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"Warts and All" gets 3.5 out of 5 at CurledUpdvd.com |
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Warts and All, a compilation of films by San Francisco filmmaker Danny
Plotnick has been reviewed by CurledUpdvd.com and been given 3.5 stars
out of 5.
 Danny Plotnick roared into the underground film world in the 1980's, fueled by his love of punk and alternative culture and infected with
d.i.y. spirit, he started making films that captured a
similarly snarly attitude. His films were pegged as bawdy,
bad-mouthed and beautiful, straddling the line between high-brow and
low-brow art. It’s no surprise that his work has screened from the MOMA
in NYC to mortuaries in Baltimore to the Independent Film Channel. With
little opportunity to screen this type of work in the 80's, Plotnick
took to the road, projector and films in trunk, screening in bars,
warehouses and cafes. Plotnick trail blazed a path for the underground
film world that exploded in the early 90s, a scene that would
ultimately champion his work.
Working in the pre-digital age, Plotnick was a fierce advocate for
super 8 filmmaking. He took this 1960s home movie medium with limited
capabilities and made work that stands tall regardless of format. The
special features on this dvd are an important document for students of
film, providing a rare glimpse into the world of sound super 8
filmmaking.
Danny Plotnick interviews himself about himself, January 2008:
Excerpted here is the review from CurledUpDVD.com :
"It's amazing what a guy with a punk attitude and a Super-8 camera can
do. The short films of Danny Plotnick are fun, irreverent, and foul.
Some are amusing but forgettable like Skate Witches; others stick with
you and make you smile later in the day, like "Swingers' Serenade,"
which suggests that 1950's film magazines encouraged marital
infidelities. Excellent on a number of levels, the least of which is
murder mystery.
Plotnick's "Death Sled II: Steel Belted Romeos" takes a traffic
misunderstanding and blows it up to epic proportions. It leaves me
wondering what would have happened if the nice driver had hit the
lead-footed Guido's car (a line that is repeated in about 50
interesting ways!).
"Pipsqueak Pfollies" illustrates the path of a milquetoast prone to
being taken (yea, even beaten) by children. His path is shown with
different choices after a series of interviews with children who have a
beef with adults.
I can see that Plotnick's work has paved the way for other filmmakers
like Tom Stern and Alex Winter. Great stuff and it leaves me wanting
more."
The entire review can be read on CurledUpdvd.com 's site and the dvd can be purchased from Microcinemadvd.com
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