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The Clock (Christian Marclay, 2010)

Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 7:36 pm
by onedimension
Anyone been able to see this? It sounds fascinating, like Andy Warhol x Youtube sprawl x Tarantino obsessiveness.. There's a write-up at nybooks

Re: The Clock (Christian Marclay, 2010)

Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 8:10 pm
by Drucker
Is this Christian Marclay the same as the turntablist? Never been a big fan of his music (which if it is him, is funny cus they say his experience is "in sound") but this film seems interesting.

Re: The Clock (Christian Marclay, 2010)

Posted: Tue Jun 28, 2011 8:55 pm
by Alan Smithee
I saw this when it played New York back in the winter actually. Thanks for reminding me, I'm going to throw it on my running top 10 now. It is indeed fascinating. What might surprise you is how emotionally effecting it is. It's real power comes from making us constantly aware of the time and while that may sound like an obvious statement I think film buffs might find themselves having a particularly poignant experience with it considering just how much time in our lives we spend watching movies.

It's so beautifully edited and thoughtfully scored that the persistent marking of time (sometimes the minute, sometimes down to the very second) becomes hypnotic rather than tedious. This was my experience not everyones. Some have pointed out that it's the opposite of escapist cinema, rather than losing yourself and track of time you always know exactly what time it is and are always asking yourself, "Isn't there something I should be doing."

I went at 2 o'clock in the morning. Waited in line for an hour. When I finally got in I was very lucky, I was escorted to a comfortable sofa and didn't have to sit against the wall on the perimeter as many were. I settled in and lost track of anything else in the world. I expected to only be interested for an hour or so and then the novelty would wear off and I would go home. In fact I was riveted and ended up staying 3 1/2 hours. Only going home because I needed sleep.

It was an event. People waiting in high winds in the freezing cold outside. Strangers talking to each other in line about all sorts of things. Marathon sessions inside. No one wanting to leave because they don't wanna miss what happens in the next hour and they may never be able to see it again. Communal like a movie theater rock concert.

By 6AM we were watching various sunrises from various films and I decided I had to go home. When I got outside the sun in the real world was just coming up and it almost felt like I hadn't stopped watching. It just went on and on and it was going on in front of me and without me. Someone pointed out that it's not a film that you play but a film you set.

If you get a chance I would check it out. It's not as pretentious or high concept as it sounds. It's just a very ambitious very beautiful collage.

Re: The Clock (Christian Marclay, 2010)

Posted: Wed Jun 29, 2011 1:47 am
by onedimension
I think it's the same Marclay- actually, it sounds like music is the best analogy for the film- the cinematic version of a record sampling & remixing 100s of songs- but even more insanely labor-intensive..

Re: The Clock (Christian Marclay, 2010)

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 7:02 pm
by kidc85
Saw this at the British Art Show 7 exhibition and walked into the gallery screening without knowing what it was. As soon as I realised what was going on I couldn't control myself and burst out laughing. Smithee's comments are perceptive, I'd only add that the film is surprisingly narrative in form. For the period I watched The Clock there was the impression of a dozen different miniature narrative strands, disappearing as quickly as they appeared, almost imperceptibly fading in and out of the interaction between the disparate clips.

There was an inevitable but-is-it-art? debate around the BAS, but even if it's nothing more than an elaborate joke it's still original and audacious, which must count for something.

Re: The Clock (Christian Marclay, 2010)

Posted: Sat Jul 02, 2011 8:26 pm
by JAP
This is something I really would like to see but probably the catalogue is the closest thing I'll get. Although it's viewed too quickly... :wink:

There are some clips, here and here. Also found these New York Times articles (1 & 2) interesting. The Sight&Sound article/interview is available online and the project got some Observations by David Bordwell.