24 October 2007
The Phantom Carriage (Körkarlen) is one of those films that I can't imagine why I've never got round to seeing. Made in 1920 by silent cinema master Victor Sjöström (director of the 1928 The Wind, for my money Lillian Gish's finest hour), The Phantom Carriage has all the makings of a great campfire ghost story and those who know it assure us it's one of the unsung silent greats.
Legend says that whoever is the last person to die on New Year’s Eve will be destined to drive the Phantom Carriage, collecting dead souls for a year. When a drunkard is found at the stroke of midnight, the victim of a vicious fight, he is forced to relive his past to see how he and those around him have been destroyed by his selfish and destructive ways.
Apparently the inspiration for Ingmar Bergman's directorial career - Bergman later cast Sjöström in his 1957 Wild Strawberries - The Phantom Carriage is a mesmerising and extraordinary film with still outstanding photo effects and dramatic camerawork.
In addition, an atmospheric and evocative new score has been written and recorded by KTL, the unique sonic collaboration between Stephen O'Malley [SunnO)))] and Peter Rehberg [aka Pita], who have previously worked together soundtracking the bizarre theatrical production of Dennis Cooper’s Kindertotenlieder. For this Limited Edition release, the packaging has specially created artwork by Stephen O'Malley and film notes by the Brothers Quay.
The Phantom Carriage will be released on UK DVD on 25th February 2008 by Tartan Video. The film will be presented in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio in tinted black and white, with an uncompressed CD quality PCM soundtrack.
You can learn more about KTL at their MySpace page at: http://www.myspace.com/ktlrule.
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