UbuWeb | UbuWeb Papers | Experimental Video Project


The Ubuweb Experimental Video Project
Colin Marshall

Back to The UbuWeb Experimental Video Project Main Page

3. Vito Acconci's Open Book (1971)
[View Film]

Though the commentary associated with Open Book seems to focus on the disturbing vibe generated the Acconci's slurred, insistent pleading, I'm more worried by his Halloween teeth. How did they get so jagged and strangely spaced? Is this the dental fate of the experimental filmmaker? Still, they're better than Al Gore's, I suppose.

I don't have so much to say about this piece, save that it represents Acconci's jumps from black-and-white to color and from no speech to almost nothing but speech. As a vehicle for creep-outiness, it's actually super-effective; directors looking to effectively convey a character's menace could take a lesson or two from Open Book's framing and delivery. Might need some zombie dentures, though, for the full effect.