Senses of Cinema - Editorial, Issue 12

editorial

welcome to Issue 12 of our journal!

Almost Famous (Cameron Crowe)

If this issue seems like a hodgepodge of themes and topics then that's because it is. One thing that Senses of Cinema aimed to achieve when it was first set up was an eclecticism in topics and a seriousness in its approach toward cinema. When one's choice for writing on film was either sound-bite, hype-driven, analysis-devoid coverage or (overly)theoretical writing in which the thrill of cinema and the knowledge of its history seemed all together tragically missing, the gap was all too obvious. In this issue, a general overview of mainstream Australian film in 2000 sits alongside a clear and heartfelt appreciation of the films of Philippe Garrel, an extraordinary filmmaker whose films have never screened in this country. Or, from a solid and comprehensive study of the Female Gothic genre that comes to grips with the intricacies of its themes, you can go to an equally fascinating discussion of documentary filmmaker William Greaves, active in the New York late '60s avant-garde scene, who has been sorely overlooked. In fact, the 'overlooked and underrated' section continues with each issue because this gesture of looking back into the past unfailingly brings to shore gems of cinema history washed away by the force of time and accepted canons.

Above all, Senses of Cinema recognises that the beauty and wonder of cinema often lies in its diversity - in this issue such diversity ranges from the poetics of Hou Hsiao-hsien to the latest Schwarzenegger to Clint Eastwood's ongoing probing of a cultural icon to the technique of Béla Tarr. As Jim Jarmusch once said in an interview, speaking of the wide-open nature of cinema: "Hollywood is just one part of it, the part that generates the most money, and therefore is the most visible. To me, it's not the center of the form." But often uncanny similarities arise - Darren Aronofsky's apocalyptic Requiem for a Dream meets up with Tsai Ming-Liang's The River only by virtue of their common themes of profound isolation and alienation as specifically modern urban symptoms. The minimal, magisterial formal aesthetic of the latter though is clearly of another realm to Requiem's crude, lazy, sledgehammer style, and is infinitely more riveting and rewarding. Senses of Cinema hopes that through its diversity, eclecticism and seriousness, future filmmakers may glimpse something beyond the Hollywood or U.S. approved indie product that so dominates theatrical cinema screens.

With the year well and truly under way, two major festivals have already taken place - Sundance and Rotterdam, and are both covered in this issue. Plans are already underway to release In the Mood for Love and Brother locally, the Dardenne brothers' Rosetta opens soon in Melbourne, while the Australian Cinémathèque, for which Senses of Cinema publishes the annotations, commences around the country this month. All positive signs of an active film culture.

We at Senses of Cinema look forward to yet another year of discovering cinema in its contemporary and historical guise, and its many forms. We will keep a track of our thoughts and our feelings in this journal - and we invite you to do the same.

Many thanks to all who contributed to this issue and in particular to my colleagues Bill Mousoulis and Adrian Martin whose hard work, dedication and generosity is always inspiring.

Enjoy the issue.

Fiona A. Villella go to Contents Issue 12

Senses of Cinema is an online film journal devoted to the serious and eclectic discussion of cinema. It has been set up to address a lack of cinephilic writing in local discourse, that is, writing sprung from the desire to think and write seriously, knowledgeably and passionately about film.

Senses of Cinema is unique in its eclecticism: it encourages articles of all styles (casual, personal, academic, critical, impressionistic and poetic - or a combination of these), analytical approaches (thematic, psychoanalytic, etc) and subject matter. The only criteria that we prescribe are that all articles are demonstrably passionate, serious, intelligent and insightful reflections and/or analyses on the topic of cinema.

Senses of Cinema promotes various divergent "voices" that speak to a wide and diverse audience. It aims to bring together a mix of writers: established and emerging, theorists and un-published cinephiles, filmmakers and film programmers, and local and international writers.

We are particularly committed to discussing art, independent, experimental and third world cinemas (everything from Renoir to Antonioni to Solàs to Oshima to Morrissey to Jost to Friedrich to Snow, feature films as well as short films) , theorising new encounters with digital technologies, and promoting writing that increases one's understanding and appreciation of cinema.

We recognise that an object as ephemeral and ethereal as cinema continues to fascinate, to provoke, to inspire, to turn on, to evolve. And it is in relation to this object that we seek to facilitate and encourage expression and appreciation.

Want to contribute to this journal?
Click on the words above to read our guidelines for writers.

Editor - Fiona A. Villella, 26, studied film at Melbourne University and has since gone on to write for many publications, including Metro, Real Time, IF and C'TEQ annotations. She is also an independent filmmaker, has worked around the film scene, and lived and worked in NYC for 6 months. She is also co-curator of the Melbourne Filmoteca and a board member of the Melbourne Cinémathèque. Her favourite directors are Martin Scorsese, Robert Bresson, Eric Rohmer, Jean-Luc Godard, Federico Fellini, Spike Lee, Claire Denis and Julie Dash.

You can email Fiona.

Webmaster / Founding Editor - Bill Mousoulis, 37, is an independent filmmaker with over 60 films to his name, including four low-budget features. He was involved with the formation of the Melbourne Super 8 Film Group in 1985, and was its administrator for six years. Over the years he has also done occasional film criticism, for magazines such as Filmnews, Filmviews, Cantrills Filmnotes, and was a regular member of the FILM REVIEW CREW on 3RRR-FM in the late 80's. His favourite directors are Roberto Rossellini, Robert Bresson, Jean-Luc Godard, Frank Borzage and Chantal Akerman.

You can email Bill.

Editorial Godfather - Adrian Martin, 41, is one of Australia's foremost film critics. He is the the author of the books Phantasms (McPhee Gribble, 1994) and Once Upon a Time in America (BFI, 1998). His reviews of new releases can be read in The Age (Melbourne). He is currently working on books on Terrence Malick, Brian De Palma and the Mad Max series.

Senses of Cinema (ISSN 1443-4059) is published approximately bi-monthly by Senses of Cinema Inc., with the financial assistance of the Australian Film Commission.

Copyright lies with the individual authors. All views expressed in this journal are those of the authors and not the editors (unless indicated).

As under the Copyright Act 1968 (Australia), no part of this journal may be reproduced by any process without the written permission of the editors except for the purposes of private study, research, criticism or review. These works may be read online, downloaded and copied for the above purposes but must not be copied for any other individuals or organisations. The work itself must not be published in either print or electronic form, be edited or otherwise altered or used as a teaching resource without the express permission of the author.

Senses of Cinema Inc. - P.O. Box 1150, Richmond North, VIC, 3121.

Senses of Cinema acknowledges the financial assistance of the Australian Film Commission

contents great directors cteq annotations top tens about us links archive search