Monday, January 20, 2025

THE SCHOOL OF DAVID LYNCH: GUY MADDIN *UPDATED*


Eraserhead / 
Keyhole

I knew David Lynch got me - Guy Maddin, gapersblock.com


Now that David Lynch has passed, his legacy and influence are being assessed and/or reassessed by everyone. There’s lots of lists, thinkpieces and threads on the idea of “Lynchian” and what movies fall under that category. Personally - I think it’s time to retire the Lynchian term (if you read my blog regularly then you know I’ve been pushing this for years). The term is almost always misused and it cheapens his legacy. Anything slightly “weird” gets called “Lynchian”. David Lynch never owned “weird”. He was a certainly a master and crafting weird and surreal scenes but he didn’t have a patent on weird or surreal. As a fan of Lynch’s movies beyond surface-level nonsense like “oh man his movies are so cRaZy”, the last thing I want is his work being used as an a reference point for stuff like Under The Silver Lake, Jacob’s Ladder & Memento. Those are not a representation of David Lynch. It’s like when a movie has a tense shot of a doorknob slowly turning and it gets called “hitchcockian”.

With that being said…I compiled a collection of side-by-sides between David Lynch and someone I consider to be one of the better examples of one of his unofficial students; Guy Maddin. Much better words will be said on David Lynch by someone with a better than I. I just thought it would be nice to share some comparisons between one of my personal favorite filmmakers that found influence from another one of my personal filmmakers.


When I discovered that Lynch's first major short film was the same length as THE DEAD FATHER and was about his grandmother it just really seemed like he'd felt the same need - Guy Maddin, Fandor

Eraserhead /
The Dead Father


Maddin is hardly a household name so it’s understandable that he’s almost never brought up in the Lynchian conversation (even when Isabella Rossellini is/was a regular actor in the films of both directors). But he’s far more legitimately influenced by Lynch than people like Christopher Nolan or Ari Aster.
And to be clear - Guy Maddin’s films are not Lynchian. Certain specific moments in certain specific movies of his have definitely been inspired by Lynch (as you’ll see below), but that doesn’t make Maddin’s films Lynchian (not to split hairs here but isolated moments within a full film that may or may have not pulled from Lynch doesn’t equate Lynchian).

Eraserhead / Archangel 

When I first saw Lynch’s Eraserhead I realized in an instant that he made a movie about me - Guy Maddin, deadmediasociety.com


While most of these comparisons go back to Eraserhead, you’ll find a lot of interesting (sometimes) coincidental similarities between most of Lynch’s films (it should also be noted that some of these similarities, homages and reaches go beyond David Lynch to older filmmakers by people like Luis Bunuel & Fellini).


The Amputee /
The Saddest Music In The World


Eraserhead really hit me hard. I was really impressed. It was a big influence - Guy Maddin, Fandor


Eraserhead /
The Saddest Music In The World

it goes back to when I first saw ERASERHEAD - Guy Maddin, Criterion

Eraserhead / Send em To The 'Lectric Chair

Eraserhead /
Send em To The 'Lectric Chair

The Elephant Man /
Brand Upon The Brain

The Elephant Man /
Send em To The 'Lectric Chair

Blue Velvet / Brand Upon The Brain

Eraserhead /
The Heart Of The World

Eraserhead /
Careful

Eraserhead /
Careful

Eraserhead / Careful

Eraserhead / Careful

Eraserhead / Careful


Eraserhead / Cowards Bend The Knee

The Grandmother / Tales From The Gimli Hospital

The Grandmother / Tales From The Gimli Hospital

The Grandmother / Tales From The Gimli Hospital

Eraserhead / 
Careful

Blue Velvet / 
Careful

Eraserhead / Brand Upon The Brain

Eraserhead / Tales From The Gimli Hospital


Blue Velvet / Night Mayor

Eraserhead / Brand Upon The Brain

Wild At Heart / Coward Bend The Knee

Eraserhead / 
Brand Upon The Brain

Eraserhead / 
Brand Upon The Brain

Eraserhead /  The Saddest Music In The World

Dream #7 / Cowards Bend The Knee

Eraserhead / My Winnipeg

Blue Velvet / Cowards Bend The Knee

Eraserhead / Rumours

Blue Velvet / The Saddest Music In The World

Blue Velvet /
Keyhole

Eraserhead / The Heart Of The World

Eraserhead / Send em to the 'Lectric Chair

Inland Empire / The Forbidden Room

Eraserhead / Rumours

Wednesday, January 1, 2025

THE SCHOOL OF TARKOVSKY: ALEXANDER SOKUROV


Solaris / Maria

Tarkovsky’s work was rather a confirmation of my own vision - Alexander Sokurov, film comment

Stalker / The Second Circle


This post isn’t meant to reduce the relationship between Tarkovsky & Sokurov down to just a bunch of visual comparisons. They had a relationship that started as a mentor & mentee and slowly evolved to genuine friendship outside of just movies (Sokurov has dedicated books, films & essays to his late friend).

But, coincidental or not, some of the visuals between the two filmmakers are so striking that I couldn’t help myself and I compiled a bunch of side-by-sides that I thought were interesting…

The Mirror / Maria

Solaris / Mother and Son

The Mirror / The Lonely Voice of Man

The Mirror / The Lonely Voice Of Man

Andre Rublev /
Days Of Eclipse

The Mirror / Mother and Son

Solaris / Father and Son

The Mirror / Father and Son

The Mirror / The Lonely Voice of Man

Andre Rublev / 
Days Of Eclipse

Ivan’s Childhood / Days Of Eclipse

The Mirror / Taurus

The Mirror / Taurus

The Mirror / The Second Circle

The Mirror / The Second Circle

Nostalghia / Taurus

Starker / Whispering Pages

Nostalghia / Taurus

Nostalghia / Taurus

Stalker / Taurus

Stalker / Taurus

Nostalghia / Taurus

Solaris / Taurus

Nostalghia / Faust

Nostalghia / Faust

Nostalghia / Whispering Pages

Nostalghia / Whispering Pages

Nostalghia / Whispering Pages

Solaris / Elegy Of Voyage

The Mirror / The Lonely Voice Of Man

Sacrifice / Mother and Son

Solaris / Oriental Elegy
 




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