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Movies / On DVD / A Grin Without A Cat
A Grin Without A Cat

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A Grin Without A Cat (2002)

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Reviews Counted:22

Fresh:20

Rotten:2

Average Rating:7.9/10

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 3 hrs

Genre: Foreign Films

Theatrical Release:May 1, 2002 Limited

Synopsis: A GRIN WITHOUT A CAT is Chris Marker's epic film-essay on the worldwide political wars of the 60's and 70's: Vietnam, Bolivia, May '68, Prague, Chile, and the fate of the New Left. Released in... A GRIN WITHOUT A CAT is Chris Marker's epic film-essay on the worldwide political wars of the 60's and 70's: Vietnam, Bolivia, May '68, Prague, Chile, and the fate of the New Left. Released in France in 1978, restored and "re-actualized" by Marker fifteen years later (after the fall of the Soviet Union), we are proud to release the film now for the first time in the United States. Described by Marker as "scenes of the Third World War," the film (the original French title is virtually untranslatable) is divided into two parts, each weaving together two strands: Part 1: Fragile Hands 1. From Vietnam to Che's death 2. May 1968 and all that Part 2: Severed Hands 1. From Spring in Prague to the Common Program of Government in France 2. From Chile to - to what? From 1967 (the year Marker argues was the real turning point) on, A GRIN WITHOUT A CAT is a sweeping, global contemplation of a defining ten years' political history. -- © 2001 First Run/Icarus Films [More]

Director: Chris Marker

Director: Chris Marker
Studio: First Run/Icarus Films

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Release:

May 5, 2009

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Chris Marker's epic film-essay on the worldwide political wars of the 60's and 70's: Vietnam, Che, May '68, Prague, Chile, and the fate of the New Left.
  • Source: Icarus Films
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for A Grin Without A Cat

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    Reviews
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    tomato
    A

    Dennis Schwartz

    It's not your usual political doc.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Oct., 15 2009 05:19 AM

    Ozus' World Movie Reviews

    tomato
    3.5/5

    Dan Lybarger

    Depending on your mood and your familiarity with international politics from 30 to 40 years ago, A Grin Without a Cat can be either talky and esoteric or haunting and prophetic.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 14 2009 08:07 PM

    eFilmCritic.com

    splat
    5/10

    Mark R. Leeper

    It recreates the feel of the period, but in the end its obscurity undercuts its power.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 11 2009 09:15 AM

    rec.arts.movies.reviews

    tomato

    Jeffrey M. Anderson

    A Grin Without a Cat plays more like a creative mix tape than a standard hunk of journalism.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 07 2009 09:48 PM

    Combustible Celluloid

    tomato
    6/6

    Joshua Rothkopf

    Just to take in Grin’s first few moments, a mash-up of Battleship Potemkin and police whacking May ’68 protesters, is to see a mind sifting through chaos and making beautiful, critical sense of it.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 06 2009 02:20 PM

    Time Out New York

    tomato
    4/4

    Eric Henderson

    A masterpiece among masterpieces, the two-part, three-hour A Grin Without a Cat is Chris Marker's most ambitious, clear-headed string of cinematic clauses and ideological couplets, and also his most impenetrable.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 05 2009 08:02 AM

    Slant Magazine

    tomato
    4.5/5

    Paul Brenner

    massive, towering, and impassioned

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 03 2009 03:52 PM

    Filmcritic.com

    splat
    C

    Robert Roten

    This slapdash documentary about left wing political movements is probably best understood in the original French and was a lot more relevant in 1977 when it was first made.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Apr., 24 2009 12:43 PM

    Laramie Movie Scope

    tomato
    3/5

    Emanuel Levy

    No review available.

    comment Comment | Jul., 18 2005 04:20 AM

    EmanuelLevy.Com

    tomato
    3.5/4

    John Hartl

    While it regards 1967 as the key turning point of the 20th century, and returns again and again to images of dissidents in the streets, it's alarmingly current.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jan., 17 2003 06:43 PM

    Seattle Times

    tomato
    3.5/5

    Jason Anderson

    An exhaustive investigation into the roots and after-effects of the revolutions and counter-revolutions that rocked France, the U.S., China, Latin America and Czechoslovakia in 1967 and 1968.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Dec., 02 2002 08:15 AM

    eye WEEKLY

    tomato
    3/4

    Jonathan Curiel

    A timely look back at civil disobedience, anti-war movements and the power of strong voices.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 08 2002 04:15 PM

    San Francisco Chronicle

    tomato
    3/4

    Jeffrey M. Anderson

    Marker's incredible collection of newsreel footage -- TV footage from various countries, home movies and other celluloid wonders -- eventually shapes a scattered, pinwheel idea of the era's attitude.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 07 2002 11:03 AM

    San Francisco Examiner

    tomato
    4/4

    Patrick Z. McGavin

    This is a movie about the world at war with itself, and the result is riveting, sublime and unforgettable.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Sep., 26 2002 01:48 PM

    Chicago Tribune

    tomato
    3/4

    Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)

    Although it's a bit smug and repetitive, this documentary engages your brain in a way few current films do.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 29 2002 04:09 PM

    St. Paul Pioneer Press

    tomato

    Ed Kelleher

    A three-hour cinema master class.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 18 2002 08:11 AM

    Film Journal International

    tomato
    3.5/4

    Jeremy Heilman

    Achieves a sort of filmic epiphany that revels in the true potential of the medium.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 06 2002 03:52 PM

    MovieMartyr.com

    tomato
    3.5/5

    Ken Fox

    It's always fascinating to watch Marker the essayist at work.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 01 2002 12:06 PM

    TV Guide's Movie Guide

    tomato
    4/4

    John Anderson

    Fierce, glaring and unforgettable.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 01 2002 12:04 PM

    Newsday

    tomato
    4/5

    Dave Kehr

    A work of extraordinary journalism, but it is also a work of deft and subtle poetry.

    Full Review Source: | comment Comment | May., 01 2002 12:00 PM

    New York Times

     
     
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