Red Shift

Red Shift

1986 · 50 min · ★ 5.2

This magnus opus is a domestic symphony from a woman's point of view, the portrait of a grandmother, mother and child and their home. The women and their personal objects are mostly seen alone or relating to one another (except for touching scenes of the grandmother and grandfather together). A key aspect of Red Shift is the reading of selections from Calamity Jane's "Diaries," the most narrative aspect of the film. The Diaries are read against activities seen through a window, life passing by (people walking in winter, a river flowing). They tell how Jane lost her daughter and had to survive by using her talents to act like a tough and physically competitive man...

Directed by Gunvor Nelson

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Cast

Ulla Moberg Mamma Sara
Regine Grundel Mamma Sara's Daughter Maria, as Young Girl
Carin Grundel Mamma Sara, as Older Woman
Gunvor Nelson Mamma Sara's Daughter Maria
Oona Nelson Anna, Maria's Daughter
Edith Kramer Narrator

Make it a double feature

2h 39m together

Red Shift

Monster

A close match in mood and era.

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A hilarious, grotesque and grave attack on the public ideal of the American housewife.

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The film that is mostly shot underwater, in a pool, begins with footage of water and a close-up of Nelson from which we move to her body immersed in water in a bath-tub from which yet another transition occurs to a pool with male and female naked bodies swimming underwater. The latter part of the film is almost totally liberated from speech, and has a dreamlike, complex soundtrack consisting of sounds of waves, voices, water and music woven together into a seamless web of sounds.

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