« What would Jesus monopolize?: profiling Philip Anschutz | Main | Dennis Cooper frisks Lars Trier »
April 02, 2006
All films are useless: Arturo Ripstein
Arturo Ripstein is his usual sanguinary self on a tour of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata, as recorded by Delhi Newsline's Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan: "Ripstein’s movies are about the poor in Mexico, a theme considered ‘‘elitist’’ there. Among his works is an adap[ta]tion of Gabriel Garcia Marquez books. ‘‘People in Mexico mainly watch Hollywood movies... My films are shown to specialised audiences. It used to make me sad. I wanted to make films that would be watched because, essentially, all films are useless.’’ 
Useless? ‘‘I don’t believe that films have a message...’’ But why does he focus on the poor in his films? "We are a country of survivors... and cinematically, I find them a lot more interesting. I think people with ties are unattractive. The people I work with are more vital and whatever I’ve seen is absolutely fascinating... ‘I want my films to be understood, even by the limited audience. I can hope for a niche at a certain point in time. I’m not even looking at posterity.’’ Why is that? ‘‘Because works of this kind are forgotten. Even someone like Satyajit Ray would not be appreciated now. ’’ ... The cigarello smoked, Ripstein is leaning back, and he doesn’t seem to be such a pessimist after all. ‘‘Life is like that,’’ he says, ‘‘frightening and terrible. But it’s worth living. It’s fun. And pessimism keeps you striving.’’ Amen."
Posted by pride at April 2, 2006 10:58 AM
Comments
Post a comment
Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)