Blue (Derek Jarman, 1993)

[foggy eyes]

At last! Thrilled (and can't wait for the Beaver comparison).

[meanwhile]

Art Eye's Blue also includes Glitterbug, a collage of Jarman's Super-8 footage from the 1970s & 80s, and which was broadcast on BBC2's Arena programme shortly after his death. With its deluge of silent images (to a soundtrack from Brian Eno), it's the perfect accompaniment to the minimal richness of Blue.

[Tommaso]

Transported over here from the Beaver Comparisons thread, regarding the print quality of the new AE release and my recommendation of the German disc instead:

This is very much a matter of opinion. As I argued in my Sight & Sound review, the presence of dirt and other blemishes - which are nowhere near as excessive as Gary implies - could be said to enhance the viewing experience by offering a reminder of Jarman's defiantly lo-fi aesthetic.

That reminds me of the question whether crackles and pops on a vinyl record enhance the lo-fi aesthetics of some bands or not. Personally I'd say, everything that was intended by the artist, even if it seems 'wrong' technically, is allright; but everything that just is added due to technical problems or sloppyness later on, is not. If Jarman had wanted the scratches, he could have created them by scratching the negative, for example. Perhaps he indeed considered that prints would be worn sooner or later, I don't know really. But the marks for me would be distractions from the overall meditative effect.

Otherwise, why not just generate a perfect blue screen electronically?

Because a lot of the effect depends on the film grain here and the tiny 'dancing' of the grains. But this, I believe, was an intentional 'imperfection', just as his decision to use Super 8 in many of his early films (ok, due to financial considerations doubtless) and then turning the limitations to artistic advantage.

[Adam]

I would suggest if interested that you get the excellent CD from Mute of the soundtrack to the film, rather than any DVD of 'Blue'

Not sure about this. The point is that that blue should engulf you, draw you in, calm your visual senses in order to open your mind to what is going on on the soundtrack. It's pretty much like meditation. And it cannot be achieved by just looking at a cd-size blue paper. The bigger the screen for this, the better.

Tommaso, exactly the same effect can be achieved by closing one's eyes (it is not the colour that matters!). However I take your point but suggest for a blue screen to be effective you would need to be at a picturehouse, not in front of a TV, hence the futility of a DVD in my opinion.

I agree with Tommaso here. I've seen it in a gallery room as well where the whole space is suffused with the blue layer, and I think it is an essential part of the experience - not just the text and words, but the space and color. Ideally also as a shared experience with other viewers.

[Zazou dans le Metro]

There is also a live version of the cd available too and I was hoping to re-live the experience this coming Friday for real with the performance at the Serpentine. Unfortunately it clashes with the Jancso showing in London so Blue has lost out. (Do I get an award for travelling a 1000 kilometres for this I wonder?? Any other prize nerds out there going?)

However when I get back home I'll put on the soundtrack cd ,tune my TV to maximum brightness from the dvd at rest output and in my white-walled room, suffuse myself in Yves Klein blue and succumb as always to becoming a snivelling heap during the final delphinium moment.