During their long career Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet have developed a practice of montage of different editions of the same film which they made circulate as copies with the same title and the same order of montage. The differences are always made through different takes of the same shot. These editions are normally recognized by the public and the critique as films which are reasonable identic, or at least as films which don't present substantial variants. But its their authors who diversified each of them over the years as if it would have been independent films, and to treat, distribute and sell them as such: second edition, third, fourth which have then the same textual authority as the first one. Each of these films don't displace the other and none is really alternativ to the other, or compensate the possible disequilibrium of the other. Every edition has its authority and independence, but also exists together with the others, born from the work with the precedent. Generally speaking, the Straubs managed to construct singular copies, as a tableau or a statue, to give them to film libraries or instutions who don't acquire just a simple copie of the copie.


see also Politique/Menace/Métrique


Lecture in French

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