Cinematographer
(2020/MVD/Lightyear Blu-ray)/Invisible
Imprints (2022/IndiePix
DVD)/Monobloc
(2021/Icarus DVD)
Picture:
B/C+/C Sound: B-/C/C+ Extras: D/B-/C Main Programs:
B/C+/B-
Some
more documentaries on arts and craft follow...
Dan
Asma's Cinematographer
(2020) is a solid look at the art of what cameramen and especially
Directors of Photography do to bring motion pictures, television, TV
commercials, music videos and much more to life. Specifically, it
focuses on a key section of talents that launched in the 1970s, but
even more so, on the hard work, innovations, organizational powers
and great thinking of Donald M. Morgan, whose DP work includes Miss
Evers' Boys, Santee,
early films by Robert Zemeckis, several 1980s John Carpenter films
and many classic TV commercials.
Early
on, he is blunt about having to deal with alcoholism, how he made a
big break from it and became a cinematographer in its place and all
the personal struggles he has had, plus how he made it a point since
going dry to help as many people in similar trouble as possible. His
outreach went beyond that with fellow cameramen and so many people in
the industry over the decades. It gives us a great look behind the
scenes as well (he is also well-known for his aerial photography) and
how the industry was back the and can still be now.
It
is also another one of those key untold stories that were long
overdue to be revealed and the result is a very pleasant surprise
that all serious film fans really need to catch up with. It also
gives credit to so many others we rarely hear about from a time when
Hollywood rebuilt itself. These creative individuals cannot be paid
or thanked enough for that!
There
are sadly no extras.
Jay
Paris' Invisible Imprints
(2022) is yet another backstage arts documentary showing a group of
young talents getting into action on stage and as noted with similar
such recent releases, part of a sort of unrecognized cycle of such
releases. I have noted that part of the mini-boom is because the
worst of COVID lockdowns are behind us, but also because of the times
we live in, a reiteration of the arts and its importance.
Unfortunately,
though these are talented, hard working individuals with dreams and
the talent to possibly make them come true, so maybe this will become
a curio like those other releases if at least one of them makes it
big, but the approach is too similar to the many others we have seen
before. It is still worth a look now if interested, but points for
it dealing with racism and at least another point for it being in the
great city of Chicago.
Extras
include a feature-length audio commentary by the director, trailer
and Together - 6 Feet
Apart featurette.
Hauke
Wendler's Monobloc
(2021) takes a subject that you might think would not offer enough
for a TV special, let alone feature-length documentary, but how a
chair that became a massive international bestseller made from one
big molded unit of plastic with many variants manages to deliver a
much longer and more interesting story than expected. Invented in
France in the 1970s, it became their biggest export since the Eclair
motion picture camera.
Can
he find its origins, its inventor, its influences and the story that
is barely out there about the chair? Well, this one runs 91 minutes
and will surprise you if you give it a chance. It also adds other
things to say, but it makes sense and is in context to the subject.
A
15-minutes long interview with Director Hauke Wendler is the only
extra.
The
1080p 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image transfer on
Cinematographer is easily the best-looking release here and
not just because it is the only Blu-ray, but because the new HD
footage is solid, the classic film clips and stills are great and
they all meld together well. The
sound includes two options in lossless DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1
and PCM 2.0 Stereo, with my preference being the DTS, but much of
this is dialogue-based. Thus, you can only expect so much from the
sound, but it is well recorded, edited and mixed.
The
anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image on the two DVDs have good
color, but Bloc
can be a little softer throughout than expected and that is not just
because of older film or video clips. Both DVDs also offer only one
soundtrack, lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo sound, but Imprints
suffers more because of location audio issues and slight volume
issues during interviews.
-
Nicholas Sheffo
