Wow. Seeing Fireworks, Rabbit’s Moon, Scorpio Rising and Kustom Kar Kammandos restored was like seeing them for the first time. For the people who were at this sold out event, I think there is no denying how special the night was. Listening to his stories left me in awe at the life Dr. Anger has lived. Indeed, at the presentation at the Walker Cinema on Friday night I think the audience was just as enchanted, if not more so, with Dr. Anger’s storytelling as they were with the restored 35mm prints of his films. Thank you Dr. Anger.
It is hard to imagine seeing Fireworks in 1947, which still seems so bold and shocking. To quote Anais Nin who saw the film at the time “At someone’s house I was shown [Anger’s] film Fireworks. The sadism and violence revolted me, but the film has power and is artistically perfect. It has a nightmare quality. Everyone had mixed feelings, horror and recognition of Kenneth Anger’s talent.” That talent is still easy to see today.