Review of Lightning Over Water (1980) by Zoran S — 18 Sep 2009
This is a highly eclectic and formally eccentric work. At first, it announces itself a documentary about the last weeks of the great Nicholas Ray but it's all obviously scripted. Then it sort of mutates into a "film" that Ray and Wenders are making together or rather keep trying to make.
Throughout Wenders throws in peculiar Brechtian kinks that distance us from both the "documentary" and the "film." It's all very fascinating but one qualm (and it's a superficial one to be sure) is that it doesn't really tell you much about Nicholas Ray.
It's more an essay about the nature of collaboration and artistic influences.
This review of Lightning Over Water (1980) was written by Zoran S on 18 Sep 2009.
Lightning Over Water has generally received positive reviews.
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