Saturday, January 08, 2011

David Bowie: The Man Who Fell to Earth

David Bowie, who is 64 as of today's post, began his big screen career with Nicolas Roeg's The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976). Based on Walter Tevis' bleak 1963 novel of the same name, the movie is eerie but worth contemplation. Bowie seems ideal as a displaced and alienated alien (ha!) lost and far away from his dying home planet, which is fast running out of water. Cheery stuff. Roeg's weird little touches make it all the more interesting -- scenes with banks of televisions watched by the Bowie character as he guzzles booze, scenes in which he can see things transgressing back in time as he traverses the same modern ground in a limousine. Probably not a good film to see if you're feeling depressed or suicidal, however.  













Today's Rune: Defense. Happy Birthday Mr. Bowie, and Elvis!

7 comments:

pattinase (abbott) said...

Have never seen this one. Oh, those young kid years.

Adorably Dead said...

Woohoo, Happy birthday to the Thin White Duke! I have to watch that movie over again, I remember it confused the hell out of me. But then again I was about 12 when I first saw it.

ivan@creativewriting.ca said...

I can dig it... Still haunted by "Major Tom to Ground Control".

--Ivan

Charles Gramlich said...

I actually watched this movie about a year ago. I thought it was definitely interesting, though a bit slow for me. I'd wanted to see it for some time.

jodi said...

Erik, as much as I like Bowie's music, I could'nt make it thru that one!

Evan said...

I actually saw this in the theater the year it came out - with my dad. (I was 16). That was weird. If you've seen the movie, you know what I mean.

Of course, several years later I ran into my dad in the lobby of the theater on the way into a showing of "Liquid Sky" - that was weirder yet.

Erik Donald France said...

Thanks all for the comments ~ and thanks Evan, that's the next post. Another weird one was seeing K's parents at Gallipoli. . .