the hour of the furnace . transformers 3d . vampire hunter d . natural city. abba - the movie .

fernando solanas' fiery trilogy of films is fantastic agit prop. from the rat-tat opening of the first part with its episodic introduction to neo-liberalism to its incredible end where one  long shot of che guevara's dead face calls for martyrs in the cause of the revolution. some of the pot-shots at the bourgeoisie are pat but very effective. the second part of the trilogy is divided into two- one that follows the peronist revolution and its growth / decline and the other that collects testimonies of the revolutionaries. the final part, only 38 minutes long, calls for action by documenting the violence of the state.

the new transformers film aims at shock and awe by blowing up the head of abraham lincoln- the only really 'new' image in the history of destruction of cities in american films. the rest is action by rote- the twirling snake like machine ripping through the chicago skyscraper being the most vivid image of all. but, if a transformers film is what you are expecting (as i was) there is nothing much to complain about. some of the 3d is spectacular- especially that opening sequence of the landing on the moon and the destruction of the planet of the robots.

in the korean 'natural city' the line between man and cyborg is blurred when love breaks the boundary. 'natural city' has an underground inspired by blade-runner where cyborgs are blackmarketed. a cop falls in love with one and needs the body of a real woman to keep the cyborg alive forever. action packed and bloody, this was terrific fun.

vigilante d is a vampire hunter with a talking hand and a samurai sword who takes on the blood sucking count and his family when he exploits a delicate sexy young girl from the village. set in a generically european city, this 1985 film makes goth horror in anime. the animation is dated- none of the carefully detailed movements and sounds of recent years- but more effective because of it.

not a spot of darkness can taint the perpetually happy 'abba'. in the film when the public is asked what they like about the group most say that they are 'clean cut'. i.e. they wear white and gold clean clothes and smile a lot. the music is dance without the darkness of funk. eurodisco at it most catchy. in that sense its appeal is really its lack of personality- like the band. blandness as an art form. the inane lyrics that reference generic american landscapes that are decidedly not real- but instead emerge from the world of comic books and western films like the "rio grande" of 'fernando'. it is flat and easy to use. sing along. there is nothing to feel- because feeling would be dangerous. the film 'abba- the movie' knows this and makes sure that even when the reporter finally gets his chance to do a heart to heart with the band, about who they 'really are', it cuts to a song in an elevator, thus keeping the 'real' hidden and revealing only what we always see- blonde hair and smiling faces with glittering disco lights. and the pleasure of emptiness- with a catchy tune. very catchy- mamma mia / dancing queen / voulez vous / money money money /knowing me, knowing you/.. and the list goes on. i am now an abba convert.