Synopsis
“Like
The Falls,
Vertical Features Remake both mirrors and mocks the documentary form. The film purports to represent four attempts, sponsored by the vaguely defined Institute of Restoration and Reclamation, to assemble raw footage taken by Tulse Luper that focuses on the significant vertical features – trees, poles, and more – on display in a variety of landscapes. A handful of imaginary film theorists turn up to opine about the best way to reconstruct the footage, and according to their own pet notions. The results are then shown, each iteration revealing (sometimes slight) differences in shot grouping, editing rhythm, and musical accompaniment.
Greenaway’s made-up historical material can be moderately interesting, but if his target is the tedium induced by structuralist films, the joke’s on the viewer, as
Vertical Features Remake flirts rather successfully with outright boredom.” –
Budd Wilkins
