Apart from its sheer dullness (it's a 30-minute 1920s-Surrealist-style montage, backed with tedious atonal music and stretched to 60+ by running it at what appears to be 8 frames/sec) this is the most dishonest piece of nonsense I've seen in many years. Some of the footage is visually striking, especially the hauntingly decayed comedy sequences. But Morrison didn't shoot any original footage. Yet he credits himself, and rather prominently too, as the "author" of the film ("editor" would be more accurate). He's even got recognizable footage from some commercial comedies in there. Yes, it's badly damaged. So what? So is the inside of the Sistene Chapel. So are "Nosferatu" and "Intolerance". But no other director's name or title appears anywhere in this film, although the archives that supplied him footage surely know what they are.
It's as if Morrison took "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" and "It's a Wonderful Life"-- which are also damaged, and also in the Public Domain-- chopped off the Milestone and Capra credits and edited them into one movie, "Bill Morrison's Christmas Story", and then copyrighted and sold it. Since these source materials are in the Public Domain, it wouldn't be illegal to do so. It would just be in incredibly bad taste.
It's as if Morrison took "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" and "It's a Wonderful Life"-- which are also damaged, and also in the Public Domain-- chopped off the Milestone and Capra credits and edited them into one movie, "Bill Morrison's Christmas Story", and then copyrighted and sold it. Since these source materials are in the Public Domain, it wouldn't be illegal to do so. It would just be in incredibly bad taste.