CURTIS IDEA RESSERUCT AYN RAND ON BBC2

Another weekend, another abysmal failure in getting to the flicks. Well, in my defence there still isn’t much around and I did spend Sunday night and Monday morning staggering around Camden with one of our Melbourne correspondents who happened to recommend this which has only just been released down under (pretty amazing review here, trailer here) so this is another filler post I’m afraid.

So here’s a documentary that  hit my cultural radar for obvious reasons, then again I’d already heard about the Toynbee Tiles about seven or eight years ago through the magic of the internets. It’s finished its festival run in North America so hopefully it will be over here soon, I’m kinda fascinated by stories like this quite apart from the Kubrick connection and its been getting some great reviews. Oh, and congratulations to Terry, apparently he did turn up for the evening screening and all the press etc. were instructed to lower their camera’s to shoot at the floor (at his specific instructions before he came into the auditorium), he got on stage, hugged Brad Pitt and then left. Quite the enigmatic tease…..

Get it fast as I suspect that site will be taken down soon, of course the alternate method is to actually visit the iplayer although region restrictions may make that difficult.  Yes, a new Adam Curtis series of documentaries is always an event to celebrate, and as per usual he didn’t disappoint. There are usually some pretty large assumptions in any one of his thesis that I can’t agree with – in this case the assertion of Ayn Rand’s major influence on the ideology of the Silicon Valley pioneers (two interviews with two ‘unknowns’ doesn’t convince me) but no matter, as always he weaves together a truly phenomenal diatribe through the use of fascinating archive material, great soundtrack choices (special kudos to the use of The Fog and Moon for this series) and a contorting narrative that intertwines quite brilliantly at certain junctures. Here’s a link to a recent adaption of Atlas Shrugged which has been welcomed by the right-wing ideologues in the States, I think we can collectively agree, with an unswerving avoidance of altruism and an utter commitment to the individuals devotion to their own  selfish ends, that it looks like a big load of wank. To close I’ve had an idea for my 600th post and there is a bank holiday weekend coming (and I’m just ordered this of course), I’ve also got a screening booked at the BFI on the Monday and I’m definitely going to see this at some point – I promise.