CriterionCast

The Eclipse Viewer – Episode 5 – Maidstone and Other Films by Norman Mailer

This podcast focuses on Criterion’s Eclipse Series of DVDs. Hosts David Blakeslee and Robert Nishimura give an overview of each box and offer their perspectives on the unique treasures they find inside. In this episode, David and Robert discuss Maidstone and Other Films by Norman Mailer, a collection of three films shot in 1967-68 by the celebrated author and cultural icon.

About the films:

Norman Mailer is remembered for many things’” his novels, his essays, his articles, his activism, his ego. One largely forgotten chapter of his life, however, is his late-sixties kamikaze-style plunge into making experimental films. These rough-hewn, self-financed, largely improvised metafictions are works of madness and bravado, all starring Mailer himself and with technical assistance from cinema verité trailblazers D. A. Pennebaker and Richard Leacock. The most fully realized of his directorial efforts is the blustering, brawling  Maidstone,  a shocking sign of the political times, in which Mailer plays a filmmaker and presidential candidate who may be the target of an assassination attempt. Along with Mailer’s other films of the period’”Wild 90  and  Beyond the Law‘”it shows an uncompromising artist in thrall to both himself and a new medium.

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Timeline for the podcast:

Introduction (00:00:01 – 00:17:18)

Wild 90  (00:17:19 – 00:35:05)

Beyond the Law  (00:35:06 – 00:54:22)

Maidstone  (00:54:23 – 01:25:44)

Conclusion (01:25:45 – 01:37:34)


Buy The Box Set On Amazon:


Episode Links:

Mailer Overview:

Wild 90:

Beyond the Law:


Next time on the podcast: Eclipse Series 24: The Actuality Dramas of Allan King

Contact us:

David Blakeslee

David hosts the Criterion Reflections podcast, a series that reviews the films of the Criterion Collection in their chronological order of release. The series began in 2009 and those essays (covering the years 1921-1967) can be found via the website link provided below. In March 2016, the blog transferred to this site, and in August 2017, the blog changed over to a podcast format. David also contributes to other reviews and podcasts on this site. He lives near Grand Rapids, Michigan and works in social services. Twitter / Criterion Reflections