Review of Physical Graffiti

Introduction

Well, this was a bit unexpected. When I knew I might be getting this disc, I had a look up on imdb for some details. That database told me that Physical Graffiti was a film from 2000 about three friends who commit a murder when another friend disappears. They believe they`ve killed their friend`s murderer and then have to face up to the consequences of their actions when he reappears years later. Well, that sounded a bit interesting, but was I wrong about what was coming to me…

Physical Graffiti is a film about the bored youth of America. Generally the type who compete in some kind of extreme sports, this films explores the lives of those who choose to seek thrill through piercing their bodies in one form or another. The various sections deal with tattoos and body piercing. Some of the body piercing is a bit extreme, with people undergoing `body modification` by inserting various bits of metal under the skin or more extreme by hanging from the porch by giant safety pins.

The motivation for all this is apparently to stand out from the crowd and to seek an ever-elusive adrenaline rush that will give their lives meaning.

Video

This film is presented in a 4:3 aspect ratio, which leads me to think this was originally commissioned as a TV documentary.

Audio

Only a Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 soundtrack, which reinforces my belief above. Good music soundtrack throughout with tracks by Olive, Massive Attack, Tricky and a few more. The soundtrack is actually the best thing about this. Although the editing overall is good, there are a couple of sloppy moments in the music editing that sound a little jarring.

Features

Just a photo gallery that you can view in an automated slideshow if you wish. All of the photos are just stills from the film, and some are of very bad quality. A couple of the photos are pixellated and more than a few are out of focus. Not good.

Conclusion

There is a Bertrand Russell quote on the main menu that opens this DVD and it`s repeated during the narration of the main feature. The quote is `Orthodoxy is the death of intelligence`. Judging by this feature and the participants, I would say the reverse is true as I fail to see much intelligence on display here. Some of the footage here shows projectile vomiting and people in a bar smashing bottles over their own heads to the delight of their companions. The funniest thing is seeing one of these kids attempting to be cool and just ends up in agony after failing to smash the bottle and presumably ending up with a massive bruise on his head the next morning. Poetic justice in my book.

The narration sets the participants up as some kind of anti-heroes on the search for truth and a few moments of nirvana. Essentially it`s some bored kids who like to modify their bodies in various extreme ways. It`s seen as some sort of rebellion which is summed up by one of the young men who has tattooed his body. His parents initial reaction was one of horror, followed at some point afterwards by his mother getting some as well. At this point he says that this was the point when he`d had enough and wished he could get them removed. Not quite the form of self-expression we were led to believe then…

The narration and subjects try to talk with a mix of street language and pseudo-philosophy, that just makes the whole thing sound really pretentious and more dull than it looks. Quoting Russell and Nietzsche is I guess meant to make what these people are doing seem intellectual and the individuals they crave to be, each following section of the film becoming more extreme. I`m not convinced.

A large portion of this short film (42 minutes…) is taken up with footage of various extreme sports with less time dedicated to the actual philosophising of those involved. For the audience this is aimed at, that`s probably a good thing as the viewers are likely to have a short attention span, but `ooh look some snowboarding dudes jumping over a train, cool…`

Complete waste of my time, I`m afraid, but one for the current MTV2 generation.