London Symphony: A Poetic Journey Through the Life of a City

A "city symphony" is basically a montage of pictures of life and architecture in a particular metropolis, often combined with a music score that is designed—along with the editing—to add rhythm to the succession of images. The genre flourished during the 1920s and ‘30s, particularly among avant-garde filmmakers in Europe (included as a bonus here is a typical example, 1933’s London Medley). London Symphony is a new, feature-length collaboration by director-cinematographer-editor Alex Barrett and composer James McWilliam. Shot in black-and-white and structured in traditional four-movement symphonic form, it is intended as a sort of cinematic poem, capturing the pulse and energy of the British capital, as well as providing views of many structures, both common and unusual. Unfortunately, while the footage is often quite striking, the sheer length of the film detracts from its impact, even though it is not much longer than the acknowledged classics of the genre—Walter Ruttmann’s Berlin: Symphony of a Great City (1927) and Dziga Vertov’s Man with a Movie Camera (1929). Moreover, McWilliam’s synthesizer score is mostly a bland compilation of conventional riffs. Still, this represents a noble attempt to revive a moribund type of film. Additional extras include an interview with Barrett, and Barrett and McWilliam’s 2009 short Hungerford: Symphony of a London Bridge. A strong optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)