Greenaway's Influence on Other Filmmakers

Although I have no idea if director Michel Gondry likes Peter Greenaway, I can imagine that he is influenced by him. Gondy's films are like puzzles and often reflect the beautiful, bizarre visual style that makes the viewer excited. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a good example of incorporating a self-reflexive narrative yet still being emotional and funny to the viewer. Its creativity is too hard to ignore and Gondry's cinematic style; his editing, shots, stills, lighting, sound, portrays a rather unique philosophy that cinema is in fact ALIVE.

Here is a trailer for it:

A Little More Emotion

One of the things I don't like about Greenaway's films are that they lack emotion at times. He hates sentimentality and the typical love stories in cinema. Although I agree it becomes a little trite, there still needs to be some emotional connection. It doesn't have to always be corny or cheesy. I'm not talking about Titanic or the English Patient. Someone who has Greenaway's iconoclasm yet who incorporates some level of emotion is Godard, a director from the French New Wave. His film, Breathless is the love story of a thug and a American girl in Paris. Although this movie is from 1959, it breaks all of the rules of cinema in terms of plot, dialog, editing, music. Yet there is still a love story that is conveyed in a very unconventional way. Here is a great interview with Godard.

More Self-Reflexivity

One of my favorite filmmakers is Woody Allen. Although he is very different than Greenaway, in this film, The Purple Rose of Cairo, he plays with the idea of self-reflexivity. This story is very funny and sweet but still deals with metaphor, like Greenaway does with his movies.

What if the Cinema isn't Completely Dead?

David Lynch is a good example of someone who continues to reinvent the cinema with each film he makes. Blue Velvet epitomizes Lynch's techniques as a true avant-garde artist telling a story, only in a very bizarre way. His visual style is beautiful like Greenaway, and he deals with metaphor in a way of letting the audience know they are only watching a film. It's self-reflexive approach is what Greenaway is aiming at. Here is a link to the Blue Velvet site.