Along with The Bloody Child, Arbelos has added Menkes' entire filmography to its catalog with the acquisition of The Great Sadness of Zohara (1983), Magdalena Viraga (1986), Phantom Love (2007), and Dissolution (2012). In 2019, Menkes' Queen of Diamonds was restored by the Academy Film Archive and The Film Foundation, with funding from the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation, co-presented by EOS World Fund, and re-released by Arbelos to critical acclaim. Arbelos and Eos World Fund will co-present the re-release of Magdalena Viraga. Arbelos is planning a touring theatrical retrospective of Menkes' films, as well as digital and blu-ray boxset releases in 2022.
Of her films I've only seen Queen of Diamonds on Arbelos' Vimeo page, and I found it mesmerizing. The box set is fantastic news. Her working methods are really fascinating as she decribes them in interviews:
There was a point, when I shifted over to 35mm, where various people (though not my sister Tinka, I should add) kept suggesting that I give up the camera, in order to concentrate more completely on directing. But I realized ... that that would be a fatal error. The reason is that I never plan shots; I like them to unfold in the moment, and also because I feel everything through the lens. This is perhaps just an idiosyncratic talent. I know how to frame my shots on the one hand, and I also know that if I would tell someone else what to do I would lose the Zen miracle of the one moment, so to speak.
swo17 wrote: Sat Feb 12, 2022 5:44 pm
Magdalena Viraga
I suppose I should provide some context to my recommendation. This was my first film of hers and it slowly burrowed into my brain in such a way that I subsequently felt compelled to visit much of her filmography. As I recall they were all roughly of a piece with each other, but the images from my first encounter are the ones that remain most indelible. One may also note that these films are generally very poorly rated on IMDb, which is not entirely surprising. I might describe Menkes' craft as deceptively inept, perhaps a bit like Andy Milligan with a tripod. These films are acted and shot "wrong" in a way, but it's a way I find intimately accessible and uniquely haunting.
I also see that Menkes just had a documentary premiere at Sundance this year. I wonder if Arbelos might take that one on as well
swo17 wrote: Sat Feb 12, 2022 5:44 pm
Magdalena Viraga
I suppose I should provide some context to my recommendation. This was my first film of hers and it slowly burrowed into my brain in such a way that I subsequently felt compelled to visit much of her filmography. As I recall they were all roughly of a piece with each other, but the images from my first encounter are the ones that remain most indelible. One may also note that these films are generally very poorly rated on IMDb, which is not entirely surprising. I might describe Menkes' craft as deceptively inept, perhaps a bit like Andy Milligan with a tripod. These films are acted and shot "wrong" in a way, but it's a way I find intimately accessible and uniquely haunting.
I also see that Menkes just had a documentary premiere at Sundance this year. I wonder if Arbelos might take that one on as well
Good description of Magdalena Viraga. I'd add that it's also one of the cooler visions of east Los Angeles that I've seen.
swo17 wrote: Sat Feb 12, 2022 5:44 pm
Magdalena Viraga
I suppose I should provide some context to my recommendation. This was my first film of hers and it slowly burrowed into my brain in such a way that I subsequently felt compelled to visit much of her filmography. As I recall they were all roughly of a piece with each other, but the images from my first encounter are the ones that remain most indelible. One may also note that these films are generally very poorly rated on IMDb, which is not entirely surprising. I might describe Menkes' craft as deceptively inept, perhaps a bit like Andy Milligan with a tripod. These films are acted and shot "wrong" in a way, but it's a way I find intimately accessible and uniquely haunting.
I also see that Menkes just had a documentary premiere at Sundance this year. I wonder if Arbelos might take that one on as well
Thanks for the writeup. I'll definitely start with this one. I bought the Andy Milligan set from Severin blindly a couple of months ago and he's been quite the revelation for me so far. So this also sounds like it aligns with the kind of cinema I'm currently vibing with.
yoloswegmaster wrote: Mon Sep 05, 2022 6:23 pm
Arbelos have the rights to Wayne Wang's Life is Cheap… But Toilet Paper is Expensive, and a 4K restoration has been performed for it.
I really hope they give us the original cut and the new version he’s prepared. Wang has caught a bit of the revisionism bug.
Trailer for Dream Life posted on Arbelos YouTube. Looks to be a collaboration between Arbelos and Canadian International Pictures. Billed as "the first female-directed narrative fiction feature to come out of Quebec."
Arbelos also just announced via their newsletter:
LE: Cinematic Sorceress - The Films of Nina Menkes, featuring The Great Sadness of Zohara (1983), Magdalena Viraga (1986), Queen of Diamonds (1991), The Bloody Child (1996), Phantom Love (2007), Dissolution (2012). Pre-order, coming January 31.
FWIW, for those who don't have a subscription to the Criterion Channel, the 4K restoration of Chameleon Street is up on Kanopy. (IIRC a Blu-ray was planned but it's been over a year since the theatrical re-issue and still no release date.)
hearthesilence wrote: Fri Dec 23, 2022 6:46 am
FWIW, for those who don't have a subscription to the Criterion Channel, the 4K restoration of Chameleon Street is up on Kanopy. (IIRC a Blu-ray was planned but it's been over a year since the theatrical re-issue and still no release date.)
Nina Menkes’ new documentary Brainwashed, which isn’t included in Arbelos’ set, can also be found on Kanopy
Whoever wrote that article is either mistaken or has some insider information that isn't known to the rest of us. You can double check the YT channel that the trailer was uploaded to.
swo17 wrote: Sat Feb 12, 2022 5:44 pm
Magdalena Viraga
I suppose I should provide some context to my recommendation. This was my first film of hers and it slowly burrowed into my brain in such a way that I subsequently felt compelled to visit much of her filmography. As I recall they were all roughly of a piece with each other, but the images from my first encounter are the ones that remain most indelible. One may also note that these films are generally very poorly rated on IMDb, which is not entirely surprising. I might describe Menkes' craft as deceptively inept, perhaps a bit like Andy Milligan with a tripod. These films are acted and shot "wrong" in a way, but it's a way I find intimately accessible and uniquely haunting.
I was ready to return this set after finding the first four films varying degrees of bleh (categories: 'Interesting but I'll probably never watch it again' (Magdalena Viraga); 'Almost interesting but walks a razors edge that falls on the side of irritation' (Queen of Diamonds, The Bloody Child); 'I want to rip my head off my shoulders' (The Great Sadness of Zohara). But then I got to Phantom Love, which somehow clicked for me in a profound way - Menkes leaning a bit heavier into the artsy possibilities of her previous preoccupations, imbuing phantasmagoric surreality into the sensation of an intense subjectivity in friction with alienating/intrusive stimuli and physical space. I guess I have to keep this set now..
Can anyone speak to the commentaries - do they help one gain an understanding/appreciation of what Menkes is doing with these films? I'm particularly interested in Magdalena Viraga and Phantom Love
I just noticed that Belladonna of Sadness has been removed from the Arbelos site and is sold out from all retailers. I wonder if a 4K is coming from someone else?
