[image=left]http://www.alternativenation.net/gallery/files/1/brownbunny.gif[/image]Vincent Gallo is a legend, it has to be said. Not only is he an award winning filmmaker, he was a celebrated pioneer and highly successful artist in the New York art scene in the ‘80s, along with Jean-Michel Basquiat. He was also part of the avant-garde art-rock movement with his band,
Grey, and one of the first "white homeboys" at the dawn of hip hop, under the name "Prince Vince". Not only that but he also raced motorcycles professionally and modelled for Calvin Klein. He is also a vocal and supportive republican and he also took part in the early punk scene and is at the moment signed to Warp records (home of aphex twin), where he released his critically acclaimed debut album
When. This isn't even taking in his career as an actor, which has seen him perform in such films as Abel Ferrera's
The Funeral and the celebrated
Palookaville.
Then he made, according to Roger Ebert, "the worst film in Cannes history":
The Brown Bunny.
Now, Gallo's first film was a masterpiece.
Buffalo ‘66 is a perfect film, perfect. Anyone who disagrees is a liar or an idiot; I can't fault it. When I first heard such harsh criticism of his latest I couldn't understand it at all, but as more information about the film’s content filtered through, it began to make more sense. The film got boos at the credits, which included "written, directed, photographed and edited by Vincent Gallo" as well as "A Vincent Gallo production". Gallo has reputation as an egotist, so this probably didn't go down well. There was said to be long, unending shots through windshields and in close up of Gallo's character "Bud Clay", as he travelled across America, took part in motorcycle races and sat looking grief stricken, which lasted up to about ten minutes, uninterrupted.
This, however, wasn't the biggest problem people had with the film. It was the last ten minutes, which included a real blowjob performed on Gallo by actress Chloe Sevigny (
Boys Don't Cry,
Kids). Some critics (mostly American) called Gallo an exhibitionist, some a narcissist, some called him a pornographer.
I'll tell you, none of that is true. Gallo is none of the above. He is an extremely talented individual who has made a truly unique film. Supposedly the film I saw is no different than the one shown at Cannes (though it has been substantially cut). Gallo has said that if you didn't like the first cut you wouldn't like the new one. So for anyone to call
The Brown Bunny the worst film in any context is downright fucking dumb.
The film deals in realism, in quietness. Bud travels across America, which is shot in a documentary-like, realistic, yet perfectly composed way, where he meets a series of girls whom he comforts and receives comfort from. There are a lot of long shots, yes, but if you appreciate photography in film, this won't bother you. Again, like
Buffalo ‘66, Gallo has used camera equipment that others don't use, giving the film a look unlike any film I have ever seen.
The film, in a way, reminded me of Gus van Sant's latest efforts in minimalism,
Elephant and
Gerry, in which dialogue wasn't needed to convey a feeling; it was already there, in the way the camera was placed, in the quietness, in the stillness.
The emotional conclusion of the film (the blowjob) isn't unnecessary or pornographic, maybe some could say he could have done it in a less explicit way but that, in my opinion, wouldn't fit in with the realism of the rest of the film. Moving away is for Hollywood movies. Gallo is a pioneer, like Larry Clark, Bernardo Bertolucci, and Gaspar Noé, who are brave enough to add real sex to their films and not feel ashamed of it. Porn is cheap and without emotion.
The Brown Bunny is none of these things.
Overall though, the film may have lacked a little substance. I don't know what, but it lacked the punch of
Buffalo ‘66. But Gallo at his less-than-best is still, to me, better than 99% of bullshit filmmakers out there at the moment.
The Brown Bunny was released in 2003
http://www.brownbunny.net/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0330099/
