PETER WATKINS

PETER WATKINS

PUNISHMENT PARK

This film extrapolates on the siege mentality of the Democratic Presidential convention in the 1970s, the
chaos on the convention floor and in the streets of Chicago, and the huge demonstrations against the Vietnam
War and the government. In this story, told in documentary style, the U.S. has expanded its military involvement
in Asia, and war protestors are seen as threats to the government. Protestors are given sentences ranging from
a few years, to life in prison. Perhaps because of prison overcrowding, or perhaps for other reasons, protestors are
given a choice in their sentencing. They can participate in a deadly three-day endurance contest in the
deserts of Southern California, or they can accept their incredibly long sentences. If they survive the desert contest,
they can go free. However, pursued by National Guardsmen who are prepared to shoot them on sight, they
must travel long distances to a designated point without food or water. Similar dystopian themes were explored in a
Robert Sheckley short story, made into a French film, and a novella by Stephen King (writing as
Richard Bachman), which became the 1987 film The Running Man, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.
~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

SOURCE: a very rare French video release, in English with French subtitles (1:30) (B/B) - UR

THE WAR GAME

Sometimes, documentaries can still exercise dramatic license. This winner of the 1967
Best Documentary Feature award is an exploration of what would happen to the English countryside
in the event of a nuclear attack. The producers used interviews and docudrama to argue that Britain's
Civil Defense was ill-equipped for the potential ravages of the Cold War. While speculative and shot
on a low budget, this exploration of the worst-case scenario is graphic and convincing. Produced by the BBC
for television in Britain, the film was deemed so frightening that it was given a theatrical release instead.

Peter Watkins' The War Game is the cinematic equivalent of a blow to the solar plexus. Filmed in
hand-held documentary fashion, the film speculates on the aftereffects of a nuclear war. Some of the
images are almost impossible to look at; they truly illustrate the theory that, in the wake of such a
holocaust, the living will envy the dead. The most heartwrenching scene is the simplest. Asked what he
wants to be when he grows up, a sullen young boy, physically unhurt but with obviously deep emotional
scarred, mutters "I don't want to be nothin'". Filmed for BBC television, The War Game was rejected
by that august concern as being too graphic. The 47-minute film was released to theatres, making it eligible
for the "best documentary" Academy Award. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

(:47) (A/A) - OP

THE GLADIATORS aka THE PEACE GAME

War is treated as a futuristic sporting event as two sides gather for a conflict monitored by officials.
The "games" are held in a manner in which viewers can tune in as if it were a popular television show.
The movie attempts to illustrate the futility of war and lampoons political leaders as they go through
a series of machinations and cheer the troops on to victory. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

(1:30) (B/B) - OP

PRIVILEGE

After directing several extraordinary documentaries for the BBC, Peter Watkins made his first dramatic
feature with this flawed but striking film about Steven Shorter (Paul Jones), a pop singer in a future society
where entertainment is controlled by a totalitarian government. Shorter's music and image is used to channel
the impulses of rebellious youth; in one concert sequence, the crowd watches him sing a plaintive plea for love
and understanding while locked in a cage surrounded by police officers armed with clubs. While Shorter is
remarkably popular, he's also living a life created for him by the government, which Steven knows is a sham.
When Shorter's handlers decide to revis image into that of an obedient, religious boy, he rebels, to his peril.
Model Jean Shrimpton made her film debut here as an artist comissioned to paint a portrait of Shorter.
Privilege later became something of a cult film; one of the film's admirers was rock poet Patti Smith,
who recorded one of "Steven Shorter"'s songs, "Set Me Free," on her 1978 album Easter.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

(1:30) (B/B) - OP

EDVARD MUNCH

"A long, abortive affair with an older woman joins the ubiquitous ghosts of a childhood scarred by sickness and death.
In the end, it's the paintings which do Munch's talking for him…. A remarkable film" (Giovanni Dadomo).

Considered by some the greatest film about an artist ever made, focusing on Munch's formative years,
a life marked by the absence of intimacy. With Geir Westby, Gro Fraas and Iselin von Hanno Bart.

(2:47) (A/A) - OP Norwegian with English subtitles.