#250: CASSAVETES, John: Five Films (1959-2000)

JOHN CASSAVETES: FIVE FILMS {Spine #250}

DVD

John Cassavetes was a genius, a visionary, and the progenitor of American independent film, but that doesn't begin to get at the generosity of his art. A former theater actor fascinated by the power of improvisation, Cassavetes brought his search for truth in performance to the screen. The five films in this collection — all of which the director maintained total control over by financing them himself and making them outside the studio system — are electrifying and compassionate creations, populated by all manner of humanity: beatniks, hippies, businessmen, actors, housewives, strippers, club owners, gangsters, children. Cassavetes has often been called an actor's director, but this body of work — even greater than the sum of its extraordinary parts — shows him to be an audience's director.

Shadows (1959) {Spine #251}

Faces (1966) {Spine #252}

A Woman Under The Influence (1974) {Spine #253}

The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie (1976/78) {Spine #254}

Opening Night (1977) {Spine #255}

KISELYAK, Charles: A Constant Forge — The Life And Art Of John Cassavetes (2000) {Spine #256}

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