26. Shorts: Scorpio Rising (1963)

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Our second entry in our month of shorts features Kenneth Anger’s Scorpio Rising, a film less characterized by a definitive plot than by a series of images against an addictive pop soundtrack.  Together we try to untangle the mix of homoerotic, religious, and Nazi symbolism presented throughout Scorpio’s 28 minutes.

Sources

Carr, Jeremy in “Scorpio Rising” from Senses of Cinema: http://sensesofcinema.com/2015/cteq/scorpio-rising/

Moats, David in “Scorpio Rising: Kenneth Anger Interviewed” from The Quietus: https://thequietus.com/articles/01753-experimental-filmmaker-kenneth-anger

Moore, Rachel in “Cultural Bolshevism at Capital’s Late-Night Show: Scorpio Rising” from Afterall: A Journal of Art, Context, and Enquiry

Wikipedia