What better way to celebrate Black History Month than to watch one of Earth's smartest DJs remix one of cinema's most technically brilliant but culturally offensive films?
DJ Spooky, known in uncool academic circles as Paul Miller, is taking Rebirth of a Nation, his reconstruction of D.W. Griffith's controversial 1915 silent film The Birth of a Nation, on tour for a timely reminder of how stunning cinematic achievement can be sabotaged by standing on the wrong side of history.
Griffith's landmark film, released 94 years ago this month and still taught in universities as cinema's first blockbuster, was based on Thomas Dixon's The Clansman and compressed the Civil War into a visually groundbreaking thesis on ... white supremacy. The crappy historical prism, however, did little to overshadow the filmmaker's formal skill. The movie is still lauded for its path-breaking use of action, depth, sequencing and more.
Spooky's critically acclaimed remix of the movie, also out on DVD, mashes DJ skills with film technique, and recontextualizes Griffith's achievement within an updated moral framework.
"Griffith was known as 'the Man Who Invented Hollywood,' and the words he used to describe his style of composition -- 'intra-frame narrative,' the 'cut-in' the 'cross-cut -- staked out a space in America’s linguistic terrain that hasn’t really been explored too much," the DJ explains on his website, where you can find tour dates for Rebirth of a Nation screenings and Spooky's more recent work.
"Griffith's films were mainly used as propaganda. Birth of a Nation was used as a recruitment film for the Ku Klux Klan at least up until the mid-1960s ... and the paradox of his cultural stance versus the technical expertise that he brought to film is still mirrored in Hollywood to this day."
Viewing Rebirth of a Nation, a nagging question is often raised: Does artistry overshadow history? Can being on the wrong side of history ruin what remains a brilliant technical achievement? Can you take a film out of its cultural setting and celebrate it, even when it is deeply offensive? Let us know your thoughts on these tough queries in the comments section below.
Photo: DJSpooky.com
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