As mentioned earlier by others, this film is basically a weaker
version of Baraka (by Koyaanisqatsi cinematographer Ron Fricke),
a film very much like Powaqqatsi, focussing some more on the
religious rituals of southern hemisphere cultures.
Powaqqatsi definitely is a disappointment as a follow up of
Koyaanisqatsi. There is no consistence of any kind. Some scenes
are going on for way too long (the gold mine sequence in the Serra
Pelada, Brazil is nice but becomes tiresome already before the
main title). Other sequences are uneven and cluttered and we
don't know where we are. The movie is almost entirely overcranked (in slow motion), as
opposed to the perfect combination of time lapse (much of it with
motion blur to make it smoother plus smooth camera panning),
slow motion and the use of stock footage in Koyaanisqatsi which
had a wonderful atmosphere to it and works on many levels.
Powaqqatsi is supposed to make no statement about how things
should be - according to director Godfrey Reggio. Why then the
sequence editing US American tv commercials and military
images (is this evidence of how Reggio felt about Powaq. not
coming close to Koyaanis. in meaning)?
Powaq.'s photography is of great quality, yet many motifs are
simply not interesting enough to be on screen for that long. I have
the feeling that the team simply didn't come home with enough
interesting footage in the can and had to make something out of
what they had in the editing room. The few great shots which lets
us emerge in unfamiliar worlds don't make up for the higher
percentage of footage of no interest whatsoever.
Check Ron Fricke's "Baraka" to see what Powaqqatsi could have
been and should have been.
I also agree about some comments regarding Philip Glass' score.
It is sometimes is flat out corny and sounds very much like what
one might expect in a late 1980s "we are all one world" beer or
cookie commercial. Philip Glass is a great and original composer for symphonic
minimalism, but as a composer of world music he hasn't got the
vein. The Powaq. score is several notches below the magic of
what he did for Koyaanis. Again: Baraka has a better score as well.
Watch Powaqqatsi to ifill yourself in on the second installment of
the ..qatsi trilogy. It's not a bad film, but IMHO Godfrey Reggio was
unable to deliver the footage for this concept. Ron Fricke did it in
"Baraka".
