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Brand Upon the Brain!
If you ever loved the artistry of David Lynch, but thought his films were too dark and incomprehensible, there’s Guy Maddin to ride in on a sea of comedic absurdity. With his silent film Brand Upon the Brain! he did something entirely different — he created the ultimate live theater experience, one that can never be replicated at home unless you’re ridiculously rich with a live orchestra, group of foley artists, a celebrity narrator, and a castrato at your disposal. But even still, that Criterion release does a fine job of coming close.

But first, the plot. The film focuses on a young Guy Maddin as he lives on a remote island that holds a lonely orphanage. His mother reigns with an iron fist and peeping watchtower while trying to reverse the weariness of age with her

strange, scientist husband. Meanwhile, one of the orphans dies, strange holes are found on some of the kids, and some teen detectives come to investigate, all in the pulsing throb of teenage rebellion and sexuality.

While you can’t create the live experience at home, Criterion has done everything possible to produce that disc like the live experience. Each screening across Canada and the states had a celebrity narrator, and that disc allows you to choose amoung the seven narrators, which essentially gives you seven different ways to view the film — from Maddin himself to Isabella Rossellini, John Ashbery, and Crispin Glover. There’s additionally a documentary with interviews, two new short films, deleted scenes, a trailer, and an essay by Dennis Lim.

Check out James Rocchi’s Review | Buy the DVD

Continue reading New DVD Picks of the Week: ‘Brand Upon the Brain!’ & ‘CJ7′

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Original post by Monika Bartyzel