Los

Los is the centrepiece and almost naturally the liveliest of the three unexpectedly beautiful and austere studies that James Benning has dedicated to the state of California. 35 still shots portray the area around Los Angeles, but there is more going on on the soundtrack and in the precisely composed image frames than meets the eye. Sometimes Benning's film shows completely unpopulated places (or places where people linger in their vehicles as if packed away); this also emphasises his opposition to the conventional narrative and visual regime. At the same time, the unconventional but by no means inaccessible form of the narrative gains tension with every shot, as formal elements complement, repeat or contrast with each other: Paradoxically, things seem to become simultaneously clearer and more mysterious. At one point, in one of Los' most unforgettable shots, a seemingly interchangeable intersection in the shadow of the thundering jumbo jet above becomes something quite unique. (Christoph Huber)

Introduction by James Benning in English

Photo: Austrian Film Museum