Koyaanisqatsi (1982)

This film is a visual sensation, a tone poem. The only words in the film are chanted in Hopi over Philip Glass's hypnotic soundtrack. We survey humanity through technology and inequality - the title means "Life out of Balance."

As the theme is something that I have been pondering quite a bit over the last couple years, I enjoyed much of the film. We confront the power and beauty of nature at the same time confronting the power and ugliness of what humanity has produced on the earth - most notably the urban landscape.

My favorite part of the film is the systematic demolition of tall, drab apartment buildings. The concrete is turned to dust in a matter of seconds.

Watching the film can be a chore if you're not in the space to be reflective. Long, drawn out scenes where little changes seem to never end. The last four minutes consist of a close-up of the fuselage of a rocket being launched.

It would seem that the filmmakers are trying to persuade the viewers to return to a more natural way of life where skyscrapers and factories are not the norm. As I'm already convinced I wonder how effective this film would be today as we have drifted even further into materialism over the two decades since this film was made.

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