Konzert für die rechte Hand

This movie is unforgettable. I guess partly because it inspired me to take a first look at early silent films, a genre I had never really considered before. This director (Michael Bartlett) was obviously inspired by the stories of Poe and the films of Bunuel and Val Lewton.

The acting here isn't always first rate, and the budget is obviously strained, but that all becomes secondary to this wonderfully weird story that kept me glued to the screen until the very end. I saw the film at the Berlin Film Festival and then again later on German TV. But friends have seen it at various Goethe Institutes around the globe, which doesn't surprise me at all.

This is an interesting film and shows off the talent of director Michael Bartlett (Little Girl who fell from a Tree). A weird tale about a grounds keeper who finds a female mannequin in a park and proceeds to take it home. On the way, he drops into a clothing store to buy "her" a dress... a store run by a one armed man. The right arm of the mannequin of course falls out the bag and the store owner finds it and brings it home. Strangeness ensues at both the homes of the grounds keeper (were he assembles and wines and dines his new catch) and the store owner who discovers that the arm has a life of its own and proceeds to be attached to his stump.

What I find very interesting is how Bartlett actually filmed the union of a female arm to a male actor, it is really quite seamless (no pun intended). The only fault I find with the film is that it is overly long by 15 minutes or so (which could be easily fixed in the editing room if it were to come out on DVD). For musician turned filmmaker, this is an impressive and ambitious first film.

I guess since I had never quite seen anything like this before, Concerto For the Right Hand (Eng. translation), has stuck with me for a long time and inspired me to go back and check out older silent films as they were the obvious inspiration for this film. The film's darkly comic world also brings to mind films of Val Lewton as well as the stories of Poe. The acting here is not always first rate and the budget was obviously strained, but the twisted, at times even fantastic storyline kept my mind busy throughout, and to this day it remains an unforgettable experience. I saw it at the Berlin Int. Film Festival and have heard from friends around the world that it has been shown at various Goethe Institutes. A German film that needs no translation.

I caught this freaky little film, aka "Concerto for the Right Hand," at the Berlin Film Festival and then again in Barcelona (where it was really appreciated, in fact back to back with a Russ Meyer flick. Both directors present. Talk about contrast. Considering the director's obvious nods to Bunuel, Dali and Cocteau, his firm knowledge of Euro Art and music, it's almost fantastic in itself to learn in the program notes that it was written and directed by a kid from a small California hick town. I watch a lot of films with a lot of film freaks, and when I run into someone who thinks they've seen it all, this is the one I pull out. Yes, the pacing could be better, the acting more seasoned, but there are images here that will stick with you forever, and a few on-camera effects that are so weirdly simple, so effortless in execution, that I dare you not to be impressed. My copy was taped off German TV in 1994, so it can be found (and understood anywhere because there is virtually no dialog).