My 99 Cents

Years ago I saw the film Street of Crocodiles at the Brattle Theater in Cambridge Mass. It has always stayed with me. The short films of The Brothers Quay are difficult to describe. Here’s one attempt:

“Omniscient cyclopean dolls, sentient micromachines, bristly wine forests and a pugilistic plush bunny are among the distressingly tactile treats. Underscoring meticulous attention to detail and rigorous at dedication to form, but also tenderness and oblique whimsy. Simultaneously mournful, antic and imbued with a pleasingly nostalgic loneliness, this megadose of the Quays’ singular vision will haunt your perception for days.”
– Mark Holcomb, Time Out (New York)

Like he said.

I had my waitress uniform on that day, caught the early show before work. In the film every doll, every moist cog and rusted machine on earth came alive, moving and driving itself in a hidden world. A strange doll awakens, sees itself, a thing among things. Street of Crocodiles, and other Quay films, are like dreams that disintegrate when you try to explain them. Only images remain, and feeling.

Sounds weird I know. You just gotta see these movies for yourself…If you’re anywhere near NYC, go to Film Forum FRIDAY, JANUARY 19 – THURSDAY, JANUARY 25 • ONE WEEK

More info here