Futurist Life Redux

The Futurist movement—which rejected traditional artistic forms in favor of a vision emphasizing dynamism, provocation, and violence—found cinematic expression in a 1916 film called Vita Futurista by Arnaldo Ginna, which featured 11 segments created by prominent futurists, including movement founder F.T. Marinetti, on topics such as “How a Futurist Sleeps” and “The Sentimental Futurist.” Since that work is lost, a group of contemporary artists have been recruited to contribute to a new compilation in the same cheeky spirit. Like most anthologies, Futurist Life Redux is a highly variable affair. While all 11 episodes are not only playful in tone (many take their inspiration from the titles and scenarios of the 1916 production) but also try to emulate the movement's mission to use cinema to expand the range of sensory experience, the pieces generally come across like disordered experimental shorts, marred by fairly primitive technique, poor acting, and stabs at edgy humor (exemplified by title puns like “Cerebral Ballzy” and “Acid Redux”). Ben Coonley's strange, goofy “Why Cecco Beppe Does Not Die” is the exception, using cats and supposedly futurist infants in a wildly imaginative flight of fancy. DVD extras include interviews with four of the filmmakers, a printed essay, and a synopsis of the original Vita Futurista. Not a necessary purchase. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)