Kenneth Anger
Mouse Heaven / Foreplay / Elliott's Suicide
Format VOD
Original format video
Year 2014
Language(s) English
Artist(s) Kenneth Anger
Running time 32 min
Films
MOUSE HEAVEN (2004) 10'
FOREPLAY (2004) 07'
ELLIOTT'S SUICIDE (2004) 15'
Description
Mouse Heaven runs twelve minutes and features mostly worn, damaged Mickey Mouse objects from the Great Depression era: long shots show hundreds of sad-eyed Mickeys, antique wooden Mickeys, creepy puppets, Mickeys against dark, unsettling red backgrounds, behind display cases, on vivid purple screens, dancing and spinning on platforms to the sound of "I'm Your Puppet" (1966) by James and Bobby Purify. It's an overload of mice, and a commentary on the power of the Disney brand, or any brand, the dolls parading like soldiers in symmetrical patterns.
— "New Films from Kenneth Anger", Mary Hanlon (The Brooklyn Rail)
Foreplay: It took Kenneth Anger to transform footage of a male amateur football team warming up before practice into seven steamy, sexy, homoerotic minutes. You rarely see a full figure in Foreplay, but rather fragments of sweaty muscles, well-defined hips, and sculpted calves kicking the ball, producing flesh sounds over a techno soundtrack.
— "New Films from Kenneth Anger", Mary Hanlon (The Brooklyn Rail)
Elliott's Suicide pays tribute to American singer-songwriter Elliott Smith, in a sentimental 15-minute film, devoid of Anger's usual irony for obvious reasons. The film begins with images of the last words from friends and fans inscribed on Smith's memorial on Sunset Boulevard, then continues with footage from the Macy's parade, lingering on participants in strange costumes: some in Renaissance attire, cowboys with lassos, and beauty queens.
— "New Films from Kenneth Anger", Mary Hanlon (The Brooklyn Rail)