Description

Stories and discoveries of lost films, unfinished works or unrealized projects.
"That erudition is not necessarily dry is demonstrated by this book, where the author invites readers on an engaging exploration of a reality almost unknown to them. Cocteau coined the term 'cursed film' to refer to ignored, forgotten, or banned works. Peña takes up this expression at a time when the digital revolution has unearthed obscure titles, fostering unexpected cult followings. Let us recall when Buñuel and Dalí's L'Âge d'Or, seized in 1930, was the best-kept secret of the Cinémathèque Française. When it was loaned for a single screening in Switzerland, it was sent by train with the film reels handcuffed to the arm of historian Lotte Eisner. Decades later, the film was restored, broadcast on television, and released on DVD. However, cinema has not escaped other mishaps: losses stemming from its technical format or distribution methods. Where did the original color system of Tati's Jour de Fête go?" In Argentina, political upheavals condemned, rescued, and ultimately relegated to oblivion films. There will always be poor people. A national film archive to preserve the country's cinematic heritage still does not exist. Peña points out that much of Argentina's cinematic past, in blurry or inaudible copies, embodies the true meaning of "cursed cinema." A book like this, made possible by its author's detective-like passion and love for film, reveals to the reader a vast and barely explored "treasure island," open to the imagination and the irrepressible desire to discover what has been hidden from us. —Edgardo Cozarinsky

Author
Fernando Martin Peña

Technical specifications
Published by: La Tercera Editora
Year: 2021
Type: Book
Binding: Paperback
Dimensions: 15 x 22 cm
Weight: 500 gr
Spanish
Pages: 336
ISBN: 978-987-4815-70-5