Re: experimental film vs narrative film

From: Ken Bawcom (email suppressed)
Date: Tue Apr 25 2006 - 23:06:56 PDT


Quoting john porter <email suppressed>:

> --- Ken Bawcom wrote:
>
>> The most inarguably purely
>> experimental films are the
>> totally abstract ones, as they have no narrative
>> content whatsoever,
>> and aren't documentaries.
>
> What about a totally abstract film with a narrative or
> documentary soundtrack?
>
> John Porter, Toronto, Canada
> http://www.super8porter.ca/
> email suppressed
>

I would call such films experimental narratives, or experimental
documentaries. I'm not trying to pigeon-hole anything. ALL words are
labels, and inexact. Some pieces have elements of several genres. I
don't want to impose limits in any way. I'm not claiming one genre is
superior to another. I'm not a Bergman fan, but I love Fellini,
Kurosawa, and much other mainstream narrative film. But, it should be
clear to everyone that experimental film is much rarer than mainstream
narrative. I have seen some amazingly bad experimental film. But, there
has to be less bad experimental than mainstream narrative, since there
is so much more mainstream narrative. And, as I've said before, there
is some mainstream experimental. There is nothing exclusive in the
terms.

Ken B.

"Those who would give up essential liberty
to purchase a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty, nor safety."
Benjamin Franklin 1775

"I know that the hypnotized never lie... Do ya?"
Pete Townshend 1971

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