Barns, Brits, and Birthrights: Philip Hoffman's All Fall Down: personal, experimental and a documentary feature
POV, Winter 2009, no. 76, pp. 35 - 39
"Barns, Brits, and Birthrights" is a review that describes Philip Hoffman's most recent 'hybrid' documentary, All Fall Down, telling the stories of Nahneebahweequa and George Lachlan Brown. Both characters struggle to hold their lives together and gain control of their narratives. Generally speaking, Hoffman's work explores his "personal histories of family, memory, and loss" (35). The farm plays a central role as it ties the narratives together through its use, disuse, and abuse. "All Fall Down notes that if the farms and barns aren't used for creativity and growth, for the (re)generations of the land and life that defines the area, they will no doubtly be eradicted (36). Mackenzie believes that All Fall Down is Hoffman's most compelling work to date (39).
ITEM 2009.074 – available for viewing in the Research Centre
Videos, Artworks and Artists Cited
All Fall Down – Philip Hoffman
On the Pond – Philip Hoffman
Kitchener/Berlin – Philip Hoffman
Technilogic Ordering – Philip Hoffman
?O, Zoo! (The Making of a Fiction Film) – Philip Hoffman
A Zed and Two Noughts – Peter Greenaway
passing through/torn formations – Philip Hoffman
What these ashes wanted – Philip Hoffman
Somewhere between Jalostotitlan & Encaracion – Philip Hoffman
Our Hitler – Hans-Jürgen Syberberg
Sans soleil – Chris Marker
Histoire(s) du cinéma – Jean-Luc Godard
We Are Going Home – Jenn Reeves
Scratch – Deirdre Logue
5 Spells – Helen Hill
Praise – Barbara Sternberg