ed wood

Ed Wood is the type of movie that i adore because it forces me to find out a lot of other things, starting from the story it presents. So, i am not going to focus on the fact that i could never think that the combination between a black and white movie, Tim Burton as a director and Johnny Depp in leading role might possibly fail to provide something worthy.

Instead, i am going to talk a little about the real Edward D. Wood Jr.. Possibly the worst male director of all times (as tagged by the majority), he still remains an extraordinary model of determination. His debut? In 1953, he directs Glen or Glenda, based on the Christine Jorgensen sex-change, having the courage to expose an unusual subject for a 50s movie. Now, i haven't yet watched any of his movies, but voices say that they are indeed of no good and the only thing which turned them into cult movies today is precisely their combination of the director's exquisite lack of talent, his tendency to resort to stock footage of lightning during dramatic moments and the terrible acting from his bunch of untalented actors. However, he never gave up his passion for directing and his dedication enabled him to further produce movies, such as Bride of the Monster (starring Bela Lugosi) and Plan 9 from Outer Space, which is said to be the Worst Film Ever Made. Plan 9 is available for download from Public Domain Movies, so i will probably watch it soon enough to state my own opinions. Until then, i will always admire Wood for his ability to go on shooting out of nothing, and to follow his dream to the end.

But, as i was saying, details on Ed Wood were not the only ones to come out after watching this movie. It turns out that there also is director often referred to as the "female Ed Wood.". This would be Doris Wishman, "grand dame of American sexploitation films", as characterized by Senses of Cinema in an extensive review of her career. "Most of her 30 films were sexploitation films. Her directing, editing and marketing skills were self-taught and almost all of her films were self-produced. They often featured hand held tracking shots that would be interrupted by cutaways to shots of ashtrays, bric-a-brac, and characters' knees, hands, and feet. " (via wmmna)