Tuesday, 24 August
Punishment Park
Short url:
PUNISHMENT PARK 1971 * Directed by Peter Watkins * 88 minutes * In English
Peter Watkins is one of the most important filmmakers still living.... he stands right up there with Godard in creating his own vision of cinema and social responsibility. And also, like many visionaries, Watkins has mostly been criticized by critics for making absurd claims, only to find out a few years later that everything he said was accurate, prophetic and true.Punishment Park is Watkins' view of America in the late 60s. He considered it a sort of science fiction film of the not so distant future, and actually its parallels with Guantanamo Bay are chilling. This film is about the construction of "punishment parks" in the deserts where all undesirables are being held. Watkins' films tend to be banned in his own country, Britain, and also in whatever other country he makes them in. This was also the case with this film, which was deemed un-american. Made with a cast of unprofessional actors, who contributed in the creation of the piece, this is an example of spontaneous filmmaking at its most intelligent.... a pseudo-documentary with absolutely astounding results. This film is the equivalent of cinematic dynamite.
"Call it a pseudo-documentary, an outrageous piece of propaganda, perhaps even a paranoid fantasy, but one description that definitely does not apply to Punishment Park is "light entertainment." Brit director Peter Watkins offers a chilling scenario, set in the early '70s, in which, according to an edict called the McCarran Act, the U.S. government has the right to detain (without bail, evidence, or anything resembling a fair trial) anyone who "probably will engage in certain future acts of sabotage."
This will be a high-definition screening.
Doors open at 20:30 * film starts 21:00 * Visitors limited to 16
Date & Time:
Category:
- film
Price:
- 3-5 €