"Dementia" is a hopelessly flawed and cheesy movie that hasn't aged well at all, but it is also an interesting and ambitious experiment in film noir and impressionism and fantasy...and I liked it.
Oddly, the film it reminded me most of was "Hands Of A Stranger" - partially because it seemed to be the anti-matter opposite of that screen play (in which people NEVER STOP TALKING FOR AN INSTANT), but also because the art direction and set design constantly get in the way of what little plot there is and draw way too much attention to themselves.
I saw the "silent" version of this film without the narration, and I will admit that the dialog and narration aren't needed - so heavy handed and symbol-laden are the visuals (and the soundtrack) that words aren't needed to know what's going on. And Marni Nixon's delicate wordless warbling in the background adds enough emotion to the proceedings to keep you from getting itchy for a human voice to add some concrete grounding to the proceedings.
I don't know if it's fair to judge the "Acting" in the movie - all the characters are basic caricatures of certain states of mind and certain stereotypes (pimp, fat guy, cop, father, evil guy, "jazz musician (??)" and no one really has to "act" - all the actors just project at the camera. "Gamin" manages to hold center stage though all this, and she does fine for what the role requires.
I wouldn't say you owe it to yourself to see this or anything - but if you enjoy the fringes of cinema and oddities of pop culture, you might get a bang out of "Dementia".
Oddly, the film it reminded me most of was "Hands Of A Stranger" - partially because it seemed to be the anti-matter opposite of that screen play (in which people NEVER STOP TALKING FOR AN INSTANT), but also because the art direction and set design constantly get in the way of what little plot there is and draw way too much attention to themselves.
I saw the "silent" version of this film without the narration, and I will admit that the dialog and narration aren't needed - so heavy handed and symbol-laden are the visuals (and the soundtrack) that words aren't needed to know what's going on. And Marni Nixon's delicate wordless warbling in the background adds enough emotion to the proceedings to keep you from getting itchy for a human voice to add some concrete grounding to the proceedings.
I don't know if it's fair to judge the "Acting" in the movie - all the characters are basic caricatures of certain states of mind and certain stereotypes (pimp, fat guy, cop, father, evil guy, "jazz musician (??)" and no one really has to "act" - all the actors just project at the camera. "Gamin" manages to hold center stage though all this, and she does fine for what the role requires.
I wouldn't say you owe it to yourself to see this or anything - but if you enjoy the fringes of cinema and oddities of pop culture, you might get a bang out of "Dementia".