Los (2001) User Reviews

Captivating experimental film-making

[runamokprods · 7/10 · 16 March 2013]

In the 2nd part of his "California Trilogy" Benning once again employs the exact same for as his earlier "El Valley Centro"; 35 two and a half minute long static shots, often symmetrically framed, only this time they give a portrait of the Los Angeles region instead of the Central Valley.

While there are some very strong images here, and some interesting juxtapositions (desert to skyscrapers, etc.) reminding one just how oddly topically diverse and physically huge Los Angeles is, it lacked the feel of a unifying theme that made "El Valley Centro" so engaging. Also, while some images are truly striking, others felt less so, whereas in the earlier film, almost every image had a resonance for me.

Still, Benning is amazing in his ability to make this kind of highly regimented and experimental work feel alive and far from a chore to sit through. If the words "experimental film" make you want to run the other way, Benning may be the film-maker to change your mind.

Film of the year...

[cudas · 9/10 · 11 December 2001]

Conceptual-art portrait of Los Angeles County, comprising 35 two-minute shots of streams, hills, buildings, factories, gardens, highways, rivers, cattle, trains, people, the ocean, a cemetery, the skyline, policemen, back streets, a jail, soccer players. Bennings' camera remains static, and in the absence of commentary the only sounds we hear are whatever's audible in each of these places: snatches of dialogue, distant background music, the rumble of cars and trains.

Needless to say, Los won't be to all tastes - in today's market-oriented climate, such a project necessarily runs the risk of 'pretentiousness' accusations - but it's surprising how quickly you adjust to the film's unique rhythms, and this is a very straightforward, accessible kind of experimentalism. In terms of an artist using cinema to express himself, it dwarfs almost all this year's 'conventional' releases: if any film of 2001 can possibly change the way its audiences think about and view their world, it's James Benning's mysterious, majestic, magical Los.