|
Koyaanisqatsi (1982)
In Godfrey Reggio's non-narrated, feature-length,
expressionistic and subjective experimental documentary film Koyaanisqatsi (meaning
"life out of balance"), all set to Philip Glass' mesmerizing, pulsating,
hypnotic, and minimalist electronic score - it was an art-house film
that showcased innovative uses of time-lapse, slow-motion (and hyper-speed),
and double-exposed (and super-imposed) photography - all part of
a trilogy of Qatsi films that also included Powaqqatsi
(1988) and Naqoyqatsi (2002), to show the immense difference
between two worlds (the natural and the urban or man-made):
- the opening dissolve included a view of the
iconography of Hopi cave art (paintings or pictographs of life-sized
figures in Horseshoe Canyon (in Canyonlands Park in SE Utah),
known as "The
Great Gallery")
- the close-up and slow-motion image of the launch
of a Saturn V rocket, the launch vehicle of the Apollo 11 program
in the late 1960s to early 1970s - this image was bookended in
the film's finale
- the aerial photography of landscapes, including
Arches National Park, the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley and more,
showing the immense forces and results of erosion over many centuries
- the visually-striking images and
shots of naturalistic environments with time-lapse photography,
including shadows of clouds rolling over landscapes (in SW USA
parks); also blowing sand dunes shaped by the wind, and mystical
patterns of smoke, actual changing cloud formations, powerful
waves of water plummeting over a falls, or banks of low fog flowing
over a valley
Shadowy Cloud Patterns (Grand Canyon) - Time Lapse
|
Blanket of Billowing Clouds
|
- a low-flying view of rippling water, and long rows
of blooming flowers
- the rock formations drowned within Lake Powell (Arizona),
a man-made, artificial reservoir of water
- the intersection of civilization with nature, such
as a large mining truck engulfed by black smoke, and massive power
lines and towers erected in desolate environments stretching for
miles, and an aerial view of the coal-fired Navajo Generating Station
in Page, AZ [Note: The plant was finally shut down in 2019, and its
three smokestacks were demolished in 2020.] Also, views of the Glen
Canyon Dam (also near Page, AZ) to control the Colorado River and
cause the formation of Lake Powell
|
|
Coal-Burning Navajo Generating Station in Page, AZ
|
Gigantic Power Lines Crossing Through Open Lands
|
- views of oil drilling and a vast array of oil storage tanks
- atomic bomb detonations and tests in the desert -
beautiful but deadly
- the sight of SCE's San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station,
a nuclear-powered power plant, near San Clemente, CA on the West
Coast, with sunbathers nearby [Note: It was shut down in 2013.]
- the beautiful sight of moving clouds reflected on
the glass exterior of a city skyscraper
- the shimmering image (seen through ripples of hot
air) of a gigantic United Airlines 747 jetliner taxiing on a runway
- aerial views of multiple lanes of freeway traffic
on elevated highways, lanes and lanes of cars, and the colorful pattern
of a massive parking lot with rows of vehicles
- views of multiple rows of Soviet military tanks assembled
along a beachhead as far as the eye could see, and a USAF jet preparing
for take-off, also other aircraft (a camouflaged plane over the desert),
the flight and launch of various rockets (from different angles),
and a view of an H-bomb; also an aircraft carrier with a view of
its wide deck marked with E=mc2, the sight of explosions after the
dropping of bombs
|
|
The NYC Cityscape, and Massive Canyons Created by
Skyscrapers
|
- the NYC cityscape, with shadows of clouds moving across
the faces of buildings, and the gigantic canyons or walls of concrete
deep inside city streets, followed by the crumbling and abandoned
remains of dilapidated slum tenements (with garbage, litter) in disrepair
- failed social projects, with views of deserted streets, buildings,
playgrounds, etc.; aerial photography of the unsuccessful Pruitt-Igoe
Housing Project in St. Louis, MO in the 1950s, with 11-story high-rises
that soon went into urban decay, evidenced by empty buildings and
broken windows [Note: the high-density buildings were detonated in
the mid-1970s, seen in footage.]
- amazing time-lapse photography of crowds of people
standing in line at horse-betting windows, and hundreds of people
in slow-motion on city sidewalks
Crowds Waiting in Line
|
People in Slow-Motion on City Sidewalks
|
- various tableaux of individuals standing next to examples
of technology (a pilot in front of a jet turbine, waitresses in front
of gambling casino neon signs)
- time-lapse night-time views of skyscrapers with hundreds
of windows - blinking on and off; also the the
sped-up head-lights and tail-lights of cars on a highway making the
roads appear like blood-filled arteries
- the view of a massive rising
moon disappearing behind a building, and then the sun rising over the
city, as people rushed to get to work
- the
views of people scrambling through train stations, riders going
down and up on various escalators, entering glass doors or cycling
through revolving doors, the creation of American
iconic foods like Oscar Meyer hot dogs or Twinkies, or Pop-Tarts or
packaged meat (seen in food packaging machinery), the assembly of
televisions and cars manufactured on an assembly line; robotic mail
sorting machines, the sped-up stitching of blue-jeans on a sewing
machine by a worker in the fashion district, or the tedious day of
a computer punch-card data operator; even in an arcade at times of
play (video games or PacMan), or bowling, or watching movies, or
shopping, or pausing to eat, the pace was fast and furious; it was
a frantic and feverish collection of images, conveying the feeling
of exhaustion and hustle-bustle
The Frantic Pace of Everyday Life: Work and Play
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
- at the end of a frantic day at work, the process of
returning home was reversed - massive crowds of people in the subways,
on the highways, in cars, etc.; it was no better at crowded beaches
for 'fun' in the sun on days off
- the message of the film: people were continually being
bombarded by sensations, sights, and sounds at a nerve-shattering
and mind-destroying pace, with no time to slow-down, reflect, contemplate,
or experience peace; there was a rapid compilation of channel-surfed
TV commercials and programs - including news programs, sales spokesmen,
ads for headache pills, etc.
- there was a segment of views of ordinary people walking
on the street - who happened to notice that they were being filmed
candidly
- everything in the film built to an amazing sped-up
and frenzied crescendo of movement, sound, images and light; the
further the camera moved away from the activity 'on the ground' -
with aerial pictures (and satellite photography of metropolitan areas
from God's view), the pace slowed; pictures of the insides of a computer
(with microchips and other component parts) were compared to the
satellite imagery
Aerial
|
Satellite
|
Computer Insides
|
- the film basically concluded with images of various
individuals from all walks of life in the city - bystanders, elderly,
a sight-seeing tour operator, firemen, a beggar, an ice cream store
customer and clerks, stock exchange workers, etc.
- in the finale, a Saturn V2 rocket was launched,
and then it exploded in mid-air, sending back flaming parts to Earth
Rocket Launch
|
Rocket Explosion
|
- the film's conclusion returned to a view of the primitive
rock art in the cave, then presented a translation
of the chanted Hopi prophecies and the definition of the film's title:
("1.
crazy life, 2. life in turmoil, 3. life out of balance, 4. life disintegrating,
5. a state of life that calls for another way of living") - it was the
only English narrative of the entire film
- then, the three Hopi prophecies sung in the film
were translated:
- "If we dig precious
things from the land, we will invite disaster."
- "Near
the Day of Purification, there will be cobwebs spun back and forth
in the sky."
-
"A container of ashes might one day be
thrown from the sky, which could burn the land and boil the oceans."
|
Hopi Cave Art
Landscapes (Monument Valley)
Rock Formations (Lake Powell)
Atomic Bomb Tests in Desert
Clouds Reflected on the Side of a Skyscraper
Massive 747 Jetliner Taxiing on Runway
Lanes of Freeway Traffic
Colorful Parked Vehicles in Lot
Ugly, Dilapidated, and Abandoned Slum Tenements and Social Projects
The Desolate Pruitt-Igoe Housing Project in St. Louis, MO
People and Technology
Highway Arteries into the City
Massive Rising Moon
The End of a Frantic Day at Work
Escaping to Fun in the Sun - Crowded Beaches
The High-Speed Frantic Pace of Life
Candid Views of People on the Street Being Filmed
Translation of the Title: Koyaanisqatsi
|