Lucifer Rising: a heartfelt expression of Aleister Crowley’s Thelema philosophy
Kenneth Anger, “Lucifer Rising” (1981) Begun some time in the 1960s but not fully completed until 1981, with the music soundtrack having to be revamped completely,…
Silent Films
Din of Celestial Birds: exploration of evolution and development of consciousness in short film
Edmund Elias Merhige, “Din of Celestial Birds” (2006) Astonishing little film – it’s just 10 minutes long – about evolution and the development of consciousness, “Din…
Amalgam: no-budget home movie is surprisingly complex in plot and visual effects
Craig Murray, “Amalgam” (2007) Using just a handycam and his own home as set to make a black-and-white film on next-to-no budget starring himself and a few…
Begotten: film explores Christian and pagan myths of fertility in cycle of birth, death and rebirth
Edmund Elias Merhige, “Begotten” (1989) A remarkable student film that explores Christian and pre-Christian creation / fertility / life cycle myths, “Begotten” was inspired by a…
Invention of Love: short film challenges us to rediscover our humanity or allow technology to define us
Andrei Shushkov, “Invention of Love” (2010) Came across this elegant and melancholy film short by chance while hunting out another film short on Youtube.com and decided…
A Chairy Tale: fable about importance of communication, respect and equality
Norman McLaren and Claude Jutra, “A Chairy Tale” (1957) A delightful little number that even young children will appreciate, this Canadian short is a fable about…
Man with a Movie Camera: experimental film documentary with the camera as central character
Dziga Vertov, “Man with a Movie Camera” / “Chelovek s Kino-apparatom” / “Liudyna z Kinoaparatom” (1929) No plot, no obvious characters or a point of view…
Eastern European Films, Russian and Soviet Films
Arsenal: as Soviet propaganda, film is surprisingly pacifist and innovative in use of montage
Alexander Dovzhenko, “Arsenal” (1928) Notable for its skilful use of montages of images to create and build tension, excitement, urgency and other moods, “Arsenal” revolves around an incident…
French and French-language Films
Paris qui dort: amusing and light-hearted short film about human nature and Paris as a fantasy city
René Clair, “Paris qui dort” (1925) An amusing and light-hearted moral fable about what would happen if individuals suddenly had unfettered freedom to do what they…
Aelita, Queen of Mars: a multi-plot story with a moral about living in fantasy versus living in reality
Yakov Protazanov, “Aelita, Queen of Mars” (1924) This silent Soviet film from the mid-1920’s can be seen in nine parts on Youtube.com thanks to contributor Ishexan. Most…