Ben rivers and ben russells a spell to ward off the darkness. This willfully anachronistic film includes nonperiod clothing. A true collaborative effort by two major filmmakers, the feature follows a black guitar player, robert a. One of the more anticipated films of a very strong wavelengths section, ben rivers and ben russells a spell to ward off the darkness unspooled saturday night to a packed house at the art gallery of ontarios jackman hall. In any case, this is a film that should, at the very least, make one. Screened in 2016 at the university of chicagos reva and david logan center for the arts, as part of the 2016 ben rivers. The first featurefilm collaboration between celebrated artistfilmmakers ben rivers two years at sea and ben russell let each one go. A man goes on a singular journey through three distinct landscapes. A spell to ward off the darkness doesnt only have the greatest title of any film this year, its also the years greatest example of arthouse cinema by how it regards the medium as both boundless art and sacred house. A spell to ward off the darkness is a cerebral encounter. A spell to ward off the darkness 20 directed by ben rivers, ben russell. Midnight pulp a spell to ward off the darkness now. A spell to ward off the darkness follows an unnamed character through three seemingly disparate moments in his life.
Completely covering the source of the darkness with an opaque object, such as a bowl or a helm, blocks the darkness. A spell to ward off the darkness film society of lincoln. A spell to ward off the darkness 2014 rotten tomatoes. Metaphysical moments in a spell to ward off the darkness.
A spell to ward off the darkness is black metal for the. Lowe, the celebrated musician behind lichens and om, gives a strangely affecting, perhaps even tranceinducing performance as the film s parsifal figure, a quixotic man who embarks on a quest for utopiathe holy grail of infinite truth, selfknowledge, and spiritual connectedness. A spell to ward off the darkness is brimming with the interpretive handiwork of trueblue auteurs on the fringe, every frame asking for the full attention and contemplative analysis of its viewers. It was released to critical acclaim, winning two awards, including the copenhagen international documentary festival new vision award, and having five nominations. Michael sicinski, cinemascope elegantly artistic and engagingly challenging it is a film that aims to challenge and provoke and succeeds on. With its very title, a spell to ward off the darkness is a film that announces itself as being in league with forces not entirely of this world. A spell to ward off the darkness is a cerebral encounter of the. A spell follows an unnamed character through three seemingly disparate moments in his life. The film s off kilter mix of horror, historiography, and. Visual artists ben rivers and ben russells mesmerising film follows an unnamed character through three phases of alternative existence, from rural commune to a. This strange work by experimentalists ben rivers and ben russell is utterly. Their first collaborative feature, a spell to ward off the darkness, further.
The line between nonfiction and composed illusion is deliberately muddied, and yet, there is a clear ethnologic exploration within. A spell to ward off the darkness a close collaboration between two bens rivers and russell, both wellknown experimental filmmakers, results in a spell to ward off the darkness. With little explanation, we join him in the midst of a 15person collective on a small estonian island. Locarno an art film thats as uncompromising as it is uncommercial, a spell to ward off the darkness will prove fascinating for those willing to be carried away by its gorgeous sights and.
Immediate notables include richard ayoades the double, which bows at sundance this week following its wellreceived toronto premiere, and albert serras locarno golden leopard prize winner, story of my death. A spell to ward off the darkness goes looking for transcendence in the mosh pit. A spell to ward off the darkness movie quotes rotten. If any of this spell s area overlaps with an area of light created by a spell of 2nd level or lower, the spell that created the light is dispelled. Please note the feature will start following a selection of trailers and information relevant to the ica programme. This is a good film to go to if you have to get indoors somewhere dry for a while and take a nap during a film that has really long takes of nothing happening, and i mean really long takes. This film is not currently playing on mubi but 30 other great films are. The film is comprised of three acts, with lowe providing the only connective tissue between them. A spell to ward off the darkness curzon home cinema. It is a creative exploration of stasis, and a cinesonata of silence and solitude. A spell to ward off the darkness 20 directed by ben. A spell to ward off the darkness trailer festival 20 tiff originals.
A spell to ward off the darkness 20 movie moviefone. This is a good film to go to if you have to get indoors somewhere dry for a while. Ben russell and ben rivers take an academic approach to filmmaking, which makes their collaborative effort, a spell to ward off the darkness, either one of the most intellectually engaging films of the year or an experience full of cramps, fidgeting, and eyerolling, depending on whos talking. Ben rivers and ben russell, francegermanyestonia 20, 99 mins, cert. Using a nonnarrative, loosely structured approach, ben rivers and ben russell seek to explore the intangible existential realm that lingers somewhere in between our minds and nature. A spell to ward off the darkness underground film journal. One star for the heavy metal, if you leave out the singing. First, as a member of a commune on an estonian island, then alone in the majestic wilderness of northern finland and later as the singer of a neopagan, black metal band in norway. A spell to ward off the darkness is not your average midnight pulp movie, but it wouldnt really fit anyplace else, either. No quotes approved yet for a spell to ward off the darkness.
Doused in a natural ethnography based upon the landscape, a spell to ward off the darkness 20 is a strangely hypnotic mixture of fact and fiction by filmmakers, ben rivers and ben russell. We hear a choir of voices chanting over the dark waters, but only the camera is moving. Perhaps my favorite festival of the year, the film societys new directorsnew films has just announced its first seven titles for the 2014 edition. In a commune on an estonian island, across the forests of northern finland, and as a member of a black metal band in norway. Please activate cookies in order to turn autoplay off. Reading the blurb for a spell to ward off the darkness will give you a vague sense of how to approach the documentary.
A spell to ward off the darkness, the first featurelength collaboration between filmmakers ben rivers and ben russell, is a three movement symphonic film poem, meditating on the relationship of the individual to the community. The first feature film collaboration between celebrated artistfilmmakers ben rivers two years at sea and ben russell. Eric kohn indiewire with its very title, a spell to ward off the darkness is a film that announces itself as being in league with forces not entirely of this world. Urth exhibition at the renaissance society, chicago. New directorsnew films announces first titles in 2014. After the many short films he shot in suriname, in 2009 he made his first feature length film let each one go where he may screened and awarded in numerous international festivals. This is another utterly uncommercial film, not far from video art. Lowe, from a northern finland commune through a solitary journey. Their first collaborative feature, a spell to ward off the darkness. Though the fear that the film s walking dead can turn violent at any second is completely unjustified, the writerdirector allows this paranoia to reflect the feelings of loss, disassociation, and hopelessness that cripple the living. With little explanation, we join him in the midst of a 15person collective a spell to ward off the darkness trailer on vimeo. In any case, this is a film that should, at the very least, make one appreciate the allencompassing breadth of cinema, and, at most, provoke deeper thought of transcendental existence in.
A spell to ward off the darkness trailer festival 20. A spell to ward off the darkness opens with a lake at night, the camera panning the calm waters and landscape in a circle, too slow to make us dizzy but enough movement to make us feel afloat. A spell to ward off the darkness film the guardian. A spell to ward off the darkness is a 20 experimental film directed by ben russell and ben rivers, starring robert aiki aubrey lowe. A spell to ward off the darkness official trailer 1 2014. View all photos 21 a spell to ward off the darkness quotes. The central figure of ben rivers and ben russells a spell to ward off the darkness takes the form of a silent man musician robert a. Marked by loneliness, ecstatic beauty and an optimism of the darkest sort, a spell is a radical proposition for the existence of utopia in the present. From pagan reenactors to failed communes, black metal festivals to arctic hermits, and the forever golden hour to the northern lights, a spell to ward off the darkness follows a nameless hero in an otherworldly search for a spiritual existence in a modern era. Called we cannot exist in this world alone, the program exposed the intersections of the british rivers and american russell s concerns.
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