Surface Tension

“The influence of minimalist art (rather than the aesthetic of minimalist art) on the avant-garde cinema is very great. Most of the important young filmmakers, especially on the east coast, might be considered minimalists. Certainly Frampton’s Surface Tension is from that milieu. The film itself has three parts: a comic static shot emphasizing the passage of time; a fast motion tour through a city with fractured German commentary; and a slow seascape with fish floating mid-screen. In this last section, phrases translated from German commentary are printed over the image… The narrator’s voice belongs to Kaspar Koenig, as indeed also the text he extemporizes.” (P. Adams Sitney) Available for puchase only.