Un Chien Andalou (An Andalusian Dog) (1929)

The word "structure" does not apply to "Un Chien Andalou", Luis Buñuel's first attempt at making Surrealism a household ideal, and with the help of Surrealism savant Salvador Dalí (the man who painted the melting clocks) he is able to show you what 17 minutes of pure free form thought (or insanity, depends on how you look at it) looks like. There is no plot whatsoever and one would be a fool to try and surmise an idea of what exactly is going on. This the exact opposite of what this movie entends to do (we aren't talking about symbolism at every turn here, in fact there is nothing in this movie that means anything other than what you see at face vaule).

From the close-up slicing of a womans eye (if this does not tell you what kind of ride your in for then there is no helping you) to the dragging of dead and decomposing donkeys stuffed inside two pianos (i'm not making this stuff up, I swear) and all the confusing twists, turns, ups and downs in between, this movie will take you somewhere you had no idea exsisted and shows that it takes nothing but a clear sense that you are in control and can use that power to make a monumental film.

There is no dialogue spoken in this film and all the acting have the low frame rate quality of earlier films that adds a dreamy touch to the overall production and keeping the idea of of there is no clear idea deeply dug into the viewers mind.

The soundtrack is just as varied as the visuals is lays behind. One moment it is upbeat (akin to a ballroom party of the European flavor) then the violins drone into a settling soundscape then into daunting highs but never abandonning it's sweet serinty. I dont think i've ever seen a woman get run over and not hear some dramatic music to match the action being shown on the screen (it was the most pleasant hit and run i've ever seen).

Being the mouthpieces of Surrealism at the time, Buñuel and Dalí had no intentions to please the crowds (seriously, these guys were crazy and they knew it) but rather to provoke thought and show that anyone can pretty much do anything they want in the name of art.

If you are a fan of the Avant-Garde movement of the twentys or just want to see what having no artistic constraints whatsoever looks like then you should check this little slice of Heaven out.