Elliott's Suicide

Directed by Kenneth Anger

A homage to the late American singer-songwriter Elliott Smith, Elliott’s Suicide is a sentimental 15 minute tribute, lacking Anger’s usual irony for obvious reasons. The film begins with shots of friends’ and fans’ last words written on Smith’s memorial on Sunset Boulevard, then to footage of a Macy’s parade, focusing closely on the oddly outfitted participants, some in renaissance attire, cowboys with lassos, and beauty queens. The film is scored with Smith’s music, resulting in a melancholy effect, especially in the segment that follows Smith through the woods and films him as he digs up a guitar, then plays a song. This footage is repeated in the end of the film, but in a negative reversal print, suggesting pretty damn clearly that the subject matter has moved beyond the veil.