 |   Format : Color, DVD, Enhanced, Letterboxed, NTSC Publisher : TZADIK Company : Koch International List Price: Our Price: $14.99 You Save: $15 (51%) Used Price : $1.86 |
Product Description
BOOKSHELF ON TOP OF THE SKY:TWELVE ST - DVD MovieSimilarProduct
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Customer reviews
The kind of documentary you rarely see 
by .. Lasse Nikkarev (Finland)
This documentary is kind of unique. It is as much about its maker than it is about its subject. This approach is a problematic one if you expect as much information about Zorn as you can get. Instead you get '12 short stories about John Zorn,' looked through film-makers personal prism. It is annoying, but at the end you want to start from the beginning (at least I did). Now, what did you expect, this is Zorn we're talking about - can you even imagine a normal documentary about this genius madman?
I bought the video in the first place to see Masada Quartet. I had no idea how did this band looked like in action but I wanted to find out. Now I know, and I'm grateful for that, as the relatively short clips of Masada rehearsing and performing were truly fascinating.
Not what anyone wanted, and yet of it's own. 
by .. Michael Stack (North Chelmsford, MA USA)
Claudia Heuermann's "A Bookshelf on Top of the Sky: Twelve Stories About John Zorn" is not quite what it seems. Expectations ran high, a documentary about John Zorn, the man who rarely grants interviews and when he does, seems to say everything and not say anything at all, whose music jumps genre to genre in a matter of seconds, captivates some, horrifies others, and has a strange sway over its fan.
What Heuermann did though was quite a bit different-- she told the story about her trying to make the movie, about her relationship with Zorn, from the moment she first discovered him (a friend playing her Naked City's "Torture Garden") to her meeting him for the first time, travelling to New York and deciding to make a movie about Zorn. It's really a piece abuot self-discovery, about learning to be one's "own parent".
Along the way, we get snippets of interviews with Zorn, brilliant statements, footage of rehearsals, recording sessions, remastering of "The Big Gundown" and live performances from Naked City, Painkiller, Masada, Bar Kokhba, Emergency, and "Rituals". We also get a brief explanation of game pieces and a picture of a frustrated artist who can't stop looking, who views music as problem solving, and who does it not for listeners, but for himself and the musicians.
This is the second time I've watched this-- the first time was when it first came out, and I was still in the process of discovering Zorn's work through a chance encounter at an independent movie theater (Naked City was the house music before the show, and somehow I knew who it was). Three months and a dozen or so Zorn CDs later and this came out to guide my way, to help put the pieces together.
A year after that and my Zorn collection is bordering on obscene and the piece still holds weight. It still is entertaining, and yeah, its not a lot of revelatory stuff, but it's a worthwhile viewing. Truth to be told, in many ways, the piece gave validity to my own view on my choice of career and my great passions. And I keep thinking that maybe when my coworkers ask why I'm making the four hour trip to New York City yet again to see some obscure musician who they've never heard of (and who if they did hear, they'd probably dislike), maybe in those situations I should let them borrow this and certainly Heuermann's experience isn't really that much different from mine. Isn't that powerful enough to merit a recommendation to someone else?
If you're just learning about Zorn, get this, it's critical. If you're already initiated, you probably already have it. It's got its flaw, but invariably, it's a deeply personal expression, how could it not? Either way, it's a fun film to watch. Recommended.
Flawed...but a Must See for anyone interested in making music by .. Carty Consortium Carrie (peterborough, nh usa)
I can't say I loved every second of this movie. I found the filmmaker and her narratives so irritating I wanted to shoot her by the end of the film. However, what she did manage to capture of John Zorn and his process is so fascinating I can't help but recommend it to ANYONE who is interested in making music, whether they can wrap their heads around his music or not. Sure, you have to put up with her drivel and her whining, but it's worth it in my opinion just to watch Zorn instructing an improvisational ensemble on the use of flash cards, directing an orchestra that includes a guy slurping and spitting water and another sawing the legs off chairs, and of course his strangely insightful if cryptic theories on music. As an artist and musician, I found it massively inspiring and I recommend it to all my like-minded friends, with the caveate that she's intolerable and they probably won't dig all the music right away...
... by .. ()
Considering the tiny amount of live footage and interviews that are available of Zorn, this is defiantly worth getting if you're a fan
As far as documentary filmmaking goes this is sub par at best, and is defiantly not worthy of tzadiks reputation
Everyone you expect is here -Patton, Masada, naked city, marc ribot-
But not one interview with anyone! which is pretty disappointing
Instead the filmmaker spends an exuberant amount of time talking about herself, the editing prosess and how Zorn's music has changed her life blah blah blah...
A perspective, but an interesting one by .. ()
Filmmaker Claudia Heuermann's assertions that Zorn's music changed her life are probably true . . . but in this context they come across as a bit amateurish. However, Heuermann gives the entire project a real warmth and enthusiasm that gets the film over this hurdle. Despite what appeared to be a lack of direct interview footage with the musicians, she did have a number of fantastic concert shots. It's a pity that some of those concerts have not been released as their own DVD's. On the positive, what interview/spoken segments do include Zorn show a driven, principled, and profoundly interesting intellect . . . and a real sense of fun and adventure. The rehearsal footage is particularly fun in these small doses. Somehow, by leaving things out, the film still gets at the heart of the Zorn experience.