Ghosts Before Breakfast

I really liked Ghosts Before Breakfast from the films we watched last Thursday, but I can't pinpoint what it was that made it so appealing. Around the time that film went on my mind was slipping a bit maybe... my notes from that were badly written and disjointed: "The tie and collar are going to have a party!" "The Hats' Day Off!" As a surreal excursion into avant garde film, these objects were acting pretty quirky. No matter what the people could do or wanted to do, nothing seemed to go right.

Visually, Ghosts Before Breakfast is intriguing. I love the shot of the men disappearing behind the pole, but I can't think of how they did it! Clever editing, just like the man on the ladder I would bet. Out of all the films from last Thursday, this one was playful. It was like a day off, for the hats and other objects, but also for the viewer. For some reason, this film made me think about a relaxed Saturday afternoon. Why? Was it the tea taken in the garden? The one hat playing in the stream of water from the fire hose?

And after all of the minor chaos, the men sit down in the garden and the hats land obediently on their heads! What does it mean? Are the hats rebelling or aren't they?