Today I saw The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes, by the Quay brothers. What an odd film that was, but some of the images were haunting and will probably stay with me for a while… most people who will watch this movie will hate it, no doubt, but I didn’t. I just find that it got too full of itself and became tiring, though it was refreshing to see something other than your bread and butter and ultimately forgettable Hollywood films.
Those who know and love the work of the Quay brothers will want to watch this film anyhow, but to those not familiar with the unique visual style of this work I would suggest one of their shorts instead: The Street of Crocodiles is considered to be their masterpiece, but my favorite is probably The Comb. If you’re a fan of art and what some would call an ‘adventurous’ movie-goer, do yourself a favor and find these two shorts (there is a DVD collection of Quay shorts). You may hate them all, but you may discover an entirely new world of poetry on celluloid.
I’m not that good with words, so I won’t try to explain just what a Quay film is like. If you do get to watch one though, you’ll know why I hesitate. And if you have read and enjoyed surrealist poetry, I’m pretty sure you’ll find something in the Quay universe that will speak to you, even if it is in a language you do not fully understand.
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