It is one of the best documentaries of all time: 42 years after its release, it remains an unrivaled masterpiece.

Fovakkatsi, Koyaaniskatsi, Nakoikatsi. Words that are close to unspeakable, except that Nightmare spelled it right. And that gives you a full box at the same time Scrabble.

movie trilogy “woman” As he is nicknamed, it is primarily the work of a rather hidden person, a unique artist and activist. Former seminarian, founder in 1972Regional Institute of Education Santa Fe, a charitable association devoted to media development, the arts, social organization and research: Godfrey Reggio.

Works that, if they are too far from the conversation of a large number of people, are still enveloped in the aura of cult films. This is because they count among their unconditional fans quite experienced filmmakers. We’re also a bit quick to forget, but between the two Star Wars, George Lucas also contributed to the portfolio of works by Reggio (as well as Kurosawa’s Kagemusha) and Francis Ford Coppola.

Experimental cinema first and foremost

Classified for convenience under the “documentary” section, these films are not really documentaries in the formal sense of the term. Instead, let’s say they’ll be more comfortable in the experimental section. There are no sound, silent films, only accompanied by powerful scores that enhance these picture albums.

for his trilogy “woman”Reggio also benefited from the services of a formidable composer: Philip Glass, whose scores played a major role in the reputation of his films. It was a mutual friend who introduced them to their first collaboration Koyaaniskatsi.

When Reggio asked the composer if he could write music for the film, he replied: “I don’t do film music.” At the insistence of Reggio, who showed him images from his film, he embarked on an adventure. He would later compose music for all of Reggio’s other films. The result, hypnotic and mesmerizing, reveals a perfect and fused alchemy between music and image.

Great photo albums, but not only that

We listed the term “photo albums” above. But that would actually be too simplistic because there are more to these works. These are collages, like giant canvases, where hallucinatory images collide with each other. slow motion (Koyaanisqatsi is also one of the first films to use a technique known as “time lapse”), computer-generated images, Footage foundAdvertising films, etc. in which man and his future are the concern of two directors.

His relationship with nature and the passage of time. Life is highlighted by our increasing dependence on technology. The opposition between the northern and southern hemispheres. Concern and the transition to a world that is becoming less and less natural in favor of the artificial. The damage of poorly controlled town planning and the pressures of city life.

industrialization. The lives of people who lived in harmony until they came into contact with technology and destroyed cultures. The overproduction of our consumer society. The omnipotence of advertising and the power of images… and again, we have only cited the topics discussed here.

In any case, the main concerns and themes more than ever in our time and in the years to come. It shows whether the statement was revolutionary when Koyaaniskatsi It was released in theaters in the early 1980s.

“For me, the main event, perhaps the most important in our entire history, which has nothing to compare with in our past, is the transition of the entire nature or natural environment as the basis of our life.

Politics, education, financial structure, nation structure, language, culture, religions… all these exist in technology. It’s not the fact that we use technology; We live on technology. It has become the air we breathe; We no longer know about its existence.”

Ruined life, war as a means of survival

In fact, this is where the titles of the trilogy come from “woman” to take meaning. taken from the Hopi language, A man from Koyaan means “A life that is falling apart, turbulent, out of balance, a state of existence that calls for a different way of living.”.

At first Godfrey Reggio did not want to give his film a title because “Language can no longer describe the world we live in” But this was not possible due to legal reasons. He chooses a title without cultural baggage, from oral culture, to offer a different view of things and respect the language. “Stronger in its ability to describe its environment”.

What about the meaning of the title? Povakkats ? This is what the Hopi Indians of North America called a way of being, a being that feeds on the life forces of other beings to support its own existence.

As for NaqoiqatsiThis is the most pessimistic prediction: it is the violence of civilization, war as a means of life and survival, where civilizations kill each other. Suffice it to say that with the dramatic news that has shaped the daily lives of humanity for many years, Godfrey Reggio was right on target with the subject of the third and final part of his Qatsi trilogy…

A work of time

In all cases, themes prepared with astonishing intelligence and whose subject’s power is made clear through the sole power of the images and the genius of editing, are underscored by a truly hypnotic soundtrack. Rare pictures and moments, definitely precious. Because behind these works lies the treasure of patience. A lot of patience. Even years.

“I shot everything I thought was good for the film, even if it wasn’t planned. From the sunrise to the facades of the buildings, everything went in.” said Ron Fricke, a Reggio cinematographer who later went it alone with his experimental film Baraka.

Reggio, for his part, was full of praise for his director of photography. “I was amazed by his motivation, fanatical attention to detail, an undisputed master of the highest level.

He was original, an artist, a painter, with an innate sense of color composition, a brilliant mechanic, but add to this the brilliance of an artistic eye, an extremely refined human sensibility, and you have this monstrous filmmaker and director. He was extremely involved. Without the spirit of Ron Frick, this film would not exist.

Godfrey Reggio, who also outperformed Stanley Kubrick, who needed more and more time to shoot between the two films. Reggio, on the other hand, made only four documentaries in nearly 35 years; In front of visitors dating back to 2002 Nakoikatsi.

We can, of course, stay completely closed for these jobs. However, in their forms and their essence, these films represent what we call “pure cinema”. Visceral and sensory cinema, which includes a certain form of perfection, harmony. Works are often copied but never equaled. It is up to you to discover them.