In 1952,Elia Kazan agreed to cooperate with the House AntiAmerican Activities Committee.That would ruin some of his colleagues' (directors,actors,writers) career ;he was not the only one:Edward Dmytryk followed his steps .Both felt remorse and both could never completely get over it:Dmytryk's "the juggler" "the sniper" and even "the Caine mutiny" are full of hidden messages (check those titles).
"Man on a tight rope" was a movie that made sense.One of the most Anti-Communist movie of that era,of course a propaganda movie,it was never released ,for instance,in France ,because there were commies in the government.It was recently given a ridiculous French title ("Le cirque en révolte" =rebellious circus)for its first screening on TV.
Time has passed.Now who can still ignore what was happening behind the Iron Curtain?Today's generations can no longer be shocked when you see how low Communist parties have sunk in Europa (if the French Communist candidate ,Marie-George Buffet reaches 3% the votes in the FRench election next week,that will be quite a feat!) Given it is a propaganda movie,and considering Kazan's less-than-comfortable situation,"man on a tight rope" is a remarkable work,for,although Kazan was burning with a desire to get his messages across,his art survived the heavy intentions.Lyricism -which would come to the fore in "East of Eden" or "Splendor in the grass" - is already present in the luminous scene of the lovers' swimming.One should note that this scene is followed by Cernik's first questioning in a dark office .
The circus ,what a transparent metaphor !That the Czekolovakian authorities should be infuriated by a simple clowns number speaks volumes,more than one hour of rhetoric.Inside the circus,there 's nothing but suspicious minds.Everyone suspects everyone,from a dwarf to an ex-deserter to a lion-tamer to the manager's(no longer owner:the circus belongs to the people now) daughter.
The final,which involves the whole circus trying to get to the Bavarian border,is masterfully directed ,with an unusually inventive of faces in close shots.I've always thought that Eisenstein was one of Kazan's biggest influence.Kazan uses the circus people in a stunning way.
Cernik is a modern Mosis ,when they arrive in the promised land....
Completely overshadowed by its excellent follow-up "on the waterfront"-which is also a try to justify informing","Man on a tight rope" must be brought of oblivion.
"Man on a tight rope" was a movie that made sense.One of the most Anti-Communist movie of that era,of course a propaganda movie,it was never released ,for instance,in France ,because there were commies in the government.It was recently given a ridiculous French title ("Le cirque en révolte" =rebellious circus)for its first screening on TV.
Time has passed.Now who can still ignore what was happening behind the Iron Curtain?Today's generations can no longer be shocked when you see how low Communist parties have sunk in Europa (if the French Communist candidate ,Marie-George Buffet reaches 3% the votes in the FRench election next week,that will be quite a feat!) Given it is a propaganda movie,and considering Kazan's less-than-comfortable situation,"man on a tight rope" is a remarkable work,for,although Kazan was burning with a desire to get his messages across,his art survived the heavy intentions.Lyricism -which would come to the fore in "East of Eden" or "Splendor in the grass" - is already present in the luminous scene of the lovers' swimming.One should note that this scene is followed by Cernik's first questioning in a dark office .
The circus ,what a transparent metaphor !That the Czekolovakian authorities should be infuriated by a simple clowns number speaks volumes,more than one hour of rhetoric.Inside the circus,there 's nothing but suspicious minds.Everyone suspects everyone,from a dwarf to an ex-deserter to a lion-tamer to the manager's(no longer owner:the circus belongs to the people now) daughter.
The final,which involves the whole circus trying to get to the Bavarian border,is masterfully directed ,with an unusually inventive of faces in close shots.I've always thought that Eisenstein was one of Kazan's biggest influence.Kazan uses the circus people in a stunning way.
Cernik is a modern Mosis ,when they arrive in the promised land....
Completely overshadowed by its excellent follow-up "on the waterfront"-which is also a try to justify informing","Man on a tight rope" must be brought of oblivion.