Devils" which is, by far, his best and most far out film and that's not to take anything away from a couple of other famous English novels!