![]() ![]() ![]() And it’s borne out by the film itself, which borrows liberally from the past but proves less specifically referential than, say, any Tarantino flick. In the long run the conversations to be had will be far more interesting then complaining about how “The Force Awakens” is just not original enough, or how Marvel Studios totally missed the mark on its latest foray into our childhood lore.As origin stories go, that’s a good one. I could go on and on about the film, but that would certainly muddy the waters of what I’m trying to do with this post to get people to check the film out, and in turn to continue to think and talk about films like this so that challenging cinema continues to be created. He’s crafted a film that both documents and indicts the artistic, philosophical, and social leanings of past decades, while at the same time recreating the impossible realities represented in the garishly illustrated VHS cassette boxes of his youth. Along the way Cosmatos weaves an odd cinematic tapestry. Working in tandem with a brilliant score by Sinoia Caves, the film pulls you into it’s dark alternate reality of perverse 80’s excess, failed New Age ideals, and techno-body-horror, forcing you to drift along with its trance-inducing pace until the final shot. ![]() It’s in this imagery that the true soul, the substance of “Beyond The Black Rainbow” can be found. Cosmatos and his Director of Photography Norm Li captured some truly haunting visuals, (with the help of some intriguing set design) undoubtedly influenced by any number of 70’s and 80’s sources, but to my mind pays homage to Kubrick first and foremost. The more I thought about “Beyond The Black Rainbow” the more I came to understand just how important the imagery, the at times sprawling space between proper exposition really is.Īnd it’s here again the film suffers at the hand of critics, one going so far to say the experience was akin to staring into a “lava lamp” for two hours… In other words – all style, no substance… An interesting complaint taken in the context of today’s very unoriginal big-budget Hollywood landscape.īeing someone who passionately pursues cinematography it was of course the imagery that very much stood out to me. However, those who quickly dismissed the film because they had trouble “getting it” are doing it a disservice. There’s no denying that comprehending the full scope of the story could be considered challenging at times, it’s structure obscured by a pacing that modern audiences have trouble dealing with. The Institute has become his malevolent playground, a place to further his goal of trying to control Elena’s abilities. Barry Nyle is her sadistic captor, played skillfully by Michael Rogers. Without going in too much depth, the story, set in 1983, revolves around a young girl with telepathic abilities named Elena (Eva Allan) who is held hostage at a place called the Arboria Institute. To put that statement further into context I watched BTBR right after a viewing of Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus” and even now 3 years removed I can easily say Cosmatos’ effort, was far more inspiring to me. To confess, upon my first viewing at a midnight showing in Boston I was inclined to agree with the detractors, but after I walked out of the theater there was no denying that the experience would stay with me. On this point I have to say he’s succeeded gloriously, though others might suggest otherwise, as the film ended up with a 50% on Rotten Tomatoes – with much of the criticism being focused on the story. In interviews Cosmatos has said that he set out “to create a film that is a sort of imagining of an old film that doesn’t exist.” ![]() Undoubtedly 2010’s sci-fi/horror mind bender “Beyond The Black Rainbow” deserves mention.ĭirected by Panos Cosmatos, the film can be best described as an acid trip coated in a thick candy shell of baby boomer retro. As I started to discuss in my previous post, I’ve become interested in talking about films that run counter to the current Hollywood paradigm. ![]()
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