Marxist, poet,
novelist, actor, intellectual, homosexual, filmmaker – Pier Paolo
Pasolini wore so many hats it was impossible to separate his
art from his life.
When he died in 1975 – murdered by a gay prostitute right before
the release of his final, nearly unwatchably grisly film, "Salo:
or the 120 Days of Sodom" – Pasolini had already achieved
artistic freedom, critical acclaim, fame and fortune a decidedly
contradictory existence for an avid socialist.
Now Laura Betti (at left with Pasolini), who acted in several
of his films and currently heads the Pasolini Foundation, in
Italy, has made a documentary, "Pier Paolo Pasolini and
the Reason of a Dream," which will be shown at BAMcinematek
(30 Lafayette Ave. at Ashland Place in Fort Greene) on Sept.
23 at 7 pm.
Betti’s 90-minute look at Pasolini can’t hope to encompass the
complexity of the multifaceted director’s art and existence,
and smartly doesn’t try. Instead, as her title suggests, Betti
gives impressionistic glimpses of many different Pasolinis –
even showing an upbeat soccer game between his "Salo"
crew and the crew of Bernardo Bertolucci’s "1900" that
ends when a huge cake is brought out and devoured by the combatants.
There are talking-head discussions of his work and scenes from
several of his films, but Betti humanizes Pasolini by showing
that everything in his art stemmed from his life, and vice-versa.
Even those unpersuaded by Pasolini’s many artistic endeavors
will find this documentary illuminating.
Also showing at BAM in this mini-Pasolini/Betti festival is one
of his most bizarre creations, "Teorema" (1968), starring
Betti and Terence Stamp (Sept. 22 at 4:30, 6:50 and 9:10 pm).
Tickets are $10. For more information, log onto www.bam.org.
