Paul Andrews
David Cronenberg and the Cinema of the Extreme was made by the BBC right here in the UK as a brief 20 odd minute time filler to proceed a showing (maybe the premiere?) of Cronenberg's brilliant Videodrome (1982) which was shown on the same channel straight after.In it he talks briefly about Shivers (1975), then he goes into a bit more depth surrounding Videodrome itself & then he again briefly talks about what was at that time his latest film Crash (1996) before rounding things off with a rant about censorship. George A. Romero gets a few minutes as well to discuss various issues & British director, writer, editor & actor Alex Cox sporting a hairdo created with the help of a pan full of chip fat is the only other contributor.This is pretty insignificant & forgettable stuff, it's obvious that since this was playing just before Videodrome & that it spends most of it's duration discussing that film this was probably a promotional piece more than anything else. As always Cronenberg never really talks in layman's terms & he seems to want to find some hidden complex meaning in just about everything he discusses, Romero & Cox have nothing of any real note to say. If your looking for a detailed interview about Cronenberg's work & career this isn't it as it ignores most of both but it's fascinating to hear him talk & since Videodrome is maybe my favourite Cronneberg film it was nice to get a brief insight, albeit a shallow one.Featuring clips from Shivers, Videodrome, Crash & Romero's Dawn of the Dead (1978) & filmed in what looks like an aquarium as the contributors all seem to sitting in front of huge fish tanks...
