The Best Old Movies on a Big Screen This Week: NYC Repertory Cinema Picks, October 7-13
Cat’s Cradle (1959)
Directed by Stan Brakhage
Brakhage’s early short isn’t one of the avant-garde legend’s fully abstract creations, with its intercutting between images of visible human figures, objects and, yes, a cat. But considering how quickly Brakhage cuts between his shots, and how the whirlwind end result so resolutely defies easy comprehension, much less interpretation, it might as well be abstract. An image of a person’s foot on a bedspread becomes a recurring motif; human figures are glimpsed, some of their shots repeated in the rapid-fire montage; floral wallpaper, embroidered fabric, and a welcome mat are all bathed in an otherworldly reddish glow. Brakhage’s editing rhythms vary throughout, from rapid-fire montages to slightly longer shots that feel like relative oases of contemplation. Through it all, there are indeed close-ups of a cat, whether it’s the entire body or just the eyes, neck, and head. Are we seeing things from the cat’s perspective, at least on occasion? Maybe. Maybe not. Whatever Cat’s Cradle ultimately is, it offers a crystalline example of Brakhage’s lifelong mission to offer us fresh ways of seeing, to sharpen our perception of the world around us. Kenji Fujishima (October 10, 2pm, as part of the Museum of the Moving Image’s “Cat-vant Garde Film Show”)