Rec.

[Heikki Raudaskoski]

Don't get me wrong folks, I have nothing whatsoever against these 
cinematographical pieces of (mostly) Americana that Steelhead so
aptly presents, I have written about the significance of the musical
genre to _GR_ myself. (Which brings to mind that, oddly, nobody has 
mentioned individual musicals so far. Neither will I this time, since)

there are a couple of *European* movies of the 50s that, in addition to 
CONFIDENTIAL REPORT, TOUCH OF EVIL and NORTH BY NORTHWEST, are so
crucial here. I mean "our Bengt Ekerot / Maria Casares Film Festival"
(755). Someone has said that Cocteau's _Orphee_ is one the very few
films that have had an explicit impact on Bergman's _The Seventh Seal_.
Be that as it may, both are of importance to _Gravity's Rainbow_. While
there is the famous Zone in _Orphee_ (that has often been mentioned
in connection with Pynchon), Bergman's late medieval, apocalyptic
Sweden is something of a "Zone", too.

Staying in Europe, one should not forget Fellini. But as above, I'm 
talking rather about the general atmosphere than individual allusions.
Godard's _Alphaville_, sure. However, the great Resnais is never "cheap" 
in the way Pynchon and Godard (and Welles and Hitchcock) dare to be.
(I know I'm getting carried away now but)
there is one quite unknown movie of the French New Wave that is dear
to Pynchon, I have heard say. You see, at a seminar in Denmark last year
I met this professor, who told us that when he still lived in Santa 
Barbara, he and TRP had a mutual friend, some bartender, who had somehow 
managed to sweet-talk TRP into an  appointment with the prof. My academic 
acquaintance took beer, TRP tea, daring not drink whisky, fearing that 
somebody might have put something in it. They talked mostly about science 
fiction. Their mutual favorite was Chris Marker's _La Jetee_ (1963). 
Then the professor showed us, the participants of that seminar, the film in 
question. It is really a great film about post-apocalypse and memory that
consists (almost) merely of stills and takes only about half an hour.

As you may guess, I was not 100 % convinced of the story; I had earlier the 
same day  given a talk on Pynchon. Then _La Jetee_ was shown. However, a 
few months ago, someone posted to the list a message about the Santa
Barbara legend concerning his former professor and Pynchon. (Heikki 
the Doubtful apologizes, Professor!)  

Still, I guess that it is those myriad Hollywood low budget genre films
that (alongside with German Expressionism) might be even more important. 

Heikki