Review of The Long Day Closes (1992) by Cassandra M — 10 Feb 2011
If you see poetry as a way of looking at life- a particular awareness or appreciation perhaps- then this film is about as close as you can get to a representation of poetry on film (along with Davies earlier- and quite similar biographical film- 'Distant Voices, Still Lives').
Memory sometimes reduces things into metonymy, and this could be used to explain the beautiful simplicity of the visuals- usually emphasising a certain aspect of living- time passing, light hitting a surface etc... bringing it out of obscurity and making the viewer focus singularly on that aspect... which is why this film could be labelled transcendental. Things that pass, or are taken for granted in everyday life transcend themselves in this film.
If you have enjoyed this film I would strongly recommend that you see 'Distant Voices, Still Lives' as well as the great works of directors such as Robert Bresson and Andrei Tarkovsky- examples of other directors whose gaze turns life into poetry.
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This review of The Long Day Closes (1992) was written by Cassandra M on 10 Feb 2011.
The Long Day Closes has generally received positive reviews.
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