Decasia (2002)

A meditation on the human quest to transcend physicality, constructed from decaying archival footage and set to an original symphonic score.

Director:

Bill Morrison

Writer:

Bill Morrison

Stars:

Tsuru Aoki, Julia Calhoun, Margaret Cullington

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Tsuru Aoki	...	Geisha (archive footage)
Julia Calhoun	...	Old Angry Woman (archive footage)
Margaret Cullington	...	Maggie Jiggs (archive footage)
William S. Hart	...	Cowboy (archive footage)
Eddie Lyons	...	Laughing Clerk (archive footage)
Marc McDermott	...	Judge (archive footage)
Mary Pickford	...	(archive footage)
Willie Ritchie	...	Boxer (archive footage)
Pearl White	...	Laughing Woman (archive footage)

Storyline

Black and white stock footage, much of it scratched or blistered, illustrates a Michael Gordon symphony. A whirling dervish, couples laughing, a soldier trying to take advantage of a flower vendor, a camel caravan moving across the horizon, a single plane and then others, paratroopers in the sky, a mining disaster, a pugilist, nuns and children at a school - some images last a few seconds, others for a minute or more. The scratches, blisters, and bygone look of the footage suggest time's passage. Only the dervish, who begins and ends the film, is intact.

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Plot Keywords:

national film registry | school | nun | couple | whirling dervish | 

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Genres:

Documentary

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

None

Release Date:

3 October 2003 (UK)

Also Known As:

Aposynthesia

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Nearly all the clips incorporated into this film are from footage that has been damaged due to poor storage, neglect, or ravaged by time and the elements. Nothing was done to accelerate the decomposition process.

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Crazy Credits

In memory of Hortense K. Becker, (1902-2001) 'Big Non'

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Connections

Features The Mind Cure (1912)

User Reviews

Chaos rules!

I loved Decasia, but for reasons that might evade others. Hence, I'm not inclined to recommend it.

I get a wonderful, visceral response to extremely complex noise and chaos, and Decasia is nothing if not a rampaging smorgasbord of same. So, I was in heaven, watching it.

I got a kick out of the music. I spent some of my viewing time reflecting on the composer's process. Fascinating!

I suppose I should chime in on the mythic payload. Respectable, seasoned commentators ply a line about the film as a commentary on "morals". Pishposh! If I take away any arc from this piece, it's a running commentary on decay; that chaos deserves our respect. It a powerful idea. It's another reality that, once we face it, pushes us to self- actualization. It reminds me of the aesthetic of John Cage in this regard.

One of my disappointments (strange to say, in light of what I said above) was discovering that the film's decay effects were also "found". Those effects were so wild, wooly, rich, redolent that I entertained (for the filmmaker) the conceit that they were meticulously engineered. Well, they *were* engineered, but by Loki, Eris, Kali, et.al. Which makes it all only that much more impressive, come to think of it....