Piotr Kamler and Chronopolis

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I can't remember where I first read about this brilliant and unique piece of stop-motion filmmaking, but as soon as I did, I ran up to Scarecrow Video. A little search assisted by one of the amazing staff yielded a slightly-trashed VHS copy, which required a $500 deposit. Yikes!

I anxiously brought it home and was baffled and transfixed. I could not rip my eyes off the precise, Quay-ish movement of the characters and objects onscreen, but I also could not rip my brain away from analysis. What the f is this about? Who are those climber guys? What are those pyramid dudes making?

It's got something to do with time, something to do with memory.. It still blows me away. Piotr Kamler's Chronopolis is one of those open-ended pieces that keeps on giving with repeated views. Like Tarkovsky, I prefer coffee to wine when watching this kind of thing - very relaxing and meditative viewing.