[NIGHT SKY
screens Wednesday September 26th at 7:00 pm at the Cleveland Museum
of Art. Filmmaker Alison O'Daniel (a former Cinematheque ticker taker
and CIA graduate) will be present to answer questions after the
screening.]
You ever notice how when someone is
able to remember a particularly vivid dream in detail, they feel the
need to share it? It's utterly fascinating to them, so
they assume everyone else will want to hear all about it as well. Of course
for those listening to the dreamer recounting their adventures in
slumberland, it is very often a tedious experience. Watching NIGHT
SKY feels a lot like that.
The
film begins with a 9 minute “overture” in which we get to watch a
black screen while avante garde music plays. Then we get a brief shot
of the desert before the screen goes black again. This time,
subtitles pop up, suggesting that we close our eyes. Considering how
little there has been to see up til now, one is inclined to take the
advice, or perhaps just shut off the DVD or walk out of the theater,
depending on the context one is watching this in. Finally, at the 14
minute mark, the film's title comes onscreen and things start to
happen.
For
the next hour, NIGHT SKY
hops back and forth between a dance contest and a lesbian couple
whose car breaks down in the desert. Eventually we learn that these
two scenarios are connected by a green circle in the desert sky which
opens up on the floor of the auditorium where the dance contest is
taking place. A dog enters the desert from the dance contest
universe. The couple walks through the desert and the dancers dance.
Otherwise, very little is said or happens.
There's
nothing about the film that I can say is “bad”, and certainly on
a technical level it's quite well made. Occasionally there are some
arresting images to catch the eye, and I found the soundtrack
effective and compelling in its own right. That doesn't change the
fact that I was completely disinterested in the film as a whole. 2
out of 4 stars.
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