Friday, February 13, 2015

Faust (1994)

Faust is a 1994 Czech film directed by Jan Švankmajer. It's a blend of live action and Claymation animation. It's not a straight re-telling of the legend, but re-interprets the Goethe and Marlowe stories.

trailer:


You can watch it online here.

Moria gives it 4 out of 5 stars and says, "Visually the film is wild." From Senses of Cinema:
Rather than merely compiling many sources into a kind of Faust mixtape, Švankmajer’s film transcends conventional linear narrative altogether, to the point where the end result resembles a dream. While it is not explicitly presented as such – there is no framing device; no Chitty Chitty Bang Bang epilogue – the intention is clear: it is as if an unseen protagonist has, following a visit to an old Prague puppet theatre, fallen asleep at home surrounded by printed adaptations of Faust as Charles Gounod’s opera tinkles from the clock radio. Perhaps we might call this protagonist “Švankmajer”.
Slannt Magazine gives it 2 1/2 out of 4 stars and concludes "though its ballast of jokes and spectacle are formidable, it often lurches about at a remote, enigmatic distance." Horrorphile calls it "essential viewing for anyone remotely interested in the dynamic power of puppetry and marionettes in the context of storytelling, also in filmmakers who challenge traditional and classic myths and fables and re-envision them with exciting new techniques". The Chicago Tribune review calls it "a nightmare not easily forgotten".Rotten Tomatoes has a critics score of 78% and an audience score of 91%.

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