Dance For Camera (shorts)

 

Picture: C     Sound: C     Extras: D     Films: C

 

 

With Chicago and Moulin Rouge, it seems that the full-length Musical is coming back, but what does that really mean for the art of dance?  For the last few decades, dance on film has been reduced by mostly bad music videos to two types of bad dancing:  the sloppy group dancing on the fly due to the budget constraints of the commercial format or long-tired hard, robotic group dancing that can be traced back to John Landis’ grossly overrated music-video-disguised-as-film-short for Michael Jackson’s Thriller.  It no secret that choreographers and dancers never get the respect they deserve either.

 

This is why the new DVD shorts collection Dance For Camera was so intriguing a proposition.  They are six short films that are not music videos or Film Musicals, so what does that leave us to see.  The result turns out to be some experimental, abstract works that are delivered with mixed results.  They are:

 

Reines D’Un Jour (25:53, 1996, 1.85 X 1, color, stereo, Switzerland) – people dance on the countryside with the musical accompaniment of cowbells and actual cows in this mixed piece of people roll-dancing in the Alps.  Pascal Magnin directs this experimental work that does not pay off as much as it could, despite the dancers and choreographers Marie Nespolo & Christine Kung.

 

Measure (6:36, 2001, 1.33 X 1, monochrome, stereo surround, USA) – One of the best here, co-directors Gaelen & Dayna Hanson (who did the choreography) come up with an interesting routine between a man and woman and how connected they really are or are not.  This is short and to the point, which is why it is as effective as it is.

 

Rest In Peace (9:25, 2000, 1.33 x 1, color, stereo surround, UK/Nederlands) – The Hans Hof Ensemble offer the dancing and choreography in this average piece about what is and is not buried.  They also seem to be asking about what can truly be buried and what actually stays so.  Director Annick Vroom might be onto something and ought to consider following up this idea.

 

A Village Trilogy (22:36, 1995, 1.33 X 1, monochrome, mono, Canada) – This is one of the better films here, trying to visually recapture the fallout feelings of WWII, especially in the middle of nowhere.  Director/choreographer Laura Taler understands the subject matter she is approaching and the result is authentic.  Some parts work better than others, but it is the best of the longer works here.

 

Cornered (4:38, 1.33 x 1, monochrome, mono, Canada) – This is the best piece of all, dealing with an incredible dance sequence layed-out and directed by Michael Downing.  It focuses on various camera angles that trap the subject, a woman in a black jumpsuit, struggling all over the place.  The use of lighting adds to the action, while even the grain content of the film seems to be knowingly applied for effect.

 

Contrecoup (24:19, 1.85 X 1, color, stereo, Switzerland) – The finale piece is somewhat ambitious, but is foiled by a mixed attempt at abstract narrative, foreshadowed by an obnoxious and unnecessary use of bad analog video footage!  That is always a bad sign of bad filmmaking unwinding before your eyes, as Jonathan Demme proved with his incredibly horrid The Truth About Charlie.  Director Pascal Magnin was did better with the first film in this set.

 

 

Even when there is letterboxing, none of the shorts that are widescreen are anamorphically enhanced.  Picture quality varies here, typical of such shorts sets, but they are good considering the low budgets on some of these films, as well as the various film formats they were shot on.  Dolby Digital is the sound encoding format, mono, stereo, or 4.0 matrix Pro Logic surround.  Your receiver will not necessarily kick in the surround films that way, unless you make it, so note the sound formats above.

 

To conclude, this runs about 95 minutes, and has no major extras.  First Fun includes a few trailers for three of their other films they could have put on a tape, but this release is DVD only!  Though not always a success, the company (and many others ought to continue to release such sets.  Dance fans will want to get their hands on this one.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo