FILM SCREENING | JOHN COOK RETROSPECTIVE | ICH SCHAFF’S EINFACH NIMMER (I JUST CAN’T GO ON)
The Austrian Cultural Forum and the Anthology Film Archives present a retrospective of John Cook, a key figure in Austrian cinema, whose films – several of which have recently been restored by the Austrian Film Museum – are virtually unknown in the U.S. The Canadian-born filmmaker almost single-handedly introduced a type of freewheeling auteur cinema in his adopted homeland, reminiscent of both Italian neorealism and the works of the French nouvelle vague.
Ich Schaff’s Einfach Nimmer (I Just Can’t Go On)
German with English subtitles, 1972-1973, 50 minutes, 16mm.
“[A] perfect debut: the way it moves, so freely, lively, curiously, inventing itself while progressing thanks to Cook’s spontaneous camerawork; the roughness of its textures; the rawness of its montage (images as well as sounds); and finally, the attention to the authentic, especially in the voices, the way people talk. … [T]here’s a whole other system of anarch(ist)ic ironies and ambiguities that seemingly have little to do with the designated story, tiny tales of chance and fate, tender moments of solidarity that are the film’s true essence…. It’s possible to read something sad or desperate into these scenes, but what comes across the strongest is the gentle and affectionate glow cast over Cook’s often harsh world, in which everybody, no matter how weird or awkward they might look, are wonderful and loveable.” – Cinema Scope
John Cook (1935 – 2001) was a Toronto-born Austrian director. Cook lived and worked in Europe for most of his life and often referred to himself as “Viennese by choice,” having moved to Austria in the late 1960s after a career in commercial photography in Paris. Despite his short filmography, Cook is considered a crucial figure in Austrian cinema.
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$9 General Admission
$7 Students, seniors and children (12 & under)
$6 AFA and ACFNY Members
Tickets are available at Anthology’s box office on the day of the show only. The box office opens 30 minutes before the first show of the day. There are no advance ticket sales. Reservations are available to Anthology and ACFNY members only.