Difference between revisions of "Duffer"

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{{Thumb|Duffer DVD cover}}
 
{{Thumb|Duffer DVD cover}}
  
The sleeve notes for the DVD of a 1971 film [[Duffer]], released in early 2011
+
The sleeve notes for the DVD of a 1971 film [[Duffer]],
as part of the British Film Institute's "Flipside" series, say that Delia provided sound effects
+
<BLOCKQUOTE>
for it:
+
&ldquo;An intense and bizarre study of obsession that is by turns lyrical and disconcerting, Duffer tells the deranged story of a teenage boy torn between the womanly charms of a kindly prostitute, and the relentless, sadistic attentions of an older man.&rdquo:
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</BLOCKQUOTE>
 +
say that Delia provided sound effects for it:
  
 
<BLOCKQUOTE>
 
<BLOCKQUOTE>
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=Availability=
 
=Availability=
 +
* Released on DVD on 17th January 2011 as part of the British Film Institute's "Flipside" series.
 
* The DVD of the film can be bought from [http://filmstore.bfi.org.uk/acatalog/info_18554.html the British Film Institute's filmstore], [http://www.amazon.co.uk/Duffer-Moon-Over-Alley-Blu-ray/dp/B004CZ6HV0/ Amazon], [http://www.moviemail-online.co.uk/film/dvd+blu-ray/Duffer-Moon-Over-the-Alley/ MovieMail] and [http://www.play.com/DVD/Blu-ray/4-/17681080/Duffer-Moon-Over-The-Alley-Dual-Format-Edition/Product.html play.com]
 
* The DVD of the film can be bought from [http://filmstore.bfi.org.uk/acatalog/info_18554.html the British Film Institute's filmstore], [http://www.amazon.co.uk/Duffer-Moon-Over-Alley-Blu-ray/dp/B004CZ6HV0/ Amazon], [http://www.moviemail-online.co.uk/film/dvd+blu-ray/Duffer-Moon-Over-the-Alley/ MovieMail] and [http://www.play.com/DVD/Blu-ray/4-/17681080/Duffer-Moon-Over-The-Alley-Dual-Format-Edition/Product.html play.com]
  

Revision as of 06:51, 12 June 2016

Duffer DVD cover

The sleeve notes for the DVD of a 1971 film Duffer,

“An intense and bizarre study of obsession that is by turns lyrical and disconcerting, Duffer tells the deranged story of a teenage boy torn between the womanly charms of a kindly prostitute, and the relentless, sadistic attentions of an older man.&rdquo:

say that Delia provided sound effects for it:

From its running voice-over to the weird, artificial background tape-loops of passing traffic, the entire Duffer soundtrack is a piece of sound art, combining MacDermot's compositions with more avant'garde interventions, such as the acrid, Ligeti-like high-string dissonances when Louis Jack is draping worms on Duffer's stomach, or the ghastly Moog synthesizer buzz that flares up when Duffer spies Your Gracie entertaining a client.[1]

Also riding high at the time was composer Galt MacDermot, whose career in musical theatre reached its peak in 1967 with the controversial hit, Hair. MacDermot, a friend of Dumaresq's, contributes a smattering of musical interludes for piano which greatly assist the film's trajectory from downbeat weirdness to fragile charm, concluding with a mournful nocturne that almost succeeds in making the South Bank's concrete architecture (where the final scenes were shot) sing with a sweet ache of sorrow and resignation. Add to this some electronic contributions from the BBC Radiophonic Workshop's celebrated Delia Derbyshire, working off-the-record here, and you have a soundtrack that graces every beat of a complex emotional journey, rounding off a truly accomplished debut feature.[1]

There were certain night scenes where I felt the new synthesizer machine at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop would be effective. Radiophonics supplied several effects which I laid over the appropriate sequences; they worked extremely well.[1]

Sounds of rushing wind and electronic howls dominate the scene, part of a very experimental sound collage that includes the rantings of Louis Jack and the electronica (momentarily simulating traffic in one scene - four years before Kraftwerk would turn such sounds into a new form of pop) of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop's Delia Derbyshire.[2]

Credits

  • Writer: William Dumaresq
  • Directors: William Dumaresq and Joseph Despins
  • Music: Galt MacDermot
  • Sound effects: BBC Radiophonic Workshop

Availability

External links

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 DVD sleeve notes by Stephen Thrower.
  2. Frank Collins on Cathode Ray Tube.