The Savage Eye
This dramatised, essayistic documentary dissecting a year in the life of a young divorcee (Barbara Baxley) was made over a four-year period by a collective of directors and cinematographers. It provides a fascinating and candid portrait of the "Hogarthian faces of Los Angeles" (
The New York Times) as it takes in such scenes as wrestling matches, burlesque shows and car accidents.
Vividly shot by Jack Couffer, Helen Levitt and Haskell Wexler. Winner of the 1960 BAFTA Flaherty Award.
Preceded by
Emotions of Everyday Living: The Steps of Age (Ben Maddow, 1950, 20 mins). Maddow's (screenwriter of
The Asphalt Jungle) moving account of the effect of retirement on an ageing crane driver and his wife. Produced by Helen Levitt.
All prints courtesy of the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia and ACMI.
