EURODDITY
2 films in this collection
An exploration of the surreal and weird essence behind the veil of mundanity that shrouds the lives of Central/Eastern European citizens.
Euroddity excavates the roots of absurdity with tools of art and artifacts of culture - we’re observing not Gregor Samsa’s natural monstrosity, but his record collection, mid-century furniture, and an intricate diet preferences.
Our first session is the stunning dark gems of Juraj Herz, a master of mysterious macabre humour and a gothic visionary of the Czechoslovak New Wave. A gifted photographer and puppeteer, a very talented self-taught director, Herz ended up far from being a New Wave poster-boy - he was Czechoslovak cinema’s great outsider. Over two decades marked by misunderstanding from his peers and constant intrusion from the authorities, Herz pursued his gothic vision of an expressionistic world undone by forces beyond rational control.
On Saturday, 10th of January, we’ll watch two very different milestones of Hertz filmography - the pulpiest and schlockiest 1982 FERAT VAMPIRE, a John Carpenter-esque horror comedy about a demonic race car that runs on human blood, and 1969 THE CREMATOR - a renowned cult classic, the most purely disturbing title of the Czech New Wave, and an enduring vision of the depravity lurking just beneath the surface of bourgeois respectability.
And on the 21st of January, we’ll meet BEAUTY AND THE BEAST - a personal take on a classic fairy tale motif, heavily decorated with horror, romance, baroque costumes, and distinct, eerie Moravian and French landscapes and architecture. Released in 1978, this gloomy, dreamlike fantasy cemented Herz’s reputation as a maestro of the macabre and a talented conjuror of atmosphere.
Euroddity excavates the roots of absurdity with tools of art and artifacts of culture - we’re observing not Gregor Samsa’s natural monstrosity, but his record collection, mid-century furniture, and an intricate diet preferences.
Our first session is the stunning dark gems of Juraj Herz, a master of mysterious macabre humour and a gothic visionary of the Czechoslovak New Wave. A gifted photographer and puppeteer, a very talented self-taught director, Herz ended up far from being a New Wave poster-boy - he was Czechoslovak cinema’s great outsider. Over two decades marked by misunderstanding from his peers and constant intrusion from the authorities, Herz pursued his gothic vision of an expressionistic world undone by forces beyond rational control.
On Saturday, 10th of January, we’ll watch two very different milestones of Hertz filmography - the pulpiest and schlockiest 1982 FERAT VAMPIRE, a John Carpenter-esque horror comedy about a demonic race car that runs on human blood, and 1969 THE CREMATOR - a renowned cult classic, the most purely disturbing title of the Czech New Wave, and an enduring vision of the depravity lurking just beneath the surface of bourgeois respectability.
And on the 21st of January, we’ll meet BEAUTY AND THE BEAST - a personal take on a classic fairy tale motif, heavily decorated with horror, romance, baroque costumes, and distinct, eerie Moravian and French landscapes and architecture. Released in 1978, this gloomy, dreamlike fantasy cemented Herz’s reputation as a maestro of the macabre and a talented conjuror of atmosphere.
EURODITTY PRESENTS: LOVE IS COLDER THAN DEATH
(1969, West Germany, Rainer Werner Fassbinder)
88 mins15
On the 16th of March, Eurodity brings you “Love Colder Than Death” - the debut feature of Reiner Werner Fassbinder, a true king of sick euro oddballs and a smoking queer cannonball of a film director. Before shooting himself into another dimension by a fatal combination of alcohol, cocaine, and sleeping pills at the age of 37, Fassbinder directed over 40 feature films, a few TV specials, and one huge 931-minute TV mini-series, Berlin Alexanderplatz. He also wrote scripts for nearly all of them, and took roles of producer, art director, editor, cinematographer, and sometimes lead actor - a man who never slept.
“Love is colder than death” is a restless and sombre foray into the b/w world of the Hollywood gangster film as interpreted by B-movie mavericks such as Sam Fuller, and French New Wave, here stripped bare by Fassbinder to reveal the cold underlying mechanism of love, death, loneliness, friendship, hate, betrayal, and manipulation. Shot on a pfennig budget, this - his first feature - is both an assured 'revolutionary' critique of genre, and at the same time a constantly searching experiment in style and treatment. The plot? For what it is worth, the worn-leather-jacket-and-boots, chain-smoking ex-con and pimp (Fassbinder) refuses the brutal 'persuasions' of the Syndicate, befriends a felt hat and raincoat (Lommel), only to be betrayed by a jealous prostitute lover (Schygulla) in an attempted bank robbery. In this bleak world of bare sets, static camera shots, and stylised acting, was awkwardly born one of the greatest 'lives in film' the cinema has seen.
“Love is colder than death” is a restless and sombre foray into the b/w world of the Hollywood gangster film as interpreted by B-movie mavericks such as Sam Fuller, and French New Wave, here stripped bare by Fassbinder to reveal the cold underlying mechanism of love, death, loneliness, friendship, hate, betrayal, and manipulation. Shot on a pfennig budget, this - his first feature - is both an assured 'revolutionary' critique of genre, and at the same time a constantly searching experiment in style and treatment. The plot? For what it is worth, the worn-leather-jacket-and-boots, chain-smoking ex-con and pimp (Fassbinder) refuses the brutal 'persuasions' of the Syndicate, befriends a felt hat and raincoat (Lommel), only to be betrayed by a jealous prostitute lover (Schygulla) in an attempted bank robbery. In this bleak world of bare sets, static camera shots, and stylised acting, was awkwardly born one of the greatest 'lives in film' the cinema has seen.
Upcoming Screenings
No upcoming screenings
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
(1978, Czechoslovakia, Juraj Herz)
91 mins15
A humble village girl becomes the captive of a grotesque Beast, a figure both terrifying and tragic. As she navigates his eerie, shadow-filled castle, fear gives way to curiosity and compassion, revealing the humanity hidden beneath his monstrous exterior.
A darkly gothic and visually striking fairy tale, Juraj Herz’s Beauty and the Beast blends horror and romance, exploring obsession, transformation, and the thin line between terror and tenderness.
A darkly gothic and visually striking fairy tale, Juraj Herz’s Beauty and the Beast blends horror and romance, exploring obsession, transformation, and the thin line between terror and tenderness.
Upcoming Screenings
No upcoming screenings