Revisit to Švankmajer

Ever since I was introduced to Jan Švankmajer freshmen year fall semester, I fell in love with his work instantly, and he is definitely one of my favorite stop- motion filmmakers, not only for his amazing skill but for the political and social messages he conveys through the mediums he uses. I love his stop motion surrealist work because it is not only interesting and sometimes creepy, but serious and funny at the same time, which I think not a lot of filmmakers can incorporate all at once nowadays. My favorite films by him are Dimensions of Dialogue and Darkness/ Light/ Darkness.  His clay stop motion in these films is impeccable, and in the latter the distinct personalities he gives to each body part is so clever.  The film in my opinion is pretty humorous up until the last scene where the man, complete in his form, is cramped into the room, and unable to move. The irony of that is brilliant. In Dimensions of Dialogue, I love the scene with the man and the woman and how he portrays the sexual tension and outcome between them.  Using clay as a medium works really well because it is so malleable and versatile in the shapes it can take on. I like how he uses the traits of clay to progress the story of the film, making characters melt and morph into each other, attack each other, etc. yet still keeping the integrity of each object even when interacting with other things, which I think is amazing.  Most of all, I like how Švankmajer creates humor with the sound effects he has, whether it be walking hands, smooshing clay, a snorting nose, or flapping ears. In Dimensions of Dialogue in the beginning scenes with those different heads attacking each other, the munching and chopping sounds definitely adds to the humor but also underlines how heads of the same likeness (perhaps just like people) reduce each other to nothingness, blank sheets of paper.  I think he is great at creating cinematic tension as well, because in many of his films, they are so surreal that you do not know what is going to happen next. Who is going to come in through the door next in Darkness/ Light/ Darkness? A monster? Another body part? Keeps you on your feet!