Antigone

If Theater is 1 and Cinema is 2, Joao Cesar Monteiro's directorial style is at 1.7 and from what I have seen so far, Straub/Huillet's is a magical 1.3. And even if on the other side of the spectrum, their films also invoke similar reactions as Monteiro's, that comes from witnessing Cinema that is unique and unlike that is commonly known of. Their(S/H) shooting style is always sparse, simple, and every frame is like a theater, they just borrow the flexibility of angles and the freedom of stage preparation from films, and create their own brand of 'moving theater'. Antigone is most definitely a Brechtian film, as is Dalla Nube…, and again, a recreation of the mythological play Antigone by Sophocles. The film retells the tragedy with moving lines, delivered with utter poignancy, acted out to his heart by Werner Rehm, as the tyrant Creon, and also by all other characters. In this film though, the elements for theater are in full glory, more than in Dalla Nube… and the stage is awesome - the entire film is set in an amphitheater on a mountain cliff, never moving out. The play captures its subjects beautifully, and the characters move in sync with their words and surroundings, creating an experience that thrives on choreography, and less on conventional paradigms of a movie. The content is well executed, as the play takes shape in all its paradoxes and futilities, and man, did I enjoy losing myself in the mesmeric power of words again! Straub/Huillet has certainly hit a soft spot, through two films that are not for the impatient, but in its fruition, richly rewarding. Amongst other tiny signs of mastery, it is tremendous how Straub/Huillet execute the 'stage-touch' by simply letting his characters exit the scope of camera before moving on. Gives you a moment to think about what just happened, another important aspect of the theater. If you are tired of films, watch this play.

The text of Antigone, as pointed out in the ultra-long title of the film, has gone through many metamorphoses, written initially by Sophocles, then translated to a new purpose by Holdlerin, then explicitly a play about Germany and World War II by Brecht, and finally as a film by Straub and Huillet, aimed at a contemporary audience (S&H removed the explicit references to WWII from Brecht's play). Given the date of production S&H may be invoking the spectre of the first Gulf War: a war for bronze fought by Thebes, may be the war for oil fought by the USA. The film is fascinating because of the textual mutation and comes across as a palimpsest, often evoking obvious comparisons to the fall of Hitler's Germany, but at other times having more ancient concerns. The imbued purpose of the film may more generally be a message about the necessity of "eternal vigilance". Although to sum the film up thusly is simplistic, missing its textures, digressions, and sublimities. For those additions, you have to watch the film.

There are lots of reasons to see this movie, but the one I'd pick out is Werner Rehm's performance as Creon, which is perfect (not to knock Astrid Ofner who is great as Antigone).

There is irony in Huillet and Straub.

They start from a title encompassing sophocle, Holderlin and Brecht, and then process to strip down all the over the top greek tragedy genre, the flamboyant romanticism or the ideology burdened staging by Brecht, and focus on the utter beauty of the storytelling.

This is why this couple is so important to the language of movies..