Too many people short shrift the works of Maya Deren after her "trance" period, when she made films with her first husband Alexander Hammid. Because she changed her filming style entirely does not make her "wrong" for doing so. This, and MEDITATION ON VIOLENCE, are absorbing studies of movement and ritual. The premise of this delicate dream piece is simply a study of ballet movements shot from overhead, as a starry sky is superimposed over their actions. With sparse music by Deren's second husband Teiji Ito, this is a movie which defies filmic space. It is an entrancing piece which transcends the human body into a cosmic form of being. Thoughts to consider: was Teiji Ito the first "ambient" musician?
Review of The Very Eye of Night
