The Cinematheque

“In many ways it is more emotionally affecting than the completed work [of Golden Eighties].”

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

A dream project for many years, the semi-satirical, semi-romantic musical Golden Eighties is the film Chantal Akerman arguably spent the most time preparing to make before it could be fully realized. ​“They kept wanting me to remake Jeanne Dielman, but I wanted to spurn everything, to not repeat myself,” she later said. The Eighties, a ​“test run,” is in two parts: powerfully edited rehearsal footage recorded on video, and musical sequences shot on film, using a cast and sets that were not yet finalized. The film shows Akerman at work, gently but very specifically drawing out elements of performance, experimenting with staging, and watching the framework of a fantastical musical appear in sketch-like form. Unlike her other poetically reflective onscreen self-portraits, here we see Akerman totally immersed, enthralled by song, and committed to making the most of the long wait before her most uncanny treatment of romantic image-making could be realized.

In French with English subtitles

DCP courtesy Chantal Akerman Foundation

“A generative work of generosity … What comes across overwhelmingly [is] the profound desire to make something expressive and heartfelt out of nothing … This film is a whole living wonderful thing that needs no ​‘completed’ film.”

Daniel Kasman, MUBI Notebook

“An experiment, an adventure in intertextuality … Spitely, energetic, and full of fun … The Eighties is more exciting [than Golden Eighties]—it is a gesture toward an unattainable object of desire.”

Adam Roberts, Chantal Akerman Retrospective Handbook