Joris Ivens early poetic documentary stuff pretty much set the stage for observational and artful film in general. Regen is pretty simple, he records people's reactions when rain begins to fall, the effect of rain on the atmosphere, landscape, inhabitants, and animals, and almost joyfully rides along with the tide as it sparkles throughout the streets. Some very striking images are captured, especially off of the reflections the rain causes in puddles on the ground, with special attention to a series of shots where crowds with their umbrellas become almost abstract starburst designs.
The music on the Avant-Garde: Experimental Cinema of the 1920s and 1930s version of this film is really bad. That collection has some really good accompaniment music and really bad accompaniment music, and this might be one where you just watch it silently. Or, you can provide your own music, as one of the things great about this film is that it's so metrically edited that it can fit into many a beat.
--PolarisDiB
The music on the Avant-Garde: Experimental Cinema of the 1920s and 1930s version of this film is really bad. That collection has some really good accompaniment music and really bad accompaniment music, and this might be one where you just watch it silently. Or, you can provide your own music, as one of the things great about this film is that it's so metrically edited that it can fit into many a beat.
--PolarisDiB