William S. Burroughs — Actor (17)
Let It Come Down: The Life of Paul Bowles (1999) [Movie] TMDB IMDb
Let It Come Down: The Life of Paul Bowles
One of the most enigmatic artists of the 20th century, writer, composer and wanderer Paul Bowles (1910-1999) is profiled by a filmmaker who has been obsessed with his genius since age nineteen. Set against the dramatic landscape of North Africa, the mystery of Bowles (famed author of The Sheltering Sky) begins to unravel in Jennifer Baichwal's poetic and moving Let It Come Down: The Life of Paul Bowles. Rare, candid interviews with the reclusive Bowles--at home in Tangier, as well as in New York during an extraordinary final reunion with Allen Ginsberg and William Burroughs--are intercut with conflicting views of his supporters and detractors. At the time in his mid-eighties, Bowles speaks with unprecedented candor about his work, his controversial private life and his relationships with Gertrude Stein, Tennessee Williams, Truman Capote, the Beats, and his wife and fellow author Jane Bowles.
Home of the Brave (1986) [Movie] Douban IMDb WikiData TMDB
Home of the Brave: A Film by Laurie Anderson
other title: Home of the Brave: A Film by Laurie Anderson
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1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful:-
A unique concert film, 6 October 2001

Author: craigjclark from Haddonfield, NJ


It's hard to imagine anyone else writing, directing and visualizing a film quite like this. Essentially a record of Laurie Anderson's "Mister Heartbreak" tour, this concert film is mostly comprised of songs and music with a smattering of spoken word pieces thrown in for good measure. Her more recent concerts have been a bit more subdued, so this is a good chance to see her with all the bells and whistles (so to speak).

As for the performances, Anderson is radiant and off-the-wall as usual, and her back-up band is top-notch, including such talented players as Adrian Belew, David Van Tieghem and Joy Askew (with whom Anderson shares an amusing phone call in the middle of the show). And William S. Burroughs even waltzes through from time to time.

Recommended for Laurie Anderson fans, and -- along with her "Collected Videos" -- could make her some new ones.
Ornette: Made in America (1985) [Movie] Douban IMDb TMDB WikiData
Ornette: Made In America
other title: 奥内特:美国制造 / Ornette: Made In America
This feature-length documentary is devoted to the life and art of famed jazz musician Ornette Coleman. Saxophonist, trumpeter, violinist--you name the musical instrument, and supreme stylist Coleman will make magic with it. At the time this film was made, Coleman had not turned out an album in years, though he was still active on the concert circuit. Filmmaker Shirley Clarke focuses on Coleman's appearance with the symphony orchestra in his home town of Fort Worth, Texas. Combining documentary footage, dramatized scenes, and some of the first music video-style segments ever made, ORNETTE chronicles his boyhood in segregated Texas and his subsequent emergence as an American cultural pioneer and world-class icon. Among those appearing in the film are William Burroughs, Brion Gysin, Buckminster Fuller, Don Cherry, Yoko Ono, Charlie Haden, and Robert Palmer. Clarke’s film is essential for anyone hoping to understand the history of jazz and the fertile creative exchange that highlighted the 60s and 70s in America.
William S. Burroughs: A Man Within (2010) [Movie] Douban
William S. Burroughs: A Man Within
director: Yony Leyser actor: William S. Burroughs / Laurie Anderson
other title: 威廉布洛斯的叛逆人生
William S. Burroughs: featuring never before seen footage as well as exclusive interviews with his closest friends and colleagues. Born the heir of the Burroughs' adding machine estate, he struggled throughout his life with addiction, control systems, and self. He was forced to deal with the tragedy of killing his wife and the repercussions of neglecting his son. His novel, Naked Lunch, was one of the last books to be banned by the U.S. government. Allen Ginsberg and Norman Mailer testified on behalf of the book. The courts eventually overturned their decision in 1966, ruling that the book had an important social value. It remains one of the most recognized literary works of the 20th century. William Burroughs was one of the first to cross the dangerous boundaries of queer and drug culture in the 1950s, and write about his experiences. Eventually he was hailed the godfather of the beat generation and influenced artists for generations to come. However, his friends were left wondering, did William ever find happiness? This extremely personal documentary breaks the surface of the troubled and brilliant world of one of the greatest authors of all time. "William S. Burroughs: A Man Within" is the first and only posthumous documentary about this legendary figure. Written by Yony Leyser
Ah Pook Is Here. (1994) [Movie] TMDB IMDb Douban
Ah, Pook Is Here
other title: 阿普克 / Ah, Pook Is Here
Possibly only for William Burroughs completists - the writer narrates a despairing tirade against mainstream American ills framed in a sci-fi apocalyptic context, an organic planet in a symmetrical, monochrome universe. The reassuring, lilting, pensioner's voice, the cool despair and horror of the words, Pook the turkey, urroughs' representative, suicide as response to compromised life. The theorem-like clarity of the animation makes it watchable.
The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye (2012) [Movie] Douban WikiData TMDB IMDb
THE BALLAD OF GENESIS AND LADY JAYE
director: Marie Losier actor: Genesis P-Orridge / Lady Jaye Breyer P-Orridge
other title: 关于杰纳瑟斯与珍女士的民谣 / THE BALLAD OF GENESIS AND LADY JAYE
An intimate, affecting portrait of the life and work of ground-breaking performance artist and music pioneer Genesis Breyer P-Orridge (Throbbing Gristle, Psychic TV) and his other half and collaborator, Lady Jaye, centered around the daring sexual transformations the pair underwent for their “Pandrogyne” project
Don't Blink - Robert Frank (2015) [Movie] IMDb WikiData Douban TMDB
Don't Blink: Robert Frank
director: Laura Israel actor: Robert Frank / June Leaf
other title: 弗兰克别眨眼 / Don't Blink: Robert Frank
Robert Frank revolutionized photography and independent film. He documented the Beats, Welsh coal miners, Peruvian Indians, The Stones, London bankers, and the Americans. This is the bumpy ride, revealed with unblinking honesty by the reclusive artist himself.