The clip above comes from Frederick Wiseman's brilliant documentary The Store, which chronicles the 1982 Christmas season at the Dallas Neiman Marcus store and corporate headquarters. Everyone in it is either insane or wearing something completely ridiculous or trying to buy something completely ridiculous or devious about getting their mitts on other people's money (sometimes, all four categories apply to a single person). Wiseman makes really still documenatries that are more impressionistic scene collages about a given subject (the zoo, public housing, high school, Aspen, etc.) than they are definitive narrative accounts (there is an utter lack of voice-overs and expository interviews). Sometimes, this makes his movies feel a little boring or slow, but The Store is full of so many weirdos that it's never less than fascinating. It's two hours of joy. My favorite part of the clip above (two minutes of two hours of joy) is the old ladies smiling repeatedly as their souls frown definitively.
Also, this Daily Beast piece has another great clip from The Store -- an employee receives a particularly naughty birthday greeting from a dude in a chicken suit who goes on and on and on. Amazing.
Dear Rich: I've been reading your blog 4daze. Imagine my surprise when I turned on some show or another and you were on teh teevee! My lil Rich is famoose! Congratulations!
Posted by: whiskas | January 10, 2011 at 02:07 PM
Any suggestions on where to watch Wiseman's films?
Posted by: Kerry | January 10, 2011 at 03:11 PM
It seems these women's idea of smiling is poking their chin out.
Posted by: Lisa from the L | January 10, 2011 at 04:06 PM
Where can we see this?
Posted by: whereismyrobot | January 10, 2011 at 07:13 PM
looks kind of rad Rich. and I see you saw Valhalla Rising, did you like it? it was not bad? right? if you have time I'd enjoy reading what you have to say about it.
Posted by: dodger | January 11, 2011 at 07:01 AM
I spent my most impressionable childhood years in the '70s and it's no wonder I will never feel (or indeed be) normal. There was so much weird stuff everywhere and people took it for granted. My dad let me watch Easy Rider on TV when I was like eight and I had nightmares about it, and what about all those creepy-ass Vicent Price movies that were on afternoon tv??
Posted by: Heather | January 11, 2011 at 02:14 PM
Loving the Hooked On Classics music they exercised to!
Posted by: DJBen | January 11, 2011 at 04:35 PM
AH! My mom and dad met working at the Dallas Neiman Marcus in the 70's. I must own this lol
Posted by: Suze | January 11, 2011 at 06:08 PM
Holy sh*t, was that Ruth Patchett from "She-Devil" rolling her head around at the 1:25 mark??!?! Way to go Rich on this pretty little score!
Posted by: Ky-L | January 12, 2011 at 12:43 AM
Never heard of Wiseman, but must check him out. I love "still" documentaries like the Maysles bros.
Posted by: Loltainment.blogspot.com | January 20, 2011 at 02:46 PM
I think you are right when you say this. Hats off man, what a superlative knowledge you have on this subject…hope to see more work of yours.
Posted by: Health Blog | January 26, 2011 at 05:56 AM
Good work on this one. Might just follow the trick here.
Posted by: kate welsh | April 06, 2011 at 11:07 PM