Jørgen Leth

  • Jørgen Leth – Step on Silence (1981)

    1981-1990DenmarkDocumentaryJørgen LethPerformance

    Step on Silence was made from raw material from Peter Martins – en danser but unlike the traditional way the Martins film communicates its material in this case we have a film that with its slightly dusty, scratchy appearance makes room for all the shots originally discarded for technical or narrative reasons. It fades to black and up again if visual material is lacking at any given moment, for example, while the continuity of the soundtrack is maintained. The establishing by the cameraman of a new frame or focus is not edited out for the sake of appearances. The painstaking repetitions from the rehearsal room are captured by showing several takes of the same detail from the dance one after the other. Read More »

  • Jørgen Leth – Peter Martins, en danser AKA Peter Martins: A Dancer (1978)

    1971-1980DenmarkDocumentaryJørgen LethPerformance

    Peter Martins – en danser is a classical documentary using illustrative visuals, interviews with the subject, and a linking narrative voice over paints a portrait of the Danish ballet star with the New York City Ballet. “I cannot deal with second best people”, the handsome, self-assured Martins says, describing himself as a monstrously ambitious man who is however able to regard his work as a continual learning process. The film follows Martins as a dancer and choreographer, primarily in the rehearsal room but also on stage.Read More »

  • Jørgen Leth – Katherine Dunham – Dancing with Life [Pilot] (1993)

    1991-2000DocumentaryJørgen LethPerformanceUSA

    Not surprisingly, Jørgen Leth became fascinated by Katherine Dunham (1909-2006), an African-American anthropologist, dancer and choreographer living in Haiti. Dunham was politically engaged and a powerful personality. Unfortunately, at the time it proved impossible to raise the money to produce a film portrait. This pilot has survived on a battered VHS cassette. Footage from a dance seminar in East St. Louis is complemented with interviews with Dunham and other black dancers. The producer Terry Carter is working on having the planned Dunham film accomplished.Read More »

  • Jørgen Leth – Det Perfekte menneske AKA The Perfect Human (1967)

    1961-1970DenmarkExperimentalJørgen LethShort Film

    An elegant and humorous film-in the guise of a serious anthropological treatise-spotlights “The Perfect Human,” a model of the modern Dane created by our wishful thinking. Read More »

  • Jørgen Leth – Det Erotiske Menneske AKA The Erotic Man (2010)

    2001-2010DenmarkDocumentaryEroticaJørgen Leth

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    Quote:
    Erotic Man (Det Erotiske Menneske) (Director: Jørgen Leth): This somewhat experimental and extremely personal film raised so many issues for me to think about that I’m not sure my rating will align much with that of other reviewers. I don’t mind at all. Leth, who has been making films for more than 40 years, has made perhaps his most honest and personal one yet. An examination of the erotic, it’s more of a personal memoir, a record of an attempt to recreate (or create) memories or fantasies (romantic/sexual) from years of experiences all over the world. Leth seems to have an affinity for the exotic, having traveled extensively in Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia. Since 1991, he’s lived in Haiti, and this film seems to have emerged from a long-term love affair he experienced there. In fact, this film and his memoir The Imperfect Man have caused controversy in his native Denmark because in them he details his relationship with Dorothie, the 17-year-old daughter of his cook.Read More »

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