Scott takes a look at Dark Star, a documentary on creative genius H.R. Giger.
 |
| "Don't you mess with my mutant babies!" |
There are
things that stick with you from the minute you experience them. Be it an image, a fear, or a thought, these
are things that become a part of your fiber as a thinking and feeling person. The work of Swiss surrealist H.R. Giger is
one of those experiences for me. I was first
introduced to Giger’s work viewing the first (and easily finest) film in the
Alien franchise. Without knowing it at
the time, my young mind was permanently scarred by that film. Any horror film I watch to this day is always
subconsciously compared to the nightmarish appearance of the Xenomorph.
My next
revelation with Giger’s work was purchasing Celtic Frost’s “To Mega Therion” in
1987. The cover was dressed in Giger’s 1977
work named “Satan I”. I remember staring
at this album cover for hours as a child.
I don’t remember seeing anything more disturbing and thought
provoking. It truly made me question my
own beliefs at a young age. After that, I was hooked and gobbled up anything I could find on Giger. That's why
I was thrilled to see a new documentary was being released in 2015 on the
master.
Like this review? Please share
Dark
Star: H.R. Giger’s World, clocking in
at a cozy 95 minutes, takes you to the heart of this artistic phenomenon, his
home. Much of this documentary takes
place in Giger’s dwelling, quite cramped, filled with his works, and thousands
of books. There is a great deal of focus
on Giger’s home in this documentary making it as much of a focal point as Giger
is. It really drives home the idea of
how important an artist’s dwelling can be, and even more so becoming an
extension of the artist themselves. H.R.
Giger’s home is just that, literally an artistic expression onto itself.
Dark Star goes into candid interviews with Giger’s business partners, managers, and
family, which is the stuff us true nerds love out of a documentary. Discussions are had on Giger’s childhood and
the possible paths taken to lead him to the work he had done for the last four decades. We are shown the psyche of the
master in this film.
The real dealmaker
for me though, was the inclusion and interviews with Thomas
Gabriel Fischer (Hellhammer, Celtic Frost, Apollyon Sun, Triptykon). Fischer, dives into his history and
relationship with Giger that spanned over thirty years. Sadly, not
long after the filming of Dark Star was complete, H.R. Giger passed on at the age of 74 after
suffering injuries from a fall. It was
good that there was another record completed of this artist's amazing work and vision
to be enjoyed while helping educate people on one of the greatest surrealists of all
time.
R.I.P.
H.R Giger 1940 - 2014
Score
-Scott Lambert