Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Daisies (1966)

WHO: Directed by Vera Chytilová.

WHAT: Perhaps the most energetic, formally experimental, and socially/politically confrontational film in the Czech New Wave canon (which is saying something), Daisies is an influential film, frequently described as a feminist one, that's also a great deal of anarchic fun. Ivana Karbanová and Jitka Cerhová play a pair of teenagers, both named Marie, with such charismatic abandon that even when they're behaving insufferably or being photographed through distancing color-filters, we can't help but want to see what they'll get up to next. Though the occasional shots like the above one, in which they don't appear, are among the most innovative and beautiful in the film.

WHERE/WHEN: Today only at 3:15 and 7:00 PM at the Castro Theatre.

WHY: For the past week or so my blog may have seemed to be at cross-purposes, as I continue my project of writing a short daily blurb (like this one) about an upcoming screening, while at the same time unveiling the results of my annual "I Only Have Two Eyes" collaborative survey of the best of last year's repertory and revival cinema. For once, the two purposes line up, as an opportunity to see Daisies, which was included on loyal IOHTE contributer Maureen Russell's 2012 list, has already cropped up in 2013. If you're on the fence about attending the Castro today, take a look at her other choices and see if her taste might be a good barometer for your own potential enjoyment.

HOW: In a recently-struck 35mm print on tour from Janus, on a double-bill with Jean-Luc Godard's Pierrot Le Fou.

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