My Winnipeg, Guy Maddin’s ‘docu-fantasia’ film about Winnipeg, Manitoba, should be out on DVD soon. Apparently there’s a book in the works as well. If you don’t know Maddin’s work, it might be described as Canadian ice cream noir, blending outrageous narrative stunts with antique cinematic effects designed to make his films look like they were produced in the Silent era. His Dracula: Pages from a Virgin’s Diary is a film version of a ballet based upon Bram Stoker’s book produced in Winnipeg. It’s as weird as it sounds, and totally brilliant. His The Saddest Music in the World in the World features a woman played by Isabella Rosellini whose glass legs are filled with beer as well as Olympic-style playoffs between the nations of the world to see whose music generates the most grief.
From a New York Magazine interview:
You’ve described My Winnipeg as a “docu-fantasia.” Can you explain?
That’s just a label I threw on because I wanted to avoid arguments over whether it’s a documentary or not. But it’s a useful starting point. Rather than having to research facts, I just conducted all my research in my memory and in my heart. I got to rant, I got to squirt some bile.
And here’s the trailer for My Winnipeg:
