Making
a film about Guy Maddin is an intimidating prospect. There is no way you can
get away with conventional talking heads when profiling arguably the most
distinctive stylist in world cinema today. Fortunately, Yves Montmayeur
recognized the challenge and brought his A-game for The 1,000 Eyes of Dr. Maddin (trailer here), which screens
today as part of the 2015 RIDM: Montreal International Documentary Festival.
Before
going any further, fans should be duly reassured Udo Kier most definitely
appears in 1,000 Eyes. It wouldn’t be
a Maddin film without him. As the documentary opens, he and Geraldine Chaplin
are participating in Maddin’s séance performance art-installation piece at the
Pompidou Center. They are trying to raise the spirits of aborted films that
were never produced. Maddin’s persistent fascination with films that never were
has proved a rich vein for him to mine, also partly inspiring the mind-blowing The Forbidden Room.
Somewhat
surprisingly, Montmayeur has a clear affinity for the more macabre aspects of
Maddin’s films, which is not how most of his fans typically think of the
surrealist. However, he also explores Maddin’s playfully transgressive sexual themes,
which are always hard to lose sight of. Throughout the doc, Montmayeur shrewdly
selects film clips for illustrative purposes. However, the auteur’s admirers
will really respect the way Montmayeur manages to blend his documentary footage
together with Maddin’s films and imagery in accordance the spirit of his
subject’s visions. Maddin is also unceasingly helpful, talking seriously about
his work, while maintaining a self-deprecating sense of humor. Maddin
semi-regular Isabella Rossellini adds some star power, while John Waters and
Kenneth Anger further bolster its cult appeal.