Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Featured

Future Shocked
Beyond the Black Rainbow Now Showing

A look into the film Beyond the Black Rainbow (dir. Panos Cosmatos) and linking it to 80s retro infatuation, citing sci-fi, futurism and surrealist perspectives on the cut up fabric of today’s pop culture.

Retrospective vision is a powerful drug. How easy is it to slip into the memory, reminiscence or nostalgia of a particular time or era, even if we weren’t actually there, and glorify the elements that appeal to us the most strongly? Alternatively, the same way of thinking can be applied to the future. The future, that vague concept of what does or doesn’t lie ahead for us, offers us a dreamland of wonder and terror that we can only glimpse at or speculate about. Sure, there are plans and hopes, dreams and schemes, and we can certainly predict a lot of what’s going to happen, which undoubtedly would be quite accurate or close to accuracy, given the current state of the world. But there are no guarantees, no axioms of certainty. No one really knows what’s around the corner or down the track.

 

BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW

 

 

In our retro-obsessed society, with the cut up fabric of popular culture almost the norm, it’s not uncommon to find pastiches of different eras of history overlapping. Look at the resurgence of synth pop and the obsession over analog ONLY antique instruments, or thrash metal bands who have their whole sound and image down to a tee, including the Nike hightops. Maybe things really do go in cycles. Those two examples are of course linked exclusively to the 1980s, an era that is remembered both as fondly as it is reviled. Think of all the great music that was bubbling away in the underground and sowing the seeds for what was to come, or the classic movies that, if like me, you watched as a kid growing up. There’s something about the 80s that seems to captivate a lot of people, and I guess a lot of people would love to go back to it. Of course, Hollywood has cottoned on to this and is doing what they do best – making money off it by selling people who grew up in the era pieces of their ‘beloved’ childhood back to them, updated of course. Think Transformers, GI Joe, Tron, Hot Tub Time Machine, etc. And then there’s the whole 80s band reunion tour$…

Those of course are things that represent an era that we would like to remember as being bright and shiny, with outrageous parties and snazzy white suits like Don Johnson. But the image can often be stronger than the truth, and as such, it’s difficult to find a medium between the two. That being said, let me introduce you to a film you might or might not have heard of called Beyond the Black Rainbow.

The film was released in 2010 and is a first time feature from director Panos Cosmatos. While on the topic of the 80s, his father, George Cosmatos, directed the Stallone-starring flicks Rambo: First Blood Part II and Cobra. How 80s is that?! Although a recent production, you’d be forgiven for thinking this film came out in 1983. Indicative of the synthesized music of the era it’s set in, the film moves at a consistent pulse and lures the viewer into a trance through its hypnosis of spectacular Kubrick-inspired visuals. On par in terms of the pacing of films like Solaris and Stalker by the former Soviet Union’s Andrei Tarkovsky, Beyond the Black Rainbow is like a long lost cult classic, which it’s undoubtedly destined to be. Similar to Tarantino’s worship of obscure, weird and classic cinema, Beyond the Black Rainbow initially comes across as a ‘spot your cvlt favourites,’ with references to plenty of sci-fi, horror and various other nooks of obscure films from days gone by.

Described as a ‘Reagan era fever dream,’ the film effectively conveys many of the tensions and underlying social elements that have come to typify the 1980s. Soviet paranoia, nuclear dread, lingering doubt of survival all come to the fore without addressing the topics specifically. Instead it mirrors public sentiments of the time based on those factors and uses those anxieties to evoke mood. Set in a mysterious institute called Arboria and overseen by the ominous Dr. Barry Nyle, the film explores the fallout of the post ‘flower power’ era with decidedly scathing connotations. This contributes to much of the sinister vibe of the film, with burnt out counter culture characters desperately clinging to the hopes and dreams of the 1960s, martyring themselves for a glimpse into the lure of ‘enlightenment.’ Strange figures patrol the institute, such as tall, Daft Punk looking motorcycle giants, the grown up baby of Eraserhead, an orderly cruel enough to give Nurse Ratched a lesson…If Woodstock was the party, and the 70s were the after party, then Beyond the Black Rainbow is certainly the hangover, the damage done.

 

beyond the black rainbow

 

What really contributes to the film is Black Mountain keyboardist Jeremy Schmidt’s score. Falling somewhere between John Carpenter’s early works and psychedelic synth worship, it contributes to the film in a way that gives an almost music video effect…normally a reference like that is seen as a negative, but within the context of this film it’s appropriate and works excellently. Think Michael Mann’s slow montage moments in Miami Vice, with Phil Collins crooning in the background. You get the idea.

Beyond the Black Rainbow is a film that is indicative of modern pop culture. It synthesizes disparate but familiar elements together to create an image of its original sources with the volume turned up. We see this frequently, particularly in the context of the 80s…look at the near-deification of Ronald Reagan. The idea, the image is far more powerful than the reality. In the case of Beyond the Black Rainbow, this is not necessarily a bad thing because it makes for great eye and ear candy. If you look hard enough, you can read almost anything into film, and this one should keep you going for a while.

 

24 Comments

24 Comments

  1. Lyri Gee

    April 8, 2016 at 5:03 am

    Stathis Bar

  2. John Paul Blanchette

    April 7, 2016 at 7:11 pm

    I think it’s sort of like the Holy Mountain of this generation. An artistic triumph.

  3. Tom Salvador

    April 7, 2016 at 3:57 pm

    Love this film

  4. John Lyons

    April 7, 2016 at 2:17 pm

    Love love love this movie.

  5. Chase Dobson

    April 7, 2016 at 12:04 pm

    Its gorgeous… but then they lost the plot.

  6. Lucy Coarsey

    April 7, 2016 at 11:58 am

    One of the prettiest films I’ve seen in a while

  7. Cody Nash

    April 7, 2016 at 11:31 am

    One of my favorite movies of the past several years just due to the visuals alone.

  8. thewraithrising film scenes

    April 7, 2016 at 10:23 am

    Loved it!

  9. Christian Creek

    April 7, 2016 at 8:41 am

    It’s a wonderful watch/listen.

  10. Cary Breckinridge Bryan

    April 7, 2016 at 8:39 am

    Definitely in my top 5.

  11. Raven Lee Willis

    April 7, 2016 at 8:17 am

    The soundtrack for this film is remarkable, and the only even tolerable thing about it.

  12. Karine

    April 7, 2016 at 8:04 am

    Yeah, good soundtrack too.

  13. Gustav Widing

    April 7, 2016 at 7:44 am

    Any movie that plays some Venom in it is a keeper.

  14. Mauricio Enrique Caceres Araya

    April 7, 2016 at 7:32 am

    Brutal movie.

  15. Ian-John Coughlan

    April 7, 2016 at 6:05 am

    Very imperfect, but still enthralling movie.

  16. Aline Fox

    April 7, 2016 at 6:02 am

    Leonel,quando puderes vê este filme 😉

  17. Lucas Gómez

    April 7, 2016 at 5:36 am

    Boring as fuck, sorry

  18. Ryan Arrigan

    April 7, 2016 at 5:28 am

    Astounding cinematography AND sound, too bad the story itself is utterly forgettable. I recommend it simply because it’s a feast for the senses.

  19. Jeff Griffith

    April 7, 2016 at 5:09 am

    Yes! Huge fan!!!!

  20. Nathan Gough

    April 7, 2016 at 4:30 am

    One of the best movies ever and the soundtrack is equally amazing!

  21. Louis Chinaski

    April 7, 2016 at 2:33 am

    That movie is amazing, and the soundtrack too. 5/7 would recommend.

  22. Craig Salo

    April 7, 2016 at 1:48 am

    ya that movie was a great mind bender forsure

  23. Matthew Pallasoja

    April 7, 2016 at 1:10 am

    Amazing soundtrack too.

  24. Krissy Pederson

    April 7, 2016 at 1:08 am

    Such a great film.

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You May Also Like

Bizarre

via Lazer Horse There’s nothing funny about death really. But there is a lot of certainty to it. There’s not a person who’s ever...

Black Metal

During the first year of CVLT Nation, I was turned on to this unreal band from Wales called GHAST. Their release Terrible Cemetery was...

Black Metal

More Chaos! More Fury! More Rancid Riffs! only begins to tell you how CVLT Nation’s Blackened Everything Vol. IX is going to get you...

Movies

Sion Sono’s work is a great introduction to Japanese cinema for those who had no previous contact with it – indeed, hard to believe...

Copyright © 2020 ZoxPress Theme. Theme by MVP Themes, powered by WordPress.