Review: Daft Punk’s Electroma
4 Comments | Posted: September 5th, 2008 | Filed under: Music, Reviews, Thinking About Movies | Tags: daft punk, electroma
1.
Daft Punk’s Electroma, directed by the duo and starring two other people in their famed robot suits is self-indulgent, ponderous, bloated, and utterly fascinating for its excesses and the statement they appear to make. For years, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter have used their stage identities to remove the ego from their product, carefully crafting an image that makes the men behind the music invisible to all but the most inquisitive listeners, and this film adds another (likely very intentional) layer of obfuscation between them and their audience.
2.
The film’s plot is threadbare, to say the least: two robots drive a Ferrari 412 (license plate HUMAN) to a town in the desert southwest (straight out of Charley Varrick or Vanishing Point) occupied solely by other robots (both male and female) with the same designs, clad themselves in human disguises that soon melt in the desert heat, and find themselves on the run from the citizenry. If it weren’t for Daft Punk’s explicit explorations of the themes of identity and humanity in the close-to-unlistenable Human After All, I’d think this was art-wank of the highest order. Once placed in context – Electroma began as an expansion of Human After All’s promotional videos – it becomes part of larger work and, much like Alive 2007, improves upon the source material no small amount, even without featuring it directly.
3.
For a movie created by a band, there’s surprisingly sparse use of music, and none of it is by Homem-Christo and Bangalter. Eno, Sébastian Tellier, Curtis Mayfield, and Todd Rundgren (among others) contribute to the soundtrack. The rest of the dialogue-free movie’s audioscape is pure ambient noise. I found myself very much in sync with the film while watching it, really enjoying the soundscape, but I can see it being very much a personal thing and likely very frustrating to those expecting another Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem.
4.
Early screenings at Cannes were met with confusion and derision. For those not indoctrinated in the themes in the previous material, walking out would be an easy and understandable option: the film offers no explanation of the events presented, merely some above-average camerawork and a narrative that’s far too barebones to satisfy even the most pretentious of filmgoers. I think a lot of the movie’s appeal will be almost subliminal to a good deal of the audience that would be receptive to the work. I don’t necessarily recommend it to everyone, but I’m very glad I’ve seen and own it.
Kevin, felt very much the same way about this film. It’s easy to make the dessert look beautiful, but it was beautiful all the same.
However, it might not just be those unfamiliar with Daft Punk’s previous work who were confused and wanted to walk out. I took in a screening in Williamsburg surrounded by hipsters who no doubt had shown up because they were fans of Daft Punk’s bangers… they were probably expecting something they could nod their heads to? They mostly seemed bored and several people walked out. I guess the difference is they weren’t looking for anything deeper in Daft Punk’s music other than something to dance in the club to, but still… It’s apparently a movie which might turn off “fans” too.
I agree with your observations, but I think we’ve somehow arrived at different conclusions. This is an abysmal, awful thing and I hope to never see it again — except maybe re-edited to some Daft Punk music because as you say the photography is ace and some of the “action” is definitely unforgettable.
I saw this film when it was released, right around the same time as I was seeing Daft Punk multiple times on tour, not that long after immersing myself in the last album in a desperate hope to find awesomeness, so maybe that’s why this film sticks out so badly. And I don’t agree the film retroactively improves that album. Compared to everything else they were doing at the time, this movie is easily the biggest — I don’t want to say FAILURE, because I think they did exactly what they wanted, but definitely the most problematic. Probably misguided. Definitely not good.
I have to say, the trailer kinda freaked me out a little, very much the way I was unnerved by just about of the scenes in THX 1138 featuring the chromefaced guards with the terrifyingly soothing voices. Based on this and on everything that you said, people are going to be taking a lot of drugs and watching this at midnight screenings in college towns across this nation for a good long time, I expect.
1. Glad it’s not another Intersteller 5555 – I guess I’m the one person who hated those Discovery era music videos.
2. I’m also apparently the one person who liked Human After All. It’s a sleeper, I tell you. Lots of quality stuff. I like that it was supposed to sound kind of roughshod – sort of like an Armand Van Helden record.