Wisconsin Death Trip is a documentary out on dvd this Tuesday, courtesy of the fine folks at Home Vision Entertainment (Criterion's sister company). I had never even heard of this film before seeing the box. It sounded interesting, so I gave it a whirl.
Brief synopsis: Based on the book of the same name, the film chronicles the bizarre happenings and downfalls of the townspeople of Black River Falls (a small, rural town in Wisconsin, hence the title) during the last decade of the 19th century. Following an economic collapse... epidemics, murders, insanity, and other weirdness follows. It's narrated by Ian Holm, and has re-creations of some incidents, plus actual photos and readings of the articles of the time.
So. While the movie lacks a complete through-line (the happenings are quite episodic, only a few characters actually progress through the story), I still absolutely loved this movie. Even if you loathe the story, I dare you to not be in awe of the stunning black and white cinematography (there's some choice color-contemporary bits too). There's one crane shot in particular, that is IMO, one of the most beautiful images I've seen in ages. The movie is EXTREMELY well-crafted on every level.
I'd say more, but I'd rather not ruin anything for y'all (some of the stories are just shocking). If you like the way Errol Morris shoots his re-creations, you'll really like the way things are shot here.
Give this one a shot, you won't be disappointed.
I think there was a midnight screening of this in my neck of the woods this past summer, and on the flyer at the theater there was a picture of what looked like a dead baby. So naturally, given my filmography, my curiosity was picqued.
Thats one more I need to put on my list of getting...
....For DVD
Quote from: Weak2ndActBrief synopsis: Based on the book of the same name, the film chronicles the bizarre happenings and downfalls of the townspeople of Black River Falls (a small, rural town in Wisconsin, hence the title) during the last decade of the 19th century. .
Well, I grew up not to far from that town.
Static-X Rulz!
I saw this a couple of years ago. It consists of recreations of the murders and weird occurences and some documentary footage of the town today. The filmmakers provide no context for the events, just reenactions, which for me made the film unsatisfying. The good cinematography might make it worth watching at least once.