I first saw this film back in 76 or 77, I think. A strange little underground art-house cinema (which is now a Burger King) in Melbourne...
It remains with me as a thing of beauty, its environments and music always evoking a wave of optimism. This is an exploration of the possibilities of the human spirit, as well as a joyous declaration of non serviam. An aesthetic revolt into surrealism, it suited the time well.
The animated sequences in particular are very impressive: as a means of dealing with the concepts of 'The Treatise on the Steppenwolf' within the film, but separate from the body of the narrative.
The film is not Hesse's novel, but a magical gesture towards the novel. As an adaptation of a complex and sophisticated novel it is a valiant effort. I will cheerfully admit that this, along with Lindsay Anderson's if... was what ultimately interested me in studying cinema.
It remains with me as a thing of beauty, its environments and music always evoking a wave of optimism. This is an exploration of the possibilities of the human spirit, as well as a joyous declaration of non serviam. An aesthetic revolt into surrealism, it suited the time well.
The animated sequences in particular are very impressive: as a means of dealing with the concepts of 'The Treatise on the Steppenwolf' within the film, but separate from the body of the narrative.
The film is not Hesse's novel, but a magical gesture towards the novel. As an adaptation of a complex and sophisticated novel it is a valiant effort. I will cheerfully admit that this, along with Lindsay Anderson's if... was what ultimately interested me in studying cinema.