FULLER FEST FEATURES FALKENAU FOOTAGE

A very special screening will take place at the Museum of the Moving Image at 4 pm this Saturday, May 12, 2007. The program, entitled Falkenau, Vision of the Impossible, offers valuable insight into a key moment in modern history and a pivotal experience in the life of B-movie auteur Sam Fuller. It is part of a tribute to Fuller scheduled to run at the museum from May 12 through June 10, 2007.

Here's the backstory, drawn from Fuller's memoir A Third Face: Sam Fuller served in the army during World War II. His division, the Big Red One, saw action in North Africa and Sicily and Omaha Beach before making its way deep into Nazi-occupied Europe. Around the time of the German surrender (62 years ago today--more or less), Fuller's division came upon Falkenau, site of a concentration camp.

Fuller had witnessed months of carnage, but the camp at Falkenau was, in his words, "beyond belief, beyond our darkest nightmares." The camp reeked of rotting bodies, but the townspeople who lived nearby denied that they knew what had happened there.

Fuller's commanding officer was outraged. He ordered the townspeople to assemble at the concentration camp and prepare a funeral for those who had been slaughtered within. And he asked Fuller to film this event.

Using a handheld 16mm camera (a gift from his mother), Fuller joined the ranks of still photographers such as Margaret Bourke-White as a film chronicler of the liberation of concentration camps. Under such powerful circumstances, Fuller made what he called his "first movie"--an experience that led him to devote himself to filmmaking and to become so extraordinarily concerned with frankness that it became an overarching motif in his movies.

Saturday's program consists of Falkenau, Vision of the Impossible, the 1988 documentary by Emil Weiss in which Fuller watches his Falkenau footage and talks about the experience. The concept is simple--not very different from today's DVD commentary tracks--but the result is one of the most impressive documentaries I have seen. Also on the program--to my amazement--is Fuller's footage itself, which is very rarely shown. (According to the museum, this is its first public screening.)

The program is so important--historically and cinematically--and the footage so rare that, as far as I'm concerned, it makes the June 9 screening of the long-suppressed White Dog look like less of a event than it is. And it also sheds light on some other films in the series that relate more directly to the Falkenau footage.

So, besides insisting that you go to Saturday's Falkenau program if you possibly can, I encourage you to see the restored version of The Big Red One (evenings of Sunday, June 3 and Sunday, June 9), which was the fulfillment of Fuller's long-held desire to make a movie drama reflecting his wartime experiences. And to also see Verboten! (Sunday, May 27 at 2 pm), one of Fuller's more emphatic statements drawing on those experiences.

The rest of the series encompasses some of Fuller's more celebrated efforts--The Naked Kiss, Shock Corridor, and Pickup on South Street--as well as others that are personal favorites, including The Crimson Kimono. And, towards the end, there are even more rarities. If you're not familiar with Fuller's movies, I recommend giving some of the early entries a try to see if they pique your curiosity.

And take note of the admission prices ($10 adults, $7.50 seniors and students) versus the benefits of a $65 individual membership, which can be advantageous.

Credit: Photofest, courtesy Museum of the Moving Image, for image of director Samuel Fuller during the production of White Dog (1982)