The erudite Alexander Kluge (b. 1932) began with a profound admiration for the work of Jean-Luc Godard which was undoubtedly reflected in his short films and early releases Yesterday Girl and Die Artisten in der Zirkuskuppel : Ratlos (Artists Under The Big Top : Perplexed, 1968). In Gelegenheitsarbeit einer Sklavin,( Part-Time Work of a Domestic Slave, 1974), the story of an erstwhile abortionist who becomes part of the political circuit, Kluge continues to use Godard-like devices in the likes of a fragmented narrative, printed quotations and deliberately shaky hand-held camera images that are referred to these days as 'queasicam shots.'
Kluge's subsequent canon boasts countless television and documentary credits each in their own right, a nod to his muse of muses Jean-Luc though the factotum of factotums stands on his own two feet and not just as a director but an academe, philosopher and journalist who has written numerous publications.
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| Hey where's Richard Benjamin and that space sanitation ship when you need it - from The Big Mess (1971) |
The nonagenarian released his 109th film of a sixty-five year career in the form of a seven-minute short entitled Doll Movie (2017), he is the surviving sibling of late actress Alexandra Kluge. Above all else the auteur sees himself as an author and rightfully so, his storytelling acumen is easily on par with the superlative things he perpetually brings to screen.