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Subject:

Complexisticity

From:

Ross Macleay <[log in to unmask]>

Reply-To:

Film-Philosophy Salon <[log in to unmask]>

Date:

Sun, 11 May 2003 11:56:19 +1000

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text/plain

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Because we so value the complex, sometimes simplistic films pretend to
complexity. This pretence - call it a complexistic view of film or art or
whatever  - is I think what Robert means by 'a complex surface concealing
simple ideas.'

One particular genre of film that is prone to it is the intermingling tales
genre. I actually like the genre but I think it slightly spoils for me
Altmanns otherwise very good film SHORT CUTS.  MAGNOLIA and LANTANA are
other (lesser) works that also suffer. Perhaps the problem is the contrived
way that the stories are linked up. In fact such linking amounts to a
reduction of the complexity. It simplifies things, yet in doing so the film
still seems to want have the prestige of complexity that all those at first
seemingly unrelated stories promised.

Robert mentioned Antonioni in another post. Here is a filmmaker whose spaces
and emptiness, whose minimalist affinities, are actually a sign of
complexity. I was watching that wonderful last scene in THE PASSENGER
recently and thinking such things.

Perhaps another kind of film that is complexistic is (to avert to the
discussion of diegesis) is the film that tries to make up for its simplistic
'diegesis' by piling on non-diegetic frippery (ie movies that overdo or
otherwise misuse music). Overcutting of some dance films (eg CHICAGO) might
be another instance. Instead of the complexity of the dance we are fed the
complexistic style of the editing.

I suspect that many seemingly minimalist films are often films that appear
simple because they are too complex for us initially to see the complexity
as anything more than noise - noise being just complexity in which the
pattern escapes us. I should test this thesis on Bresson. Now there is a
filmmaker who would have no truck with complexisticity.

Ross

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