`Temenos' means a sacred site or ritual precinct. Temenos the film explores the phenomenom of visionary experience. In the film we see locations where the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared including Lourdes Fatima and Medjugorie in Croat-occupied Bosnia where the visions continue. Nina Danino films the landscapes that have witnessed these transcendental appearances imbuing them with a sense of the sacred.
This is the only DVD available of "Temenos", past, present and, very likely, in the for-seeable future.
"Temenos" is, almost without doubt, the weirdest feature film I have ever seen, surpasing Mukavejev's "Sweet Movie" (with its Vienna Aktionists) and John Water's "Pink Flamingos". The only thing that comes close, perhaps, is David Lynch's "Erasure Head". Or even Tarkovsky's "The Mirror" ("Zerkalo").
"Temenos" means a sacred or ritual site, and the film aims to explore religious visions centred on the Virgin Mary. Nina Danino, the director, shows us footage of several locations where the Virgin is said to have appeared and treats us to an often disturbing and almost always wailing soundtrack - sung by Operatic Soprano Catheine Bott, Tuvan singer Sainkho Namychylak and avant-garde vocalist Shelly Hrish. (An ecclectic bunch.)
The effect of this soundtrack, which can be quite disturbing at times, is enhanced during the extended periods which Danino stops showing us (the almost impressionist)images of the landscapes/sites and allows the screen to go black.
This film, whilst clearly not to everyone's taste, is, I believe, worth looking at, even owning on DVD. It is certainly one of a kind.
Furthermore, and to repeat myself, this is the only DVD available of "Temenos" currently available, and it is very unlikely that it will be released again soon. So if you want to watch, this DVD is the only reliable way. Luckily, and as expected from the BFI, this DVD is also of a very high standard.
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'Temenos', the film, explores the phenomenon of visionary experience, taking the viewer to locations where the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared, including Lourdes, Fatima and Medjugorje in Croat-occupied Bosnia where the visions continue.
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