A Blast From The Past: Patriotism

Posted on May 1, 2018 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Flag (Erin Nicole Bowman, 2010)

Today is Loyalty Day!

If you haven’t ever heard of Loyalty Day before … well, then you’re probably a subversive or something. Loyalty Day has been a real holiday since 1955. That was when President Dwight D. Eisenhower proclaimed May 1st to be Loyalty Day. (I’m going to guess that this was done largely to provide an alternative to International Workers Day or Communist New Year or whatever May Day was known as back then.) The official statutory definition reads as follows:

(a) Designation.— May 1 is Loyalty Day.(b) Purpose.— Loyalty Day is a special day for the reaffirmation of loyalty to the United States and for the recognition of the heritage of American freedom.(c) Proclamation.— The President is requested to issue a proclamation—

(1) calling on United States Government officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on Loyalty Day; and

(2) inviting the people of the United States to observe Loyalty Day with appropriate ceremonies in schools and other suitable places.

So, in honor of Loyalty Day, here’s a short film from 1972. It’s called Patriotism and it was apparently made to teach school children what it meant to be a patriot. Apparently, it means working as a crossing guard and wearing a vaguely fascist-looking vest while doing so. It also means keeping an eye out for weeds and trash in your neighborhood. My favorite part of this film is when the kid spots the turned over garbage can and gets a look of disgust on his face. You can just tell he’s thinking, “Those goddamn hippies.”

(For the record, that’s what I always think whenever I can’t find a pen at work.)

Personally, I agree that making a good neighborhood is the first step in making a good country so I definitely applaud the kids for taking the time to clean their neighborhood up. Still, I have to wonder: where are the adults? How many grown ups walked past the overturned trash can and just ignored it? Perhaps all the adults in the neighborhood were so disillusioned by George McGovern dumping Tom Eagleton as his running mate that they just gave up on life. Who knows? 1972 was apparently a pretty traumatic year for some people. Myself, I just find it amusing that there was a politician named McGovern. That’s like a seminarian named McClergy.

Speaking of adults, this short film was hosted by actor Bob Crane, who would be murdered six years later and whose life would serve as the basis for a rather depressing movie called Auto Focus.

Anyway, in the immortal words of Team America: World Police, “America! Fuck yeah!” Let’s make this the best Loyalty Day ever!

A Blast From The Past: I Just Don’t Dig Him (produced by The Department Of Mental Health, State of Connecticut)

Posted on April 20, 2018 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The haunting opening scene of I Just Don’t Dig Him…

Ah, parents and their children!

It doesn’t matter what year it is or where they live or who they are. Parents never understand their children and children never understand their parents and, ultimately, there’s always that one friend who ends up nearly chopping his finger off.

At least, that’s the message that I got from watching the 1970 educational film, I Just Don’t Dig Him.

This film was produced by the state of Connecticut’s Department of Mental Health and apparently, it was designed to show that adults and teenagers actually had more in common than they realized. For instance, in this film, both groups share an intense loathing for each other.

The film is about a father and his son. The father spends all of his time complaining about his son. The son spends all of his time complaining about his father. For some reason, we’re treated to a really gross close-up of the son’s bare feet. Meanwhile, the father applies aftershave as if the fate of the world depended upon it. The son’s best friend assures him that his father isn’t so bad. The father’s best friend assures him that his son isn’t so bad. And then the son’s friend accidentally chops off his finger while fooling around with a car engine. The father helps to stop the bleeding while his son stares at him resentfully. The message appears to be that adults and children need to communicate better but, ultimately, you want an adult around if anyone starts bleeding.

I like films like this, largely because I’m an unapologetic history nerd and I Just Don’t Dig Him is such a product of its time that it might as well be wearing bell bottoms and dropping brown acid. Watching the film today, it’s hard not to be amused by how intense both the father and the son are about … well, everything. When the father shaves, you’re first thought is, “That man should not be allowed to handle anything sharp.” When the son talks on the phone, you feel bad for whoever’s having to listen to him whine. Generations are at war, this film seems to say, and there’s no hope until the younger generation realizes that they have no business working on cars.

With this being 4/20 and the world currently being caught up in its own increasingly tedious generational war, today seems like the perfect time to share I Just Don’t Dig Him!

A Blast From The Past: Case Study: LSD

Posted on October 4, 2017 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Though it’s been a while since we last did so, we occasionally like to share old educational and promotional films here at the Shattered Lens. For some reason, we always seem to end up sharing quite a lot of them in October. Something about the over-the-top educational format just tends to bring out the ghoulish melodrama in some aspiring filmmakers.

Take Case Study: LSD, for instance! This 3 and a half minute film is from 1969. It was made to dissuade viewers from experimenting with LSD but I get the feeling that I probably just mostly inspired people to try to recreate the infamous hot dog scene.

It’s a good film for October, though. Plus, I like looking at all the hippies in their hippie clothes. GET A HAIRCUT, YOU HIPPIES!

Believe it or not, Case Study: LSD has a page over at the IMDb but no director is listed. Judging from the film’s use of still frames, I’m going to guess that it was directed by Chris Marker.

Enjoy!

Short Film Review: Girl and a Scar (dir by David Cave)

Posted on July 18, 2017 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I always enjoy watching and reviewing short films.

The short film format challenges both the filmmaker and the viewer. For the filmmaker, the challenge is to take the audience on a full cinematic journey in a limited amount of time. It’s one thing when you have two hours to tell a story, it’s something entirely different when you’ve only got 15 minutes. As a result, the visuals and the acting become even more important. You can’t have one wasted shot or one performance that feels out-of-place. For the viewer (and the reviewer, for that matter), the challenge is to relearn how to watch a movie. Short films force you to pay attention to every single detail because, often times, it’s only through catching those details that you’ll be able to understand what you’ve just seen. In short films, there’s no time for the director or screenwriter to come back, take you by the hand, and say, “This is what it all means.” Instead, it’s up to you to figure it out. I love a challenge and that’s why I always appreciate and enjoy the chance to watch and review a short film.

For instance, I recently had a chance to watch Girl and a Scar, a 15-minute film from moviemaker David Cave. It’s a challenging film, one that is full of surreal imagery and haunting atmosphere. While the ever-present wind howls on the soundtrack, we find ourselves looking at an isolated house, one that would not be out-of-place in a Jean Rollin vampire film. Inside the house, the Girl (Ileana Cardy) cuts herself with a razor blade. Throughout the movie, the wound grows, almost as if it has a mind of its own. We see the Girl outside, standing in front of what appears to be an industrial park and watching as a young man walks away from her and then as a man in a … well, I’m not going to spoil the details. Let’s just say that she’s approached by a man in a very memorable costume. In between the scenes of the Girl walking along the beach and stumbling through her isolated home, there are snippets of animation. We see the girl in the forest, a cartoon that is occasionally eating and occasionally throwing up. Connecting it all is the sound of that howling wind and that ever-growing wound on the Girl’s stomach.

The imagery is frequently shocking and disturbing and yet, because Cave does such a good job framing his images and maintaining the film’s atmosphere, the film is always watchable. It helps that Ileana Cardy, though having no dialogue, gives a good and empathetic performance as the Girl. You may not always understand what is happening to here but you want to understand and that’s the important thing. From the minute it opens, Girl and a Scar invites you to investigate and try to solve its mysteries. With the mix of body horror and animation, Girl and a Scar at times feels like a fairy tale told by David Cronenberg.

Short films are not necessarily easy to track down but I do recommend making the effort. Hopefully, this one will soon start making the festival circuit.

A Merry Christmas and Enjoy the Greatest Christmas Film Ever Made!

Posted on December 25, 2016 by Arleigh

We celebrate the 7th year anniversary of the site and we continue a yearly holiday ritual over here at Through the Shattered Lens. I present to all of you readers, visitors and passer-byes the greatest holiday film ever created since forever, ever. I know it’s one that resident anime contributor pantsukudasai56 looks forward to each and every Christmas.

It is a film full of joy and happiness. Of giving and sharing with loved ones that which matters most. This is a film that best describes what Through the Shattered Lens stands for and works towards.

It even has a scene straight out of a Disney classic.

So, from all of us at Through the Shattered Lens….

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!

Short Film Review: You Can’t Escape (dir by Renner Zatye)

Posted on September 20, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Remember that old game where you would go up to a stranger’s house, ring the doorbell, and then run off? It’s one of those simple games that really shouldn’t be that much fun and yet, strangely, it is. The thrill of the game really doesn’t come from the fact that you’re making someone open the front door for no good reason. Instead, the thrill comes from seeing if you can run away before that door opens.

You Can’t Escape, the latest short film from Rubbish Rebel Media, opens with a child (Rayce Zatye) walking through an apparently suburban neighborhood and doing just that. He runs up to houses, he rings the doorbell, and then he runs off. As he does this, we can’t help but notice that the neighborhood appears to be deserted. Where are all the other people? Does anyone ever actually answer their door? From the way that the film is directed, we get the feeling that someone may be watching the child but who?

And when the child returns to his own house … well, I won’t spoil the film. Let’s just say that it concludes with a surreal bang.

You Can’t Escape lasts just a little over 2 minutes and the end leaves us with just as many questions as answers. That’s okay, though. The key to horror is the fact that not all questions have easy answers. Director Renner Zatye emphasizes atmosphere and, despite the film’s short length, he captures several uneasy images. The scenes of Racye Zatye walking through that deserted neighborhood are undeniably creepy. A scene where the child walks by several trees especially made me nervous. This is one of those films that asks you to consider what could be hiding behind those trees and whether or not you’re ever as safe as you think.

You Can’t Escape should be getting a release in a few months so be sure to keep an eye out for it!

What Thor Was Doing During Civil War

Posted on August 28, 2016 by Arleigh

For the past decade or so, Marvel Studios has had a major presence in Hall H of San Diego Comic-Con. They’ve made it a point to hype up their upcoming films. From their very first one with Iron Man all the way back in 2007 to this year’s upcoming Doctor Strange and next year’s Spider-Man: Homecoming and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. One film coming out next year that only got a sizzle reel of concept art was Thor: Ragnarok. By the time of San Diego Comic-Con the film had only been filming for a couple weeks so any usable footage wasn’t ready to be shown.

Taika Waititi, the film’s director, decided that a sizzle reel of concept art for the film wouldn’t do and ended up filming a short 3-minute mockumentary detailing the whereabouts of one Thor Odinson during this past summer’s Civil War event. People who attended the Hall H presentation were raving about this short film and now the rest of the world gets a chance to see it as Marvel Studios have released the footage for all to experience.

A Blast From The Past: Capitalism

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

If you’re a long time reader of the site, you may know that I occasionally enjoy tracking down old educational films. If nothing else, they’re good time capsules and you know how much I love history. And, since we’re in the middle of an election year and people are tossing around all sorts of labels and claims about history, I figured why not share something from the past?

Capitalism is from 1948 and it features a group of teenagers (who apparently have their own radio talk show) sitting around and debating whether or not capitalism is a good thing or a bad thing. After spending a long amount of time debating whether or not local storekeeper Mr. Brown is a businessmen or a parasite, the teenagers (who all appear to be in their mid-20s) start their show and immediately start to visualize various adults giving their opinion on capitalism. The teenagers also remind us that “this is your forum. What is capitalism?”

Since the film is from 1948, you can probably guess that the message of this film should not be mistaken for the message of Michael Moore’s documentary of the same name.

As I watched Capitalism, I couldn’t help but wonder where those teenagers were now. I imagine that some of them are probably dead but undoubtedly, there’s a few who are still alive and they’re probably still freaking out over their grandchildren voting for Bernie Sanders.

“Why, I remember when I used to host a radio forum and me and my high school peers very politely discussed this very subject!”

“Whatever, grandpa. Have you seen my Che Guevara shirt?”

Who knows?

I just hope that Mr. Brown eventually made enough money to retire some place nice. Yes, he may have charged too much but he had the right to make a living, dammit!

Blast From the Past: A Day In The Death of Donny B (dir by Carl Fick)

Posted on January 19, 2016 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Just a few hours earlier, I was going through my DVR and I discovered that I had recorded, off of TCM, a film called A Day In The Death of Donny B. That title immediately caught my attention (and I imagine that the title is probably what inspired me to record the film in the first place). A Day In The Death of Donny B sounds like the title of something that would have come out of Andy Warhol’s Factory in the late 60s, maybe starring Joe Dallesandro as Donny B and Edie Sedgwick as herself.

So, of course, I simply had to watch it to discover just who Donny B was and how many days it would take him to die. Add to that, I also noticed that the film only lasted 15 minutes, making it the perfect viewing experience for someone, like me, who has absolutely no attention span.

Anyway, I watched it and I discovered that it’s not a Warhol film. However, it was filmed in 1969 and it contains a lot of cinéma vérité-style footage of the slums of New York City, which means that it takrd place in roughly the same world as some of Warhol’s films. It turns out that The Death of Donny B was produced by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. It’s an anti-drug film, obviously designed to speak to young and black audiences.

The film follows an African-American addict named Donny B as he wanders through the shadows of New York City and tries to scrounge up enough money to buy heroin. While we watch him go about his day, we listen to voice overs from former addicts and some of Donny’s family members. They all agree that Donny is basically a huge loser. Donny B. is credited as playing himself and he has a definite screen presence, even if he looks a bit too healthy for someone who, we’re told, shoots heroin several times a day.

The film itself is shot in harshly beautiful black-and-white and the soundtrack features a droning song (credited to someone named Harry Holt) that, for the most part, consists lyrically of: “It’s a day in the death of Donny B…” and trust me, that song will get stuck in your head. Today, of course, the main appeal of The Death of Donny B is that it’s a time capsule of when it was made. For those of us who might be curious as to what New York was like back in the dangerous 1960s, The Death of Donny B is our time machine.

And you can watch it below!

And if you happen to be Donny B, leave a comment below because we would love to hear from you!

A Merry Christmas With The Greatest Film Ever Made

Posted on December 24, 2015 by Arleigh

We celebrate the 6th year anniversary of the site and we continue a yearly holiday ritual over here at Through the Shattered Lens. I present to all of you readers, visitors and passer-byes the greatest holiday film ever created since forever, ever.

It is a film full of joy and happiness. Of giving and sharing with loved ones that which matters most. This is a film that best describes what Through the Shattered Lens stands for and works towards.

It even has a scene straight out of a Disney classic.

So, from all of us at Through the Shattered Lens….

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!