Apples and Oranges: Short Documentaries about Food

Rachel Libert in Person Tonight's assortment of documentaries nurtures a variety of food-related cravings and appetites. Mushroom sheds light on the dark-loving fungi through interviews (including local mushroom lovers), mushroom arts and crafts, and a tribute to the mushroom capital of the world. Jessica Yu's Sour Death Balls is a wonderful study of faces, reaction shots to a treat not to everyone's taste. Three women prepare Gefilte Fish, their differing methods revealing their generations. Karen Johnson's minimal Orange (with maximum connotations) was awarded prizes in two erotic film festivals! Jorge Furtado's Isle of the Flowers uses the history of a tomato to construct a biting commentary on poverty and the food chain. Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe is Les Blank's document of Herzog's fulfillment of a promise to Errol Morris upon the completion of Morris's first film, a consumption made more palatable by the aid of local legend Alice Waters. Plus two cooking videos by Skip Blumberg, Flying Morning Glory (on fire) featuring the virtuoso cooking of a Thai sidewalk chef, and Chinese Noodle Making: Backwards and Forwards in which Chinese chef David Yang demonstrates just that.-Kathy Geritz Mushroom (Angélica Allende Brisk, Rachel Libert, 1995, 28 mins, From artists). Sour Death Balls (Jessica Yu, 1992, 5 mins, B&W, From Filmmaker). Chinese Noodle Making: Backwards and Forwards (Skip Blumberg, 1989, 4 mins, 3/4" video, From EAI). Orange (Karen Johnson, 1970, 3 mins, PFA Collection). Isle of Flowers (Jorge Furtado, Brazil, 1990, 12 mins, From First Run/Icarus). Flying Morning Glory (on fire) (Skip Blumberg, 1985, Color, 4 mins, 3/4" video, From EAI). Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe (Les Blank, 1980, 26 mins, From Flower Films)

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