Filmmaker Bill Morrison has found beauty in unlikely places. His film, Decasia: The State of Decay, was pieced together from old film reels that have begun to show significant wear, tear, emulsion deterioration and water damage. The condition of this footage would be a serious problem for any other movie, but it is the essence of Decasia.
The decayed film stock results in abstract forms appearing in almost every frame, offering plenty of psychedelic imagery, visual metaphors and sharp philosophical statements.?Constructed from a variety of sources, such as old documentaries, narrative films and newsreels, Decasia is a series of monochromatic images that follows no ostensible plot. The content seems unrelated, but is tied together by a common aesthetic and an unsettling tone. We see children filing past statue-like nuns, a man ascending a ladder into the sky, miners carrying dead bodies from a dark abyss, children on a bus staring eerily into the camera and a torrent of other images that take on new meanings due to deterioration. Decasia demonstrates how time and decay can completely transform the language of cinema.
Decasia is as much an exercise in media archeology as it is in filmmaking. Morrison shot none of the film’s footage himself, but must have spent an eternity in cinema archives to find clips that effectively fulfill his creative intent. Defects, smears and amoeba-shaped marks invade the screen, and the people in the film seem to fight against them to save their existence from inevitable demise.
One of Decasia’s most memorable scenes shows a boxer punching a blob of corrosion that cuts through the film frame. It’s as if he’s fighting against morality itself, a battle he’ll surely lose. Through such metaphors, Morrison reminds viewers that life is ephemeral and the world is in a steady "state of decay."?The most salient feature of Decasia is its musical score. Composed by Michael Gordon, the score is minimal, haunting, harsh, but ultimately beautiful. Though often dissonant, it harmonizes wonderfully with the film’s ghostly visuals. There are moments when the rhythm of the music and the pulsating imagery work in perfect unison, prompting an intense emotional response. ?It’s not surprising to learn the music was written first, and the film was commissioned to accompany it. This collaboration result is one of the best expressionistic films in recent years. ?Decasia is playing this Saturday at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and director Bill Morrison and composer Michael Gordon will be there in person to take questions after the showing. Morrison will also be in attendance on Friday night at the Aurora Picture Show, where six of his short films – also featuring music by Gordon – will be played. And if that isn’t enough, on Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday of next week, Morisson and Gordon’s multi-media performance, Lightning at Our Feet, will premiere at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts at UH.
