Educational Media Reviews Online

San Francisco filmmaker Danny Plotnick’s films are in his own words “chock full of piss and vinegar”, so you may want to pack your umbrella for this compilation. One of America’s underground film pioneers from the past twenty years, Plotnick has doggedly written and directed his own films, his own way: no frills, no compromising, no catering to trends or popularity, and all done completely outside the mainstream (though Pillow Talk has been screened at the MoMA). Definitely old school.

Employing a coterie of actors and musicians as regular collaborators (including his wife Alison Faith Levy) Danny Plotnick comes across like a punk rock Ed Wood—shooting mainly on 8mm and with an even smaller budget (several of these were shot in a single day, and Flip About Flip was made for $60).

Extreme characters reacting to extreme situations are something of a recurring motif throughout this collection. But beneath the rough textures, the yelling and the screaming, there’s a good deal of honesty, humor, and even heart in these films, both intentional and unintentional. If you’re curious as to what “underground cinema” is all about, look no further—but you might just want to send the kids outside first.

The Films:

• Tour Tips: Lesson #14 Beware The Day Off In New Orleans (2001, 2 mins.)
• I, Socky (1998, 7 mins.)
• Swingers’ Serenade (1999, 24 mins.)
• Death Sled II: Steel Belted Romeos (1990, 10 mins.)
• Dumbass From Dundas (1988, 7 mins.)
• Flip About Flip (1990, 4 mins.)
• Skate Witches (1986, 2 mins.)
• Pipsqueak Pfollies (1994, 24 mins.)
• Sugarbutts (1987, 3 mins.)
• Pillow Talk (1991, 18 mins.)

The disc comes loaded with extra features: original trailers (short previews) for Pillow Talk and Death Sled II: Steel Belted Romeos; a re-dubbed version of Dumbass From Dundas where one character speaks in German and the other in Spanish (!); a complete list of technical specifications (camera, projector, sound, and editing equipment used) for each film; a photo and poster gallery; an exuberant and insightful audio commentary from the director and several of his crew for every film; and a reflective essay by Plotnick printed in the DVD booklet.

A preview of the DVD is available at the Microcinema website. Many of these films can also be seen in their entirety freely online at Plotnik’s website and Plotnick’s YouTube channel.

Recommended for all libraries.