I want to write a little more about "Dimensions of Dialogue." "Food" and The Death of Stalinism in Bohemia." Both "Dimensions of Dialogue" and "Food" are in three parts. In the first segment of "Dimensions of Dialogue" There are pairs of figures that are meant to resemble people. The first pair to meet are a man formed out of different foods and a man made of kitchen utensils. The latter encounters a nab formed out of what may be school or office supplies. In each encounter one of the figures eats then regurgitates the other. The condition of the one who is devoured deteriorates each time until nothing of their original form is recognizable. In the end they become a series of men, one regurgitates another who goes from being a mass of clay into being a man who then regurgitates another mass of clay that repeats the same metamorphosis. In the second a clay man and woman are at a table together they kiss and meld together with faces and parts of their bodies showing in the mass of clay. Then they reform to their original forms, but there is a small mass of clay moving between them. It tries to get their attention, but they just want to get rid of it. The man throws it at the woman. She throws it back at him, and eventually they start hitting each other then tearing at each other's faces until their faces are torn away. In the third segment, first we see a small table. Two small masses of clay come out of a drawer in the side of the table. They become the heads of two men. They are facing each other. They open their mouths and objects emerge. At first these items complement each other. A toothbrush is paired with toothpaste, bread with a knife and butter, a shoe with a shoe lace and a pencil with a pencil sharpener. Then the pairings do not match, for an example bread is paired with toothpaste. Then one of the items in the pairing is damaged as when the bread is paired with the pencil sharpener. Then Finally each man brings forth the same items together. By this point the items have been almost completely destroyed. As the "dialogue" deteriorates the condition of the heads has deteriorates. At the end they are almost on the point of totally disintegrating with their eyes bulging and their tongues hanging out. In the first segment of "Food" there is a man sitting at a table with his arms hanging at his sides. He has a sign that says "Instructions"hanging from a chain around his neck. (The directions are in English and have been mostly obscured. They seem to refer to making entries to a film competition, but this does not fit in with what is being done in the short film.) Another man comes in and sits at the other side of the table and knocks a paper cup and plate on the floor. He starts reading the instructions. It seems that the man sitting there is some sort of vending machine. The man keeps referring to the instructions. He pulls out change from his pocket. He tries to find where to put the money. After referring to the instructions he reaches into the other man's mouth and pulls out his tongue. He then pokes one of the man's eyes. Then the other man becomes a dumb waiter. Off of the shelf in the dumb waiter come a cup of beverage and a paper plate with a sausage, mustard and a piece of bread. He punches the other man in the chin, and a plastic knife and fork comes out of the man's ears. After he finishes eating he kicks the vending-machine man in the shin and a napkin comes out of the man's jacket pocket. The man who had been the vending machine stretches his arms and legs, and he gets up to leave. the other man at the same time drops his arms to his size and has a glazed expression on his face. The instructions are hung around his neck. Another man comes and does to him what he had done to the man who was sitting there originally. However he reads the instructions completely before starting the process. When he finishes the same thing happens with the change in roles. The man who was the vending machine steps out into a corridor where there is a long line of people waiting. It the second segment we first see a man who looks like a gangster putting condiment on a meal. Then he reveals a wooden hand. He drives nails into the hand and bends the nail so that the nails hols a fork. Then he starts ti eat a human hand which must have been his own hand, Then there is a runner who starts to eat a foot, then a woman who prepares to eat a pair of breasts. The last person in a naked man sitting at a table covered with cigarette ashes. On the plate are a cock a pair of balls. He covers these up with his hands and wave the observer away. In the last segment there are two men sitting together at a table in a restaurant. One man has a suit and tie with suspenders, and the other is wearing rumpled clothing. There are some flowers in a small vase on the table along with china plates along with a knife and fork. A waiter keeps walking by, but he keeps ignoring these two men. The two men start eating the things on the tables, then their own clothing, then the table and chairs. The last things left are the knives and forks. The man who was in the suit ate his first, then the other man eats his own. The the suited man brings his knife and fork back up, and the film ends as he is about to devour the other man. The suited man had refined manners, and the other is somewhat shabby in his manners as he was in his attire. There seems to be a definite class difference. In the end it is the wealthier one who eats the other one. I have some of his other short films that I will watch as time permits. I almost forgot to write more on "The Death of Stalinism in Bohemia." I need to learn more about Czech history so I know who some of the people represented in this film. I want to learn more about what is referred as the Prague Spring. I feel a connection with this period, but I do not know why. I do not know if it is a general desire for the freedom of all people or a connection with this part of the world in particular. This is a very poignant film, I also want to learn more about the Czech Republic and Slovakia today.
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