Review of On the Silver Globe (1989) by Todd J — 01 Jun 2008

It's been quite awhile since I've been baffled by a film. Even a flick as remote as Inland Empire gave me somewhere to sink in my hands to grab a foothold, but I have no idea what the hell Andrzej Zulawski is really trying to get at here.

Maybe it's the endless Shakespearian monologues or the fact that those lousy Commies cut production when it was about 60% done (I think Zulawski claims more, but when you take all the sections that he describes that were cut from the narrative, it becomes a four hour long flick, I'd bet).

From time to time throughout the narrative, the story will stop dead and cut over to contemporary (late 80's when the Polish allowed Zulawski back into the country to at least get a version of it set to go out) Polish streets while the director explains in a voiceover the events of the narrative.

Who knows how the really long version would have faired? What I think is most important here is to thank God that we have what we do of this film. When you want to talk about how progressive 70's cinema was, you really need to forget about it when referencing this film.

There's absolutely nothing approaching the singularity and uniqueness of Zulawski's vision. Wisely, most of the film is set in rural landscapes that, with a little color correction, become as foreign as Godard's Paris in Alphaville.

Zulawski's camera never quits, constantly doing something that not even the most brash of contempoary filmmakers would attempt. Perhaps most astounding is a sequence that takes place completely as "lost tapes," if you will, that were taken from a civilization in which the beings have camera on their chests.

It sounds ridiculous, and at times, the technique gets fudged, but even with the glut of recent flicks like Cloverfield or Diary of the Dead or even The Blair Witch Project, I have never seen anything comparable.

Zulawski's vision of the civilization's development and the ensuing problems when an astronaut decides to go to the country of the "lost tapes" origin. His narrative is even more dense, taking on those allegorical religious drives that Jodorowski rocks at the same time (A.

J. also does surrealism but couldn't be further apart from Zulawski in terms of style). Taken with plot alone, we have very distinct commentary on the development of civilization and, I think, an idea of how religion comes to life.

That said, I'm not sure that all of the religious imagery and crucifixions are meant to comment on religion as a whole or offer a narrative critical of religion. Of course, a monkey wrench gets thrown into the whole thing with the endless soliloquies that the characters indulge in about every ten minutes.

I'm not sure if the subtitles simply butcher the intent, but what I read these people saying seemed to be long-winded for the sake of it rather than to express any kind of unified, relevant idea. That said, I could be being grossly unfair.

A film as dense as this certainly warrants multiple viewings. Even if one discovered a lack of philosophical weight to most of the picture, viewings could still be recommended on the sheer strength of Zulawski's visual direction.

He casts some of the most grotesquely original and often gorgeous things you've ever seen. That's not to mention a number of eye-popping scenes that need to be seen to be believed. There's one scene involving stakes that I simply cannot comprehend the making of.

The Silver Globe's certainly not for everybody. I expect 50% of the people who see it watch it in 15 minute intervals, but if you're looking for a mind-shattering epic that's unlike anything you've ever seen, you're on the right boat, buddy.

**** out've *****.