Holzman decides to film his everyday life to make it real, in the hope that some kind of truth about the meaning of his life will emerge. Instead, his obsessive filming alienates everyone & his girlfriend is replaced by a very fraught love/hate relationship with his camera.
This is a 1960s spoof documentary satirizing the cinema verite movement of the period, showing that cinema, especially documentary, is voyeuristic & distorts rather than reveals truth (although the film still manages to capture some nice documentary vignettes of New York in 1967 such as a hilarious encounter with a transsexual). Of course the interest in the film now is that it prefigures the endless confessional video diaries & reality TV of half a century later. It could also be the first mockumentary.
Although low budget black & white, compared to most 1960s underground movies "Holzman's Diary" is extremely well made - McBride went on to make films such as (Tarantino fave) the remake of "Breathless" (ironic as Godard is satirized here) & cameraman Michael Wadleigh went on to shoot for Scorcese & direct "Woodstock". The weakest thing in the movie for me was the main actor, although presumably he is supposed to be "bad" - as indeed another character, Pepe, says in a funny monologue-to-camera denouncing the film.
The DVD also has an accompanying film "My Girlfriend's Wedding" (in colour but much rougher) which strangely contradicts "Holzman's Diary" in that it is surely a genuinely honest & truthful confessional documentary, about a mixed up English woman who has come to the USA to "find the revolution". McBride probably thought she would be Anna Karina to his Godard, but the results are unexpectedly funny, poignant & disturbing. A haunting insight into 60s craziness.
The DVD also includes a recent interview with McBride about the 2 films & an informative booklet essay from critic Jonathan Rosenbaum, who was involved with McBride's circle at the time. All in all, full marks to Second Run for this release.
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David Holzman's Diary [DVD] [1968] B000AWKSYG
L.M. Kit Carson
Secondrun
David Holzman's Diary [DVD] [1968]
Welcome
two gems from 60s underground
Holzman decides to film his everyday life to make it real, in the hope that some kind of truth about the meaning of his life will emerge. Instead, his obsessive filming alienates everyone & his girlfriend is replaced by a very fraught love/hate relationship with his camera. This is a 1960s spoof documentary satirizing the cinema verite movement of the period, showing that cinema, especially documentary, is voyeuristic & distorts rather than reveals truth (although the film still manages to capture some nice documentary vignettes of New York in 1967 such as a hilarious encounter with a transsexual). Of course the interest in the film now is that it prefigures the endless confessional video diaries & reality TV of half a century later. It could also be the first mockumentary. Although low budget black & white, compared to most 1960s underground movies "Holzman's Diary" is extremely well made - McBride went on to make films such as (Tarantino fave) the remake of "Breathless" (ironic as Godard is satirized here) & cameraman Michael Wadleigh went on to shoot for Scorcese & direct "Woodstock". The weakest thing in the movie for me was the main actor, although presumably he is supposed to be "bad" - as indeed another character, Pepe, says in a funny monologue-to-camera denouncing the film. The DVD also has an accompanying film "My Girlfriend's Wedding" (in colour but much rougher) which strangely contradicts "Holzman's Diary" in that it is surely a genuinely honest & truthful confessional documentary, about a mixed up English woman who has come to the USA to "find the revolution". McBride probably thought she would be Anna Karina to his Godard, but the results are unexpectedly funny, poignant & disturbing. A haunting insight into 60s craziness. The DVD also includes a recent interview with McBride about the 2 films & an informative booklet essay from critic Jonathan Rosenbaum, who was involved with McBride's circle at the time. All in all, full marks to Second Run for this release.
HJ
9 May 2007
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