Starfilm
Johann Lurf / AT, 2017 / 128 min.
A chronological collage of excerpts from film history accompanied by their original soundtracks, in which only a starry sky is visible. This raises an ever-expanding number of questions and, for those who are lucky, cosmic answers.
The Viennese filmmaker, artist and part-time projectionist Johann Lurf works on an amusing structuralist oeuvre that revolves around essential questions about perception and projection. In short, how do humans see the universe? This might sound high-flown, but the result is always of a dizzying clarity and free of psychological airs.
This is also the case for his only long film (2017-now), appropriately entitled ★. It is a cosmic trip through film history, composed of chronologically arranged sequences from hundreds of films in which only a starry sky is visible—or more accurately, is depicted.
The fragments are removed from their original context, but retain their original soundtrack. Ranging from the jazzy to the hypnotic, the film’s audio track thus reflects the many ways in which directors have used a star-filled sky.
Meanwhile, Lurf continues to update ★ with recent clips, meaning the once 90-minute film has expanded somewhat—rather like the universe itself.
This is part of
Details
Director
Johann Lurf
Production year
2017
Country
AT
Length
128 min.
Language
English
Subtitles
NONE
Format
DCP
Part of
IDFA 2024
The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) is once again bringing an exciting selection of the world's best documentaries to Eye this year, from November 14 until 24.
Share your love for film and become a member of the Eye Society.