Synopsis:
A nihiliastic young man (Michael Gothard) pushes his way past the secretary (Gabriella Licudi) of a big-wig advertiser (Peter Stephens) to convince Farson (Stephens) that he wants to commit suicide amidst media fanfare — but will he change his mind before the pivotal moment arrives?

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

• Experimental Films
• Media Spectacle
• Suicide

Review:
Australian-born writer-director Don Levy was inspired by the legend of Herostratus when making this experimental art film early in his career. According to Wikipedia:

Herostratus (Ancient Greek: Ἡρόστρατος) was a 4th-century BC Greek, accused of seeking notoriety as an arsonist by destroying the second Temple of Artemis in Ephesus (on the outskirts of present-day Selçuk), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The act prompted his execution and the creation of a damnatio memoriae law forbidding anyone to mention his name, orally or in writing. The law was ultimately ineffective, as evidenced by surviving accounts of his crime. Thus, Herostratus has become an eponym for someone who commits a criminal act in order to become famous.

Why this was intriguing to him is unclear. The film itself is widely viewed as a critique of manipulative advertising, though that’s not quite accurate — rather, we see a tale of a thoroughly unlikable, self-obsessed protagonist we can barely stand to be around during the first hour of the film:

… who gradually becomes tolerably sympathetic as he makes romantic connections with a beautiful secretary (Licudi):

… and comes to realize that Farson is an even greater cynic and coercive asshole than he is.

If none of this sounds particularly appealing, that’s because — it’s not. Making things even more challenging is Levy’s relentless use of artsy experimental techniques, including intercutting fairly obvious symbology (i.e., meat being cut), utilizing occasional rapid-fire (subliminal) editing, and incorporating freeze-frames.

Sadly, both Levy and star Gothard (who is well cast) committed suicide themselves at the ages of 54 and 52 respectively, showing that the film’s topic wasn’t too far off the mark in relevance for those involved.

Note: Watch for Helen Mirren in her screen debut as a sexy commercial actress modeling orange rubber gloves.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

• Keith Allans’ cinematography
  

Must See?
No, unless you’re curious. Listed as a Cult Movie in the back of Peary’s book, which it may at one point have been.

Links:

• IMDb entry
• Time Out Capsule Review
• Spinning Image Review