INFLUENCE

There are many people who influence me and I thought I would list some of them. I put them in three categories: cinema, art and music. I may come off as pretentious but I feel this blog thing should allow some of it.

CINEMA

WILLIAM FRIEDKIN
In the 1970's Friedkin was on a roll with The French Connection, The Exorcist, Sorcerer, The Brinks Job and Cruising (actually 1980). All amazing films particularly Sorcerer which did poorly at the box office
but went on to become a cult film. Sorcerer was Friedkin's masterpiece with elements of his previous films but with a grittiness and intensity that surpassed the others. Great story with a huge budget and fine cast
and also one the best sound tracks in film thanks to the creativity of Keith Jarrett and
Tangerine Dream. He does some of his best films when he uses a unique style that he got
from his early career doing documentaries. The Exorcist has some of this style and I believe
that was the reason it was so frightening. After the creative 1970's he unfortunately was never able to achieve such greatness. The exception was To Live and Die in L.A. (1985). I have not yet seen his most recent film "Bug", but it shows a lot of promise.




WERNER HERZOG

This German film maker caught my attention when I saw "Aguirre, The Wrath of God" at a local college in 1976. The opening scene could serve as a metaphor for his unique vision: A group of conquistadors descend a mountainside in Peru shrouded in clouds along with a synthetic choir to
serve as a sound track. Other great films are Fitzcarraldo, Nosferatu, Fata Morgana among many others.