Fast Women: The Ladies Of Auto Racing
Remember those old history movies you'd watch in school? You know the ones that whined and skipped letting you catch a quick nap before biology class. Well THIS ISN'T ONE of them. Who would of thought the adjective entertaining can be said about a educational film! Well FAST WOMEN a documentary about women in racing stands on the podium in first place. It’s wonderful to hear from the mentors of yesterday and the racerchicks of today on their triumphs and tribulations. Heros such as Janet Guthrie, Shawna Robinson, Lyn St. James share their experiences - what draws them to this addicting sport. Rachel Belofsky’s production is excellent.
What separates this film from any other documentary is as follows:
1) You will
learn something.
2) Excellent footage – both historical and recent.
3) The women interviewed – including my hero Janet Guthrie have wonderful
tales to tell. They are genuine, intelligent, and fast driving women. They
speak from the heart.
4) You will laugh and you will cry – and you will be entertained.
Whether if you are a racerchick or have one in your family – this is a MUST SEE video – if not for the superb content then for the inspirational effect it has knowing there is a sisterhood of us racerchicks out there.
Watching the documentary feature "Fast Women," I was struck at once by how far
women in motorsports have come and how far they still have to go.
The pretense these days is
that women racers are no longer oddities to be scoffed at. Early on in the
documentary, a fifties-era newsreel piece chronicles a 16-mile "powder puff"
race, and it is clear from the stereotype-riddled commentator's script that in
decades past female racers were treated like carnival attractions rather than
legitimate competitors. One of the aims of the rather salaciously-titled "Fast
Women" is to prove that there is nothing stereotypical about women driving
racecars, and that in an enlightened 21st century opportunities abound for
ambitious women with lead feet to make their way in male-dominated motorsports.
"Fast Women" rolls out a
happily diverse cross-section of female racers. Those who get the most screen
time include open-wheel racers Janet Guthrie and Lyn St. James, and NASCAR
competitors Tammy Jo Kirk and Shawna Robinson. Director Laurie Agard makes these
women the focus of the documentary, allowing them to be de facto spokespeople
for female motorsports, and it is a good decision. These drivers, as well as the
other women interviewed, come across as normal people, not overhyped pioneers or
crusaders. None of these women seem conscious of the fact that they are blazing
any trails; they simply describe their desire to race, the challenges that face
them (many of which are not peculiar to the female sex), and how they approach
their careers.
At a short 45 minute
runtime, the documentary necessarily skimps on history, which unfortunately robs
the viewer of a more detailed understanding of some of the first women to
elevate their gender out of the "powder puff" niche, including Sara Christian,
Hall of Fame driver Louise Smith, and perhaps the best-known name in women's
racing history, Shirley Muldowney. What the feature lacks in historical depth,
however, it makes up for in human moments that strip much of the hype that
accompanies any woman driver. Small moments such as one driver walking a
racecourse prior to an event to get a feel for the track configuration speak
volumes about how seriously these women drivers take their careers -- as
seriously as any of their male counterparts.
A particularly affecting
segment details the all-too-brief career of Kimberly Myers, a California racer
whose promising career was cut short by cystic fibrosis. Myers died in 1997, but
not before giving her fans a thrill ride with her driving and warm hearts from
her generosity. Her story underlines the tragedy, not only of her death, but of
the racing world losing such a bright and promising talent far too soon.
For all of the successes
women have had in racing, however, there is an undeniable undercurrent of
challenge that even now is proving enormously difficult to overcome. A
behind-the-scenes look at a commercial shoot with Patty Moise uncomfortably
proves that some sponsors still treat their female race drivers with
disturbingly old-fashioned attitudes. Throughout the feature it is made clear
that, though these drivers wish nothing more than to be treated as equals,
perceptions still do not allow that to happen. The spotlight is unavoidable and
glares twice as brightly as those on male drivers. And although progress still
rolls slowly on, it is still difficult for a woman driver to secure sponsorship
without resorting to stereotype. Even the video itself, with its double entendre
title, makes concession to the hidden sexual undercurrent that dogs female
racers in their careers.
Taken as a whole, however,
"Fast Women" paints a vivid portrait of normal women stepping outside
increasingly outdated conventions to achieve their dreams. Perhaps the most
telling comment is voiced by a woman enrolled in the Russell Driving School, who
simply states that her desire to race comes from the wish to do something unique
and extraordinary. None of these women are airheads driving fast for a lark --
they are dedicated, serious athletes driven by passion and skill to excel.
For a low-budget
production, "Fast Women" is surprisingly well-crafted. There a few minor
distractions, including footage of crash trucks at Indianapolis with siren sound
effects overlaid on the scenes, but thankfully these hiccups are minor. Overall,
the film is quite watchable from start to finish -- it delivers in a low-key,
intimate fashion that complements its subject matter well.
The award-winning "Fast
Women" is not simply a race fan's documentary. It is, rather, a celebration of
female achievement in the face of adversity, a glimpse into the lives of women
whose inner drive overcame exterior pressures and assumptions. The appeal of
"Fast Women" lies not in its racing footage, but in the human drama and stories
that flow through it. Instead of taking the easy road of repackaging the
standard interview answers to questions too often repeated, "Fast Women" takes
the time to reveal its subjects as ordinary people doing extraordinary things
simply for the love of it.
"Fast Women" is not rated,
but is suitable for all audiences.
Fast Women is perhaps one
of the best
documentaries about
female athletes ever made. Smart and informative, with a refreshingly organic
style, it catches the real life passions, fears and frustrations of women auto
racers. What I liked most about the film is the strong assertation that girls
and women in this millennium can fulfill their dreams. Seven-time Indianapolis
500 racer, Lyn St. James, talked about first having a dream and then making that
dream a goal. There was a strong sense in the film of how much racing meant to
these women and how dedicated they were to their dreams. Fast Women is a must
see.
-Lance Silka
Bob Wills: Fiddlin' Man
"Rope Burns" Newsletter of Academy of Western Arts
At long last, the award-winning Life & Times of Bob Wills video is now on DVD!
In case you missed it the first time around, the video traces the career of Bob
and his Texas Playboys from their early days at KVOO in Oklahoma to his last
session in 1973. It combines interviews with legendary musicians like Eldon
Shamblin, Luke Wills, Johnny Gimble and others, and footage from Bob's movie and
tv appearances. In addition to the interviews, you'll see Leon McAuliffe, Noel
Boggs, Tommy Duncan, Les Anderson and many others in action.
In Tex Ritter's movie, Take Me Back to Oklahoma, Tex comments to
friends as the Playboys perform, "They're the Best in the West!" Indeed they
were, and this DVD illustrates how it happened. That clip is here, as are
performances from films with Charles Starrett and Russell Hayden, plus tv
appearances.
The beauty of the DVD format is that, if you wish, you can go straight to
the music scenes, or to any of the numerous interviews or sections of the video
dealing with specific events in Bob's career. These Bonus Features offer a
tremendous advantage over the VHS format. Songs include "San Antonio Rose," "Sittin'
on Top of the World," "Home in San Antone," "Lone Star Rag," " Goodbye Liza
Jane" "and "Time Changes Everything" (plus a little of Bob singing "Goodnight
Little Sweetheart, Goodnight" to close the program). Highly recommended! $19.98
from www.view.com or
call 800-843-9843. (VHS also available)
-OJ Sikes
Picasso: The Man & His Work
2004 Midwest Book Review
"Picasso:
The Man And His Work is a two volume DVD anthology that painstakingly researches
and portrays the life of revolutionary modern painter Picasso. Part 1 covers
1881-1937 and Part 2 covers 1938-1973. Originally made with the complete
collaboration of Picasso himself, this artistic presentation unfolds in
flashback format, alternately showing scenes of Picasso's life, and in turn
displaying how his life experiences deeply affected his work. An absolute
"must-have" for fans of Picasso's pioneering style, Picasso: The Man And His
Work: Parts 1 & 2 is very highly recommended viewing. A core addition to art
school and community library Art History collections, each DVD biographical
documentary is in black-and-white, with a running time of 45 minutes plus 60
minutes of bonus features including art galleries, director's memoirs on
Picasso, bonus music, and more."
- James A. Cox
DVD Town - July 2003
I grew up with Picasso. In Chicago, I often passed the giant Picasso sculpture that defined Daley Plaza and eventually became part of the city’s collective personality. At first it seemed a bit “far out” for this New York never-wannabe town, but eventually the baboon-like figure seemed an appropriate reminder of Chicago’s many fabled political bosses. That’s the way Pablo Picasso’s work has always struck people: first, like something from outer space; later, as an ultimate, illustrated truth. Like Ernest Hemingway, who was born in nearby Oak Park, Pablo Picasso cast a huge shadow not only over his chosen artistic field, but across many nations as well. Both were part of the same circle of expatriate geniuses who met in Paris cafes to argue about aesthetics, and both inspired museums in a number of countries that now celebrate their work
And that’s what this DVD does.
Having recently visited the Picasso Museum in Antibes, on the French Riviera,
and the Picasso Museum in Paris, I was excited that earlier this year V.I.E.W.
Video came out with a DVD version of their acclaimed two-part bio of
Picasso—though “bio” is probably not the right way to describe the film that
captivated audiences at the 1974 Cannes Film Festival. This is no standard
comprehensive PBS- or A&E-style documentary dominated by the testimony of those
close to the subject and mini-lectures from dull-as-dust talking heads.
Photographer-filmmaker Edward Quinn managed to gain unprecedented access to the
Spanish painter, which allowed him to compile what amounts to “a screenplay
showing Picasso as if he were going through the scrapbook of his life,” using
exclusive home movies and photos which Picasso allowed him to shoot. The result
is as compelling and intimately voyeuristic as watching an episode of The
Osbournes—though, of course, with much greater significance. For artists and art
historians, this is an important film, and one that thankfully has been
preserved. It features the last images made of Picasso while he was living, and
fascinating behind-the-scenes footage. Quinn wrote the commentary himself, with
Robert Rietty providing the voiceover narration against a backdrop of Spanish
classical guitar.
Part I opens with shots of Picasso in 1972, the year before he died, at his home
in Mougins. Quinn skillfully alternates photographic and film images with images
of Picasso’s paintings and subjects. The latter is particularly effective, as we
literally watch a Picasso image morph into the subject(s) posing for the
painting. Quinn shows Picasso and his last wife, Jacqueline (who, by the way,
wholeheartedly approved of this film) at home together. Then it’s flashback
time, starting with Picasso’s early drawings (astounding to see!) at age 15,
which clearly foretold his genius. Quinn covers Picasso’s trip to Madrid in 1897
and influences by Goya, Reubens, and El Greco, Picasso’s trip to Paris in 1900
and his subsequent relocation there, as well as his association with Hemingway’s
mentor, Gertrude Stein. Also covered on this disc: Picasso’s Blue Period, the
birth of Cubism, the first women in Picasso’s life (Eva, ballerina Olga Koklova,
and Dora Maar), and Picasso’s so-called Neo-Classic Period. Part I ends with
Guernica, the giant anti-war painting which is arguably Picasso’s masterwork.
Part 2 spans fewer years but includes far more shots of the greatest painter of
the century as he talks about portraiture, techniques, space travel, and
friendship. There are shots of the Chateau at Antibes, where Picasso lived and
worked for six months, because it afforded him the opportunity to paint large
canvases, and shots of Picasso’s homes in Vallauris and Notre Dame de Vie.
Picasso’s ceramics and his affinity for animals are included on this disc, which
ends with a commentary by well-known art dealer Daniel Henri Kahnweiler and the
last photos of Picasso with Jacqueline.
Video:
It’s hardly fair to rate this on the same scale as high-tech studio productions,
since Quinn often had to work around the temperamental genius using available
light and always felt self-conscious that “the click of my camera’s shutter
seemed to resound like thunder in the atelier.” In addition to the
difficult-light photographs, these are mostly black and white home movies that
have the graininess, flickers of uneven light, and specks of dirt that
characterize such prints. It’s like watching old footage of the Kennedys playing
touch football on the White House lawn. It may not be pristine, but that also
somehow contributes to the sense of newsreel authenticity and home intimacy that
viewers experience. Aspect ratio is 1.33:1 (full frame).
Audio:
Because the soundtrack is in 2-channel Dolby Digital, your front center speaker
will get a real workout, while the main speakers, subwoofer and surround sound
speakers will get a rest. It won’t compare to the sound experiences you’ve grown
used to, but, again, when you’re watching rare footage of one of the most
important artists of all time, does it really matter?
Extras:
When V.I.E.W. released a video of Quinn’s film in 1986, no extras were included.
The good news is that there are extras on this set—some 60 minutes of them. The
bad news is that the extras on Part 2 nearly duplicate those on Part 1, and
they’re pretty standard. Both discs contain a Picasso biography of click-on info
that describe and explain his Blue Period, Rose Period, Protocubism, Cubism
(both analytical and synthetic), Cubist sculpture, Realist and Surrealist works,
and Guernica. Both feature a brief director’s bio and longer director’s notes on
the making of the film, as well as the unexpected gem of the extras: “My
Friendship with Picasso: Director’s Memoirs.” Rounding out the extras are bonus
music tracks and an art gallery of 100+ images. The latter varies from disc one
to disc two, and isn’t exactly the kind of art show you had to sit through it
art history, where a small slide showed the title, medium, and date that you had
to memorize. These images fill the screen, and just as the film itself is more
of an intimate portrait of a 20th Century genius than it is a full-blown
documentary, the paintings fade in and fade out, whole and in detail, at a
leisurely pace, again, against the backdrop of Spanish classical guitar.
Thankfully, V.I.E.W. wasn’t skimpy with the scene selections. There are 45
access points on disc one alone, for a 45 minute feature, and almost as many
(32) on the second disc, so educators can quickly access segments. Images come
from the Art Moderne de Paris, Museum of Modern Art in New York City, Musee d’
Antibes, Picasso Museum in Barcelone, and the Museums of Moscow and Leningrad.
Parting Thoughts:
These DVDs are part of V.I.E.W.’s art series, and will primarily interest art
lovers. Though the installments are sold separately, they’re equally strong and
best purchased together. Neophytes need not fear that they’re getting in over
their heads, though, as the narration provides a nice overview of Picasso’s work
and life without seeming too heavy-handed or didactic. And schools will love the
fact that an institutional price of $59.98 per episode includes lifetime Public
Performance Rights at one location where no admission fee is charged. I would
recommend the set for both high school and college students. Quinn’s portrait of
Picasso reveals as much about creativity, genius, and the artist’s way of life
as it does about the grand master of Cubism.
By
James Plath (July 17, 2003)
Verdi: The King of Melody
DVD Town - July 2003
Hollywood has a reputation for being fad-conscious, and it doesn't take a Roger Ebert with high-powered binoculars to spot clusters of similar films. Westerns galloped across big screens in the '50s, but feel-good bittersweet biopics were also popular. In the music field alone, audiences really went for romanticized bios of march king John Philip Sousa ("Stars and Stripes Forever"), vaudevillian Eddie Foy ("The Seven Little Foys"), big band leaders Glenn Miller ("The Glenn Miller Story"), Red Nichols ("The Five Pennies"), Gene Krupa ("The Gene Krupa Story"), Benny Goodman ("The Benny Goodman Story"), and a fictionalized bio starring Goodman's female singer, Peggy Lee ("Pete Kelly's Blues"). And though "Verdi: The King of Melody" was produced in Italy during that flurry of musician movies, Americans had to wait until 1974 to see it.
"Verdi: The King of Melody" was a hit when the
story of Italy’s greatest composer of the mid-1800’s hit American theaters two
years after the Watergate break-in. That’s almost time-warp surreal, if you
think about it. If anything, it’s a tribute to the music itself. Opera lovers
will find themselves absorbed by the operatic treatment of Verdi's life, which
includes more than 20 scenes performed from eight Verdi operas: "Nabucco," "Ernani,"
"Rigoletto," "Trovatore," "Traviata," "Aida," "Otello," and "Falstaff." Because
it's a vintage film, it includes vintage performances by legendary Metropolitan
and La Scala opera stars Tito Gobbi, Mario Del Monaco, Orietta Moscucci, and
Vito de Taranto, with Giuseppe Morelli conducting the chorus and orchestra of
the Opera House of Rome. The plot is really second to the music, and I don't
mean the standard background fare. Substantial operatic performance clips and
background music of Verdi's operas wash over you as you watch (and absorb). By
the end of the film, opera lovers will have felt as if they had just attended a
"highlights" concert combined with a sometimes somber "lowlights" treatment of
the composer's semi-tragic life. Neophytes, meanwhile, will come away with a
better sense of the music. If there's one surprise, it's that apart from the
performance clips there's very little in the way of dramatic score. Most of the
scenes that drive the plot are presented in silence, although music is used for
transitions and to heighten emotional moments.
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) borrowed liberally from writers Victor Hugo and
William Shakespeare, and so it's ironically appropriate that Verdi's life has
all the earmarks of a Shakespearian tragic hero, complete with tragic flaw.
Music is his strength, but also his weakness. He has the passion to feel love,
but not passion enough to boldly go after love.
Director Rafaello Matarazzo opts to skip the early years of Verdi's life in
order to focus early at the point where tragedy first befalls the composer.
Framed with a deathbed scene that immediately gives way to flashback, "Verdi"
begins with the young composer (Pierre Cressoy) traveling with his wife,
Margherita (Anna Maria Ferrero) from Parma, the place of his birth, to Milan. In
doing so, Matarazzo bypasses an interesting (but probably unnecessary) story of
a 19-year-old Verdi failing admission to the Milan Conservatory, due to
"insufficient talent." Also missing is a dramatization surrounding his first
opera, "Rocester," which was written when he was eighteen but never performed
(the score was lost). Instead, the film quickly captures the early struggles and
great tragedy of Verdi's life. First, he discovers that the position he traveled
to accept in Milan was no longer available, because his patron went bankrupt.
Then, the woman he married in 1836 and the two young children she bore him all
die within the next four years--his wife's death coming after she was out in the
rain, trying to pawn her jewelry. It’s the kind of stuff that arias are written
for. At this low point, Verdi had to write and deliver a comic opera he was
commissioned to produce. Needless to say, it was his only failure, but a failure
he kept from his dying wife. As a last request, she asks her father to give her
ring to a woman worthy of her husband’s love. The rest of the film chronicles
Verdi's emotional/financial recovery and ascent to the position of Italy's
foremost composer, driven by a single dramatic question: Will Verdi ever marry
his second love, Giuseppina Strepponi (Gaby Andre),a woman whom his first wife’s
father deemed unworthy?
Sure, the emotional arc is about like my vertical leap on the basketball court,
and as with other ‘50s biopics the script romanticizes a bit, whitewashes a bit
(omitted is an affair he had during his second marriage) and paints the corners
with melodrama. And the actors’ performances never draw attention to themselves,
which is to say that the star of the film is the music itself. "Verdi" even has
a stirring "Casablanca" musical moment. When "Nabucco" premiers to a mixed
audience of mostly Italians but also some of their Austrian occupiers, Verdi is
ordered arrested backstage because his music was beginning to arouse nationalist
sentiments. When the entire audience breaks into a Verdi song, the occupiers
conclude that it would cause a riot to arrest the young man, and they back off.
Historically, that 1842 opera and also "I Lombardi" (1843) fueled the
Nationalist movement and solidified Verdi's place as Italy's top composer.
Video:
Production values are similar to other Technicolor pictures of the era, but with
slightly more graininess, yellowing, and occasional circular flashes in scene
transitions, reminiscent of the blemishes you see when viewing the leader on a
roll of film. There are also several moments of digital morphing, where picture
gives way to a color pattern of squares. Considering the state of the original
film, though, V.I.E.W. did a decent job on the transfer. As with other films of
the period, the presentation is 1.33:1 (full screen).
Audio:
Remastered in two-channel Dolby Digital, the sound is certainly an improvement
over the original. But the sound originates mostly from the front center
speaker, with a quieter replication of the same sounds evenly distributed across
the main and rear speakers. The result is less than dynamic, but the
performances themselves are such a treasure that it’s a marvel that this film
has been preserved on disc. Filmed in mostly Italian, "Verdi" is dubbed in
English, and the dub job was done with enough grace so that it's not intrusive.
Extras:
How amazing is it to have the legendary Enrico Caruso sing four complete Verdi
areas in your living room? From "Traviata" there's "Libiamo ne lieti calici";
from "Otello" there's "Ora e per sempre addio,"; from "La Forza del Distino"
there's "O tu che in seno agli angeli"; and from "Aida" there's "Se quell
guerrier io fossi-celeste Aida." No images to go with the sound, but close your
eyes and sip a glass of wine and pretend you’re in a box at La Scala. Great
feature! Also included: a text-only bio of Verdi and a complete list of his
works, including the year and location of their premiere. V.I.E.W. was generous
with the scene selections, with over 45 scene divisions that make it easy to
locate the musical moments. Finally, there are 10 trivia factoids, one of which
reads like a complete summary of the composer’s style. It lists the main
features of a Verdi opera: 1) Creating a distinctive orchestral sound, 2)
Highlighting the potential of the baritone voice, 3) The father-daughter
relationship, 4) Relationships that affect the destiny of many people, 5)
Anti-clericalism, and 6) Patriotism.
Bottom Line:
Americans aren't exactly known for being opera-lovers, on the whole. They
generally get their arias on the air, via commercials. Ask someone to hum a few
bars of Verdi's "Libiamo ne lieti calici" and you'll get a blank stare or a
hearty laugh. Play a few bars for them, and many of them will beam, "Hey, that
was on a Rice Crispies commercial." I plead guilty here, too. I've been to four
performances at the Lyric Opera in Chicago and loved them, and saw a performance
at the Royal Copenhagen Theater in Denmark and loved it. And I listen to Dawn
Upshaw occasionally on my home stereo. That's the extent of my opera-loving, and
I admit to it now as a point of reassurance: No opera lover? No problem. If
you're a sucker for those old musical biopics, you'll like this film.
By
James Plath (July 24, 2003)