The Angel

Patrick Bokanowski's 1982 film is a work without narrative. At its centre is a long staircase; the camera rises step by step and on each landing a figure repeats the same action over and over. A woman pouring milk, a man driving a sword into a doll, someone searching a library for the same book. Bokanowski works the image directly. He places glass elements of his own making in front of the lenses, distorts the frame and makes the space unrecognisable. The result is neither animation nor live action but something in between, an image whose texture is entirely manufactured. The film took five years to complete and screened at Cannes in 1982. It is regarded as a reference work in experimental cinema, and many visual artists and directors have since cited its influence. The sound design is by the director's wife, Michele Bokanowski. Who it's for: viewers open to experimental cinema and to work concerned with the image itself. Who it's not for: viewers wanting story, character or explanation; the film offers none of these.