Tracker Pixel for Entry

​Pioneering jazz-drug indie docudrama resurfaces after over half a century

Cinema | March 11th, 2015

Shirley Clarke’s groundbreaking and trouble-plagued “The Connection” was decades ahead of its time, but it is now available for reappraisal on a fine new Blu-ray from Milestone Films.

Independent filmmaker Shirley Clarke was a dancer-choreographer who decided to go into filmmaking in the early 1950s, beginning with short 16mm films dealing with dance, music and art, then with American life and social issues.

By the end of the decade, she had graduated to 35mm film and her work had become acclaimed at various festivals around the world. As a golden age of independent avant-garde filmmaking blossomed, she and a number of other indie filmmakers banded together to form a filmmakers’ co-op. She even loaned equipment to budding actor/filmmaker John Cassavetes to make his first feature (“Shadows”) around the same time she wanted to make her own first feature.

The 1959 opening of “The Connection,” an off-Broadway play depicting several drug addicts waiting in a Greenwich Village apartment for their dealer to show up, many of them jazz musicians improvising live performances each night, sparked Clarke’s imagination. Part of its appeal was the intriguing design as a meta-fictional play-within-a-play, including actors interacting with patrons during intermission and an “audience member” interrupting the play in the second act.

At first very controversial due to its themes, “The Connection” went on to win several awards. It seemed an ideal subject to continue her documentary approach while transitioning into a fictional story rooted in reality.

Clarke used a realistic one-room set, as the play had done, but she changed the characters of the producer and playwright into a filmmaker (played by William Redfield) and a cinematographer (the first screen appearance by prolific character actor Roscoe Lee Browne), ostensibly trying to make a documentary about the group of addicts. At times the camera merely observes the action, and at other times the characters speak directly into the camera, as in a documentary.

Eventually their “connection” arrives with not only their fixes but with an elderly female social worker, who is a bit confused as to what all is going on and eventually leaves. The film director later decides to yield to the addicts’ recommendations that he try some heroin himself, but the cameraman declines. To maintain the documentary flavor and feel of improvisation, the film was shot in black-and-white, allowed to run out during takes, and various other filmmaking artifacts normally edited out were left in. Nevertheless, Clarke carefully scripted, planned and staged these effects, and alternated smooth camera tripod and dolly shots with rougher hand-held camerawork.

The result looks very much like one of the late 1950s-early 1960s social issue plays that were popular then, as captured by a couple of documentary filmmakers with a good sense for location and colorful real-life characters both white and black, straight and gay (even though it was filmed on a studio set with actors). In other words, it’s a fictional narrative made to look like a documentary: a clever, self-reflexive blend of cinéma vérité and staged performance. It has a feeling reminiscent of “The Iceman Cometh” and “Waiting for Godot,” but with a semi-satiric filmmaking layer added.

The acting, by most of the original stage cast, is strong, and the frequent jazz music, composed by pianist Freddie Redd and featuring saxophonist Jackie McLean (cast members in both the play and film), adds greatly to the ambience, as well as the film’s entertainment value, despite the potentially sordid subject material.

The film premiered at Cannes in 1961 to great success and won an International Critics Award, but U.S. screenings in 1962 did not meet with widespread approval. It was the content and language that caused most mainstream critics to condemn the film, which also had severe censorship difficulties that delayed and limited its release. “The Connection” became largely unseen for half a century and unknown except for its jazz soundtrack album until a UCLA Film Archive restoration a few years ago, a theatrical re-issue in May 2012 by Milestone Films and last month’s welcome release on Blu-ray and DVD.

Milestone’s Blu-ray of “The Connection” has beautiful picture quality, scanned from the new 35mm fine-grain preservation print, itself restored from the original negatives with portions duped from an earlier master positive. Audio quality is also very good, with a fine reproduction of the frequent jazz jam sessions. Bonus features are limited but interesting, including some home movies, interviews with the art director and composer, a photo gallery, a half-hour 1959 radio interview and audio recordings of two songs used to promote the film.

“THE CONNECTION” on Blu-ray – Movie: A- / Video: A / Audio: A / Extras: B-

Recently in:

MayFargo MarathonNow - May 20Youth run Thursday, 5K Friday night, 10K, half and full marathon, entertainment along route on Saturday. fargomarathon.comKids to Park DayMay 20Bring the kids to Theault Farm in Fargo for crafts,…

By John Showalter john.d.showalter@gmail.comHuman rights is a subject that often comes up in the media. One has only to tune in to any of the major news broadcasters to hear heated debate and discussion regarding the treatment of…

Event by Moorhead Parks & Recreation and Swing Barrel Brewing Company, LLCW. H. Davy Memorial Park, 1st Ave & 8th St N, MoorheadTuesday, June 27, 5:30-8pmThe Gina Powers Band + Petting ZooHeather & Thistle Pipes and DrumsArt…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comOur opinion: Keep your chins up, class of 2023As the school year draws to a close, this seems to be the time of year when most editors offer up their best advice to the most recent graduating…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comCan Someone Tell Me Why Sneakers Sell for $1.5 to $2.2 Million a Pair? It has to be something other than quality. I shop for used books in thrift stores because I have discovered thick books given…

We are looking for 55-gallon plastic food grade barrels, do you have ideas or connections?We use these barrels to teach our resilient yard workshop series including Make Your Own Rain Barrel and Make Your Own Compost Tumbler. If…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.comSpring has finally sprung. It’s time to bounce out of the house and try a few new places to eat. Let’s explore what restaurants are trending on the Fargo-Moorhead Eats Facebook page. With nearly…

Event information provided by Morgan Thompson, Marketing and Sales Associate, FARGODOMEMThompson@fargodome.comIt’s the official kickoff of summer, and the return of the best BBQ around and look who’s going to be there! Getting…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.comUntil I saw “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” I really thought the cinematic expression of the multiverse concept had peaked with the triumphant Best Picture Academy Award for…

Hjemkomst Center 202 1st Ave N, Moorhead  April 25, 3:30-7:30pmPaint a rock, make a stranger smile and be a part of the movement! Keep your rock or add it to the pile to be labeled, sealed and…

By Eric Dallmanericd@hpr1.comWe recently watched “The PROM” at Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, and it was an experience that left a lasting impact on us. The story, a heartwarming yet familiar one, follows a group of Broadway stars…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Kris Gruberperriex1@gmail.comSpring is here (mostly), and our area is buzzing with people eager to get back out and about -- many newly vaccinated and feeling a bit safer. Partnering with Jade Events, Fargo Brewing is just…

By John Showalter  john.d.showalter@gmail.comThey sell fentanyl test strips and kits to harm-reduction organizations and…

By Traci Sethre  traci.sethre@gmail.comAn integral piece of fencing is your mask. Its integrity keeps you safe. It’s typically painted black to hide your face…

By Ken and Alice Christiansonsubmit@hpr1.com HB 1332 is currently before the North Dakota legislature. The bill proposes to permit social workers to use a discredited treatment method to convert the sexual orientation of gay and…