Lekce Faust

Surrealism tends to fall in one of 2 categories:

(1) Random, confounding, absurd images best enjoyed under the influence of psychomorphic drugs

(2) Careful, structured, lucid themes augmented by unusual visuals, all of which is designed to raise our understanding beyond what is "real"

Or, I could also say that Surrealism tends to fall in one of 2 categories:

(1) Sucky movies

(2) Awesome movies

I'm happy to report that in both cases, this film is a #2. It can be compared with the masterpieces of Jean Cocteau (Orphee, Beauty & the Beast), or if you prefer the modern stuff it can be compared with Terry Gilliam's early work. Svankmajer has that same creative spirit, the same eye for the bizarre and yet the same intelligence in presentation that makes for great art. He also has a slightly disturbing edge.

This is a great film for profound cinephiles as well as casual filmgoers in the mood for something completely different. This isn't simply a masturbatory showcase of "how much weird & pointless stuff we can throw at you", the way many famous Surrealists operate. Rather, this roots itself with a solid, philosophical foundation & excellent dialogue and takes it to the next level with creative visuals. Svankmajer has a fantastic sense of humour, too, so you never get the feeling that he's some pompous, pretentious jerk showing off what he can do with a camera.

This movie's hallmark, as with much of Svankmajer's work, is the fantastic use of puppetry. It can be both comedic and chilling, and it definitely puts you into a mind-warping state of mind which is perfect for a tale of this scope.

I'm rating this a 10/10, and you can see by my voting history that I don't give 10s casually. This is truly a fantastic work.

An important note: You should really read Marlowe's "Dr. Faustus" before watching this movie. And be sure it's the MARLOWE version (1604), not the Goethe version (1806) titled "Faust". Yes, the title of this movie is misleading.

Jan Svankmajer is one of the best animators of all time and one of the best artists of the 20th century. There is simply no one else making animation like this: disturbing, hilarious, dreamlike. "Faust" is one of the best films I have ever seen, combining the visual sensibility of Salvador Dali with the philosophical sensibility of Mikhail Bulgakov. Powerful, surreal, and more intelligent than any animation anywhere.

"Faust" is a wonderful blend of real-time and stop-motion storytelling by a master of the surreal. An apparently ordinary everyman is led by curiosity into a dilapidated building which turns out to be a strange blend of alchemical laboratory, theater, and puppeteer's workshop. Suddenly, the man finds himself becoming the legendary Dr. Faust, selling his soul to the devil in exchange for magical powers.

Jan Svankmajer is the true sorcerer here. He blends stage sets with real locations and seven-foot puppets with live actors, making magic of it all.

The film has been dubbed for English audiences, but there has perhaps never been a less obtrusive film dub. The voice performances are excellent and actually add to the surreal quality of the film.

Jan Svankmajer probably has visions and dreams that few of us would want to have, but luckily for us he's so creative and talented and all-that-and-a-bag-of-chips with a mound of clay and (in this case) marionettes that he can put them all on display on film. His version of Faust is sometimes confusing, bewildering, and, as I gathered from not reading the original play or (sadly) not yet seeing the Murnau silent feature, not altogether makes a lot of sense. This isn't to say the central premise is lost on me, which is of a man who conjures up the force that is Mephistopheles and sells his soul. This is of course shown at one pivotal moment in the film, but if you think you know what to expect from this outcome or how it's presented you might have to rethink things.

If you've seen Svankmajer's other films, however, like Alice, then some of his approach shouldn't seem too far out... Actually, it is always very far out, but in an approachable manner, told often in a classical style of cinema that relies often on the unspoken. In this case it's not as non-dialog laden as Alice, as there are often scenes with the marionettes going on and on with their dialogs, and then with the man and the Satan figure him/itself (whether it's a man or an 'it' I can't say for sure, as Svankmajer makes it a being who materializes first as some skull, then into a near reflection of the man himself as some crazy theologian). What draws one in is the lack of abandon for narrative, and the chances he takes in making it self-conscious. It would be one thing to present the puppets themselves, but the editing is feverish; cuts go between the puppets, their movements, and then those of the puppeteer's hands. We never see their faces, but we always know someone is pulling the strings. This is key.

But beyond simply that, it's just a pure pleasure to take in how the filmmaker mixes the elements, tricks it up on the audience (i.e. after the marionettes inside for so long, they bust out into the streets without puppeteer's hands), and with the stop motion, and the moments of Bunuelian surrealism with the man going between puppet form and reality, and then out in the middle of some field. I can hardly explain more, and it would be better, after all, if he was allowed to introduce himself. Staggering, near masterpiece work.

Jan Svankmajer's telling of the German folk tale "Faust" is--like his rendition of "Alice in Wonderland" (simply titled "Alice")--a refreshingly surreal treat of a film. It's confusing, disconcerting, and grotesquely tongue-in-cheek (the Jester character is at once obnoxious, amusing, and creepy). The plot plays out like a Greek Tragedy, with the ill-fated Faust (Petr Cepek) wheeling and dealing with the Devil and his minions, manipulating Old Scratch until finally succumbing to a seduction that results in his demise. The intricacies of story are thrown at the viewer in a consistent flurry, to the point where it's best NOT to try to piece it all together. Throughout my viewing, favorable comparisons to Homer's "Odyssey," David Lynch's "Eraserhead," and the early short films of Roman Polanski were crossing my mind. While the English dubbing is atrocious and Svankmajer sometimes lets the film lull too far into a dream-like state (to the point where I had to take a brief nap halfway through), that shouldn't inhibit you from seeing "Faust."