Happy to note that I received a Christmas gift copy of the recently published The Village Voice Film Guide: 50 Years Of Movies From Classics To Cult Hits edited by Dennis Lim. A must-have guide for any cinemaphile, readers will devour 150 reviews of classic films by renown contributors Jay Hoberman, Michael Atkinson, Jonas Mekas, Georgia Brown, Andrew Sarris, Amy Taubman, and several by Dennis Lim. The Village Voice remains the foremost alternative newspaper in the country. Upon reading this collection, you'll find a distinct difference in approach and opinion rendered by Voice contributors than say by contributors to the SF Chronicle or other mainstream media. Then again, the Voice pioneered alternative newspaper publishing from its inception in 1955---their film reviews take an entirely different intellectual spin.
You'll discover a notable review and letter exchange between critic Jonas Mekas and the late great dreamer, John Cassavettes about SHADOWS. Mekas championed Cassavettes original version of SHADOWS screened in 1958 and basically panned a reshot/recut version completed in 1959. Jay Hoberman contributes a review in June 2003 due to a restored version of SHADOWS which was premiering at Anthology's Jonas Mekas Theater. The next update from Hoberman comes in 2004 with the rediscovery of the original 1958 film he refers to as "ur-Shadows." Interestingly, this original "ur-Shadows" film was "turned down by Sundance" and premiered at Rotterdam Film Festival. Hoberman says that the 1959 film "is not a virtual remake" as Mekas suggested when he disowned the film. These pages leave you wanting more about the story-behind-the-story of this "lost"version of SHADOWS---and its ur-Sudden reappearance.
Book cover photo credit: Still from John Cassavetes's SHADOWS/Photofest,Inc.
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