Product Description

Although his influence on the history of photography has been nothing short of profound, Paul Strand (1890-1976) remains a curiously shrouded and paradoxical figure. While passionately devoted to humanity, he was happiest in the isolation of the dark room. A pioneer filmmaker (Manhattan, Native Land, Heart of Spain, the Wave), he found the process of collaboration painful. Strand established himself in New York in the 1920's as a master of light and structure, with his now famous photo of Wall Street inspired by the forms and movement of European modernist painters such as Matisse and Picasso. His close up portraits and landscapes were equally profound. John Walker's Strand: Under the Dark Cloth is a documentary that is "beautifully crafted, thoroughly researched and intimately recounted" (Variety) with generous amounts of Strand's most famous photographs, clips from his films and fascinating interviews with friends and collaborators including Fred Zimmermann, Cesare Zavattini and Georgia O'Keeffle. It is a valuable and comprehensive introduction to the life and work of Paul Strand suitable for both art historians and general viewers alike.

Product details

Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ Unrated (Not Rated)
Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 4 Ounces
Item model number ‏ : ‎ KV2382DVD
Director ‏ : ‎ John Walker
Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC, Multiple Formats, Black & White, Color
Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 21 minutes
Release date ‏ : ‎ December 3, 2002
Actors ‏ : ‎ Harvey Atkin, Paul Soles
Language ‏ : ‎ Unqualified
Studio ‏ : ‎ Kino Lorber
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B000077VQF
Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1

Best Sellers Rank: #244,787 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #14,757 in Special Interests (Movies & TV)

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A must see for Strand fans and anyone interested in photographic history.

Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2015

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This is a well researched and informative documentary, and worth watching just for the interviews with Georgia O'Keefe. How they got her to agree to be interviewed, I don't know, but it says something about the producers that they were able to accomplish this.

We've all seen Mr. Strand's photos, so I think the whole point in watching a movie about him is to learn more about him and his life.
I have to disagree with the reviewer who thought the (quite brief, actually) segment about his career in film making was slow, as my impression was quite the opposite, and since this is a documentary film and Mr. Strand spent many years as a movie cameraman it's completely logical that this would also be a part of the film, not just his still photography. I thought this segment was very interesting, especially to see his film making style, which reminded me of Sergei Eisenstein's, and which we probably won't see anywhere else, and to learn that he was taking on very serious subjects such as racial intolerance, the KKK, and McCarthyism. Also that his decision to move to Europe was largely because of these issues.

Seeing Mr. Strand wielding his monstrously huge Graflex SLR (5x7?) was also a highlight.

The musical soundtrack was nothing special, kind of typical of a low budget documentary, but I wasn't watching the movie to listen to the music. The "Ken Burns" style of showing the photos was the weakest and most distracting part of the film for me. I felt that the film makers should have displayed the photos in full view first, and then panned around if they felt the need to push that button on iMovie. If the rest of the film had not been so informative I would have knocked a star off for this, but there was so much else about it that was really good that I kept it at five.

I was not surprised at the end to learn from the credits that this film was funded by the Canadian National Film Board. I have watched numerous documentaries funded by this agency, and they have all been of high quality. One can also go to their website and watch a lot of movies for free. Most of them were made by the CBC.

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football fan

Behind the Lens.

Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2016

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I've seen movies, documentaries, and read books about the American Civil War, yet the horror never hit home until I went to the Gettysburg Battlefield and saw the photographs of the carnage.

Photography is modern visual presentation. Thus Paul Strand steps onto the stage with this bio documentary directed by John Walker and Strand's photographs of the early parts of the 20th Century is on display. And mostly admired. He was a talented photographer snapping photos of craggily, scraggly faces in what looks like in the midst of the Great Depression. And faces from his travels to Mexico, Italy, Africa, and other far away places. This documentary is about his photos, what he saw, and how he thought viewers would react to them.

In the world of photography, interesting translate to entertaining. Yet visual art differs from other art forms. Shakespeare dealt with words, Monet with color, Rodin with clay, Fellini with moving pictures, Mozart with sound, Strand with images. Images that stay still. The big question with photography is, I believe, is it an art form? Or simply clicking a finger at the right time in regard to what the eye ball sees. Photography is not painting, yet both are similar art, very close in similarity, also very far away. This documentary, however, shows Strand as a man on a mission, to photography subjects, landscapes, buildings, all in the name of art. Is it art? That question could be argued until the end of time. Some say yes, others no. I believe, however, photography is very much like the media today, one only sees one or two sides of what is taking place, yet the whole truth is hidden. Or should I saw hidden under a dark cloth.

Nevertheless, Strand is considered today to be one of the great old-time photographers. He had an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, where close to 600 of his photographs were on display. This documentary seems to defend Strand as being an artist. A visual artist. I would have preferred if the viewpoint was less bias, nonetheless, if the documentary maker wants to extol him as an artist, let it be. I'm not one to argue. I've had that discussion plenty of time already in the past whether photography is truly an artful.

One truth is visual art is the modern way to being entertained. TV, Movies, spectacular photos, all carry entertainment value, they could be so damn interesting. Photography was blamed for the switch of painters moving to abstract form instead of painting real people. Picasso changed to abstract cubism art, after his blue and pink periods because I believe he saw the power of photography, especially the moving pictures.

Strand as this documentary shows was on the cutting edge of photography back in the 1920s. Today most households have cameras, and the selfie, is the popular trend. Anyone could snap a photograph if physically fit, yet not everyone could paint like Monet, or put words together like Shakespeare. To say the least, photography is a superficial art: what you see is what you get. Yet is it true art? This documentary doesn't answer that question, it just assumes it is. Yet not everyone would agree. To be a great photograph, it helps to buy thousands of dollars of lens, lights, and cameras, plus other accessories. All cameras are not equal. And this documentary failed to state what type of gear was Paul Strand using to capture his most memorable photographs, many on display in the documentary.

Strand photographs are telling. Craggily faces tell more than the eye sees. Just like media stories only show a part of the story. And this documentary shows enough for viewers to get the big picture on the visual art form, the most domineering art form in today's culture.

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Gregory Dunham

I think you'll enjoy this video

Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2017

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If you appreciate the Photography of Paul Strand, I think you'll enjoy this video, which includes interviews with Strand, Georgia O'Keefe, Alfred Stieglitz and insight into his work from his first and second wives and others. It includes footage from several films Strand made and examples of some of his most famous photographs spanning his entire career. I highly recommend it.

Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2016

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I'm a huge fan of Paul Strand's work as a photographer, but never really knew much about what drove him to make such meaningful images. This doc shed some light on the life and times of the man and his work.

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But I'm feeling much better now...

About his life, not his work.

Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2009

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I was really disappointed by this DVD. It is very much about his life, especially his marital problems, more than any of his work. The greatest (and much too lengthy) emphasis on his achievements is his Mexican burial film.

If you're expecting to learn anything about his techniques you also will be disappointed. The DVD seems to explain his work as just random shots taken at will that happen to look good when viewed in the right mood and perspective.

Buy a good book instead of this.

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SoSueMe

Many great quotes on photography

Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2015

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Gleaned so much from this film. Inspiring. Learned a lot about Strand the man and the artist. Lots of photos and eye candy - yay. Many great quotes on photography, inspiration and art - yay. Distressing and creepy soundtrack - boo.

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Michael Busby

An Outstanding Artist's Biography

Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2007

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I first watched this documentary about the same time that I was learning photography, and it changed the way that I saw photography as an art. Strand is one of the major american artists of the 20th century, as well as a defining modernist. I recommend this DVD to anyone interested in photography as an art form, to students of early 20th century American history, and anyone who appreciates a fine documentary.

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Philphoto

Très bon documentaire sur Paul Strand

Reviewed in France on February 5, 2012

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Très bon documentaire vidéo sur Paul Strand. Le seul existant. Avec le bonus du film de Starand, Manahatta, son premier film documentaire sur New-York tourné en 1921 avec Charles Sheeler.

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Genre	Special Interests
Format	NTSC, Multiple Formats, Black & White, Color
Contributor	John Walker, Harvey Atkin, Paul Soles
Language	English
Number Of Discs	1