Color & Horses

Re-watching "Berlin Horses" by Le Grice again on YouTube, I have decided it was my favorite of the many movies we watched last week. Its simplistic, lo-fi beauty and shimmering use of color leave a lasting impression. In fact, its use of bright colors is perhaps so fascinating because all of the other films we watched were so devoid of color. Its mixing of negatives, its play with rhythm, and its reverse play give "Berlin Horse" a look and feel that create something unusual from the banality of these two horse scenes. Brian Eno's music throughout gives the film a playful, psychedelic, carnivalesque vibe that accentuates the vibrancy of the color's, and I especially like the way the rounds of music seem to mirror the path and pattern of the trotting horse. In its extreme use of color and exploration of visual texture, Le Grice seems heavily influenced by Len Lye's work, though the lyricism of Brakhage is also very apparent. This is a stirring and addictively beautiful film.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDj8Tc6259o