Video (Netflix) Pick: These Amazing Shadows

With The Artist and Hugo, Hollywood has churned out entertaining propaganda for film preservation and restoration.  Not to be outdone, These Amazing Shadows is a documentary centered around the National Film Registry, which began in the mid-80s in response to outcry towards Ted Turner’s attempts to colorize classic black-and-white films.  After acquiring the rights to the MGM, RKO and WB libraries, Turner possessed a huge chunk of cinema history.  Scholars, critics, celebrities, even nice guy Jimmy Stewart, were all beside themselves and protested before Congress that the changes were a defamation of the film’s artistic integrity and historical significance.  Since 1989,  the National Film Registry has selected 25 films annually for preservation in the Library of Congress.  The films include Star Wars, Gone With The Wind, Frankenstein and even Fargo.  

These Amazing Shadows pays tribute to the Registry’s mission and many of the films it protects.  Geared toward novice movie-goers, Shadows presents a broad overview of the Registry’s film preservation efforts while showcasing various features, shorts, commercials and cartoons that carry a unique artistic and historical merit. 

Scholars and recognizable faces like John Waters, Christopher Nolan, Rob Reiner and Zooey Deschanel take opportunities to ogle over the usual suspects: The Godfather, 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Wizard of Oz.  But Shadows doesn’t pander solely to casual crowds–it also concentrates on forgotten pioneers like Lois Webber who defied the male dominated silent era and directed gender-defining pictures on taboo subjects such as abortion and contraception.  There’s also the controversial Registry selections like The Birth of a Nation, whose milestone in cinema history is equaled by its blatant racism (the film’s heroes are Klan members).  Unfortunately, Shadows focuses too deeply on the subject matter and skims over the reasons for the film’s influence.  The talking heads are noticeably less forgiving to the John Wayne classic, The Searchers which paints an unflattering, but less potent, negative portrayal of Native Americans.

There also discussion over less obvious selections which show the raw, ugly side of American history including two amateur shorts from World War II: Cologne, a 1939 documentary about a German-American community and Topaz,  a home movie which chronicles life in a Japanese internment camp.  There are also films like Baby Face whose sexual innuendo was censored during their initial release.  However, the Packard Campus in Culpeper Virginia, which maintains thousands of films reels, and was able to reinsert many of the lost sequences. There are also films that counter the more popular racist films such as 1961’s The Exiles, in which a bevy of Native Americas strive to start a new life in urban Los Angeles. 

The most baffling film is a cold war era propaganda short that suggests houses will survive a nuclear attack if properly painted–and even produces a demonstration of three tiny model homes in which the freshly coated replica stands while the other two lay in ashes.  The short was sponsored by a paint company.

The actual restoration effort is not given the amount of attention it deserves.  What is presented are temperature controlled film values where stocks are preserved.  We also see the results of films not properly care for.  Film cans from different eras contain prints is disarray–torn, shriveled, dust-ridden.  We only see brief glimpses of the pain-staking process, which involves cleaning each individual frame one at a time.  Given the state of some of the original nitrate prints, it’s a miracle and testament to the society that any of these films are rescued.  

The Amazing Shadows bounces between loving homages to well-known classics, historical tidbits and the reasoning for the unconventional selection process.  I especially enjoy one fan rejoicing the moment when Blazing Saddles got selected in 2007 and how he could finally rationalize his repeated viewings during college–he was studying!  There’s also the surprise 2009 selection of Michael Jackson’s Thriller, the first music video induction. 

The wealth of history and complex Registry selection and preservation process deserves a more elongated miniseries rather than an abbreviated 80-minute run time.  But I relished in the countless film moments and the nobility of the Registry’s mission.  Shadows works best when the films are able to speak for themselves.  Hundreds of films are sampled in their respective full screen and wide screen (all in HD) presentations.  Seeing glimpses of the dazzling 2001 and Blade Runner will encourage established fans to crank up the blu-ray player.  You will walk away from The Amazing Shadows more inclined to rewatch a classic or even sample one you’ve never seen.  Amazing Shadows mirrors many of the propaganda features that the Film Registry aims to preserve.  And you will will be thankful these films are not laying in ashes.  

Video (Netflix) Pick: Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey

Since Disney successfully reincarnated the Muppets back into multiplexes last year, children and nostalgia-obsessed adults (like moi) have a renewed love for Jim Henson’s sock and thread creations.  Being Elmo: A Puppetteer’s Journey serves as an ideal companion piece–paying tribute to the performers whose human presence are hidden just inches beneath the camera frame.  The subject of Being Elmo is Kevin Clash, a puppeteer who epitomizes the life of a Jim Henson employee: They may walk the streets freely without fear of paparazzi or stalkers, but once they pull a stitched creature over their arm, they can attract as much attention as Tom Cruise!

Clash is a middle-aged, African-American male from Baltimore who happens to be the face (and hands) underneath one of television’s most successful children’s figures: Elmo!

The little red “monster” was born in the late 1980s and joined the likes of Big Bird, Bert, Ernie, Grover and Oscar the Grouch on Sesame Street.  Archived footage showcases a very different Elmo in his initial debut and shows just how far the character has progressed (Elmo originally had much deeper voice).  Elmo’s original puppeteer was dumbfounded in how to characterize the puppet, and in frustration, tossed the puppet over to Clash, who also struggled for inspiration at first.  He soon became fascinated by a little child and decided that Elmo should replicate her naivety, curiosity, pureness and limitless amounts of love.  The children viewers loved him back.

Two decades later, Elmo is now the primary poster-child for Sesame Street.  Movies, books, home videos and, of course, annoying toys (“tickle me”) have propelled Elmo into an icon for toddlers.  Clash–an exceptional storyteller–tells of his puppeteering origins and the obstacles he faced before making it to Sesame Street.  When compared to other muppeteers, Clash is a late-bloomer.  Sesame Street debuted in 1969 when Clash was only a child.  He obsessed over the PBS program as well as Jim Henson’s later success, The Muppet Show.

Clash began constructing his own puppet creations and put on single-man shows for family and friends.  Although teased by class mates, Clash pressed on and began performing for schools, including those for special needs children.  Early footage shows that Clash had a real passion and a genuine gift for making children smile.  After high school, Clash was hired to puppeteer characters for a local television show.  He soon earned the attention of entertainers like Captain Kangaroo and his hero, Jim Henson. 

The story as Being Elmo lacks any dramatic twists or heart-wrenching moments.  Clash was raised in a happy household with parents who supported his obsession.  Nevertheless, Being Elmo is deeply inspirational and moving.  An extraordinary amount of footage presents Clash during different stages in his journey.  Some of the most touching moments include Clash giving joy and laughter to children.  Even at the height of his career, Clash continues to make them laugh; always answering requests by the “Make A Wish Foundation” whenever a child asks to meet Elmo. 

There is an underlying sense of goodness throughout the documentary.  Early in his career, Clash writes letters to Kermit Love, Jim Henson’s chief puppet designer and inspiration for a certain frog puppet.  Kermit graciously accepts Clash’s requests to meet and invites him visit his workshop.  The entire meeting is documented on video and we can see the undeniable joy in Clash’s eyes and the genuineness in Kermit’s mentor-ship, which eventually helps Clash get recognized by Jim Henson himself.   

At the film’s conclusion, a similar scene is presented, except Clash is now a powerhouse in puppetry who shows a little boy around his studio.  The boy is a true fan, even putting names to all the muppeteers pictured on Clash’s wall. Clash is as enthusiastic and as generous as his mentor. 

It’s a shame the documentary sidetracks the specifics of Clash’s past.  We learn that he has a daughter.  Clash admits that he regrettably missed much of her childhood as a consequence for his celebrity status.  However, the detriments of celebrity are brushed to the side in order to highlight Clash’s ultimate success story.  Whatever is in hidden in Clash’s shadows are not visible in Being Elmo, but his generosity and humanity in undeniable–just like Elmo.