The Geography of the Body (1943)

  • NR
  • 01/01/1943 (US)
  • Documentary
  • 7m

Overview

A quotation from Aristophanes, "The desire and pursuit of the whole is called love," precedes views of a man and a woman's bodies, often in extreme close up. Off-screen, a voice recites fragments of oracular literature and purple prose. We see an eye, an ear, a mouth, a tongue, bits of hair, a hand, the tips of fingers, toes. Occasionally, the frame includes a larger scape of a body: a chest, a back, a breast. Usually the camera is stationery; sometimes, it moves across a body, remaining in close up. They hold hands for one moment. The bodies are without clothes; no genitalia are visible.

Willard Maas

Director

Cast

George Barker's headshot

George Barker

Narrator / Body
Willard Maas's headshot

Willard Maas

Body
Marie Menken's headshot

Marie Menken

Body

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