Movie?: 1 Giant Leap

Ran across an interesting DVD today at Half Price Books.  It's called 1 Giant Leap (2002) and it's by a British electronica duo of Jamie Catto and Duncan Bridgeman.

What makes it interesting is that it is sort of an album -- it consists of nine tracks -- and sort of a film -- consisting of nine chapters.  Each chapter is its own film, but the films are interrelated and feature some of the same people and elements.  They are meant to be played in any order, or scrambled, or looped.

They're not just music videos though.  They are kinda kaleidoscopic art films -- reminiscent perhaps of the Qatsi trilogy: Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi and Naqoyqatsi -- but with one additional layer that brings them up from "art film" to psychedelic documentary. That element is interviews.

The films interview "shamans" or "wise men" of our time, people like Brian Eno, Stewart Brand, Ram Dass, Dennis Hopper, Kurt Vonnegut, and others.  Their interviews are all cut up and interspersed with music.

The music is based upon rhythm tracks by Catto and Bridgeman, but layered over the top of those are ethnic musicians from around the world: African drummers, The Mahotella Queens, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Nenah Cherry, Baaba Mal, some Indian singer (who is very good), and many others.

In short, it's a very unusual presentation, quite unlike anything else I've ever experienced. A celebration of music, of humanity, of commonality rather then differences.  Wow.

Their second disc, What About Me? (2008), finally showed up yesterday.  It shipped from overseas somewhere (I think Germany?) which I hadn't noticed when I ordered it.

Also I hadn't noticed, it is PAL format.

Luckily I have an all-regions player that will do PAL -- just had to hook it up again and put batteries in the remote.

This movie is two discs long (346 minutes) so it'll take a while to get through it.  First ten minutes is very reminiscent of the first movie.

This movie is more about death and dying, old age, the chasm between men and women. It's a little more sobering than the utter joyousness of the first movie.

Also, for some reason, it seems a little more like cultural appropriation. There are singers in dozens of languages & cultures, but to isolate their singing, which is part of a larger trend and way of life, and mix it into a hip-hop/electronica composition... Well, it's a little disrespectful. It seemed like the first movie included more of the surrounding traditions. Maybe not.

Disc two of What About Me is seven television episodes/specials, all about how the twelve films/chapters of the main program What About Me were assembled. Sort of "a making of" cut up into one hour bites -- backstage footage, bloopers, travel shots, interviews with the musicians. I hope this series ran on TV somewhere, probably in the U.K. because it's fascinating and informative.

Thre are so many layers, so many musicians, so many interviews, so much mixing and assembling and timing and editing involved that "the making of" is as interesting as the "making of" documentaries for Avatar or King Kong.

1 Giant Leap, particularly the second disc of the second film, talks a lot about happiness -- what it is, how to get it, who is happy. The conclusion of course is that the source is internal, despite the claims of consumer goods manufacturers. Wealth does not bring happiness, in fact quite the opposite.

This has caused me to reflect on my own state. I have enough to get by, I have friends I cherish, I am no longer required to suffer smelly buffoons on a daily basis. I think, since retiring, I have become happy.

I still have some issues but overall, I'm good.

At the bridge club, there's one woman who used to be, at the best of times, somewhat brusque. She's fairly large, and her borderline hostile manner could be quite intimidating. And if you stepped out of line in the smallest way, watch out. "Does not suffer fools gladly" could have been invented to describe her.

And then she changed, overnight. Suddenly she was relaxed, smiling, even gentle. She now teaches some of the beginners, and they love her. After a couple of weeks of watching this transformation, I had to ask: "What happened?". "I retired".