Video Review |
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Video Review |
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Last Updated 05/06/02
Email: robitai@our-town.com
"Thirty
Two Short Films About Glenn Gould"
If you've never seen "Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould,"
(1993) stop what you're doing, rush right out, find a copy, and watch it. This
unusual series of thirty-two artistic vignettes gives us a glimpse into the
complex world of a classical pianist—and what a fascinating glimpse it is
given the talent and risk-taking of writer and director François Girard.
Girard
has been faithful to the real Glen Gould's story, but he applies cinematography
that somehow captures more than mere image. In the process of slicing the story
into thirty-two separate film "shorts" Girard isolates the
mundane—snippets of conversation, letter writing, an interview—and builds it
all into one fascinating labyrinth, balanced against a soundtrack of incredible
classical piano.
Glen
Gould (Colm Feore) was a Canadian classical pianist whose talent was recognized
when he was a child. He could read musical scores before he could read words,
and he pursued music in a way that demonstrated his profound commitment to the
art. He embraced some unusual philosophical turns, for example,
refusing to enter any of the esteemed competitions because he disliked the idea
of musicians competing against one another.
At
the peak of his career in 1964 he refused to perform any more live concerts
because he felt that it demeaned his artistic integrity.
He turned to the sound studio as a means to share his music, producing
more than sixty albums over the course of his career.
In
the matters of life, he could be considered eccentric. He often wore heavy coats
and gloves during the summer as "protection." As a classic
hypochondriac, he relied on an encyclopedic variety of pills.
After having suffered a stroke, he died in Toronto in 1982 at the age of
fifty.
Expect
the unexpected as the vignettes' singular moments lace themselves into a
seamless narrative. The camera captures the enigmatic. The music does the rest.
Available
in DVD
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