Films with: Clarke, Shirley

Magic box the films of Shirley Clarke, 1929-1987 /

Shirley Clarke was brilliant, scandalous, bold, and incredibly talented. Had she been a man, film historians would have long ago placed her in the pantheon of great auteurs, alongside Orson Welles and John Cassavetes. Today, her triumph can be recognized in her ability to be herself--one of the great originals of her time. A true artist, Clarke combined her innate impishness and sense of adventure with a dancer's aesthetic and her tremendous drive to battle injustice to make films that dazzle, challenge, and beguile the audience. The culmination of an eight-year-long effort to explore the films and life of American filmmaker Shirley Clarke, this collection includes the Academy Award-winning documentary "Robert Frost : a lover's quarrel with the world," experimental shorts, "lost" films, unfinished projects, outtakes, and a lifetime of home movies.

DVD 12263

Portrait of Jason

The subject and constant object of this film is male prostitute Jason Holliday giving a stream-of-consciousness "confession" of his life. He performs a pas de deux with the process of making the film: questions from the director and crew are heard, the crew laughs with him at his jokes, at times the camera runs out of film but the sound continues, with black leader replacing the picture. The film itself was shot over a twelve-hour period. Jason recounts tales from his life that define his identity. He describes how he changed his name to change his identity; work he held in the past as a houseboy to wealthy people; his homosexuality and the gay subculture in San Francisco and New York; visits to a psychiatrist; his love for alcohol; his aspiration to be a nightclub entertainer. He gives examples of his nightclub act, imitating female entertainers and movie roles such as Mae West and Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the wind. Towards the end, he is accused by an off-screen voice of being a liar. This brings him to tears, pleading to be loved. The filmmaker's voice ends the film by saying "The end."

DVD 4615

Portrait of Jason

This portrait of Jason Holliday, a black gay prostitute who dreams of a career as a nightclub performer, is drawn from twelve consecutive hours of filming in a New York City apartment. As he reminisces about his life, Holliday discusses his homosexuality and the gay subcultures in San Francisco and New York. He jokes with the off-screen filmmaker and crew and maintains a sense of humor even as he recalls hustling, heroin addiction, and jail time. Holliday also performs for the camera, impersonating female entertainers and movie personalities such as Mae West, Butterfly McQueen, and Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the wind.

DVD 12262