It is the first featurelength drama directed by a black american woman since the 1920s and won first prize at the figueroa international film festival in portugal. Siskoid the first feature film directed by a black woman, losing ground failed to get a wide release in 1982 and has only fairly recently been made available to cinephiles, but as it must have played in new york, i would bet it was seen and appreciated by directors like spike lee it evokes shes gotta have it, for me and cheryl dunye as the watermelon woman also uses. The 1982 film about the inner workings of black lives resists. The film is part of tell it like it is, a survey of black independent film of new york from 1968 to 1986.
The official trailer for kathleen collins losing ground starring seret scott, bill gunn, duane jones and gary bolling. C oncerning the creative and emotional restlessness of a philosophy professor across an extended sabbatical, kathleen collinss losing ground is undoubtedly a summer movie, a tale of indolence and indecision in which the sticky specter of heat is an invisible inciting factor. Kathleen collins losing ground is a rare, revolutionary gem vice. Returning to the city, sara completes her final scenes for the film. Artist bill gunn is married to philosophy professor seret scott. Sara rogers seret scott, a black professor of philosophy, is embarking on an intellectual. Losing ground 2019 urban sprawl documentary hd youtube. May 27, 2019 the american angus association is proud to present the first film to expose the impact of urban sprawl on american agriculture losing groundan i am angus production. Mar 07, 2018 a groundbreaking film by director kathleen collins, this work follows a black philosophy professor, sara rogers seret scott, and her artist husband, victor bill gunn, as they rent a house. Kathleen collinss lost masterwork, losing ground the. Kathleen collinss 1982 drama is an examination of a husband and wife at. Losing ground is a short documentary film about how families access services for their children with autism. Definitely has an unpolished quality of an early 80s art house movie, but feels finished, composed, and very beautiful. Losing ground meditates on art as it examines a marriage in.
That it isnt signifies an immense failure of our culture, a. It would later be described in the new yorker as the great rediscovery of 2015. It will screen as part of a month long celebrating women in film series during march at the hollywood theater. In this first scene and throughout the film, sara demonstrates a complete mastery of the traditionally white canon of western philosophy. Losing ground 1982 kathleen collins, billie allen, gary. Losing ground 1982 movie clip is this puerto rican. Losing ground ganze filme deutsch, ganzer losing ground 1982 film deutsch, losing ground 1982 ganzer film deutch schauen, losing ground 1982 ganzer film stream, ganzer film losing ground kostenlos legal gucken. Interestingly, they also say that her husband must be lucky to have somebody like her for a wife. Kathleen collins 1982 film losing ground to screen at. Watch losing ground starring bill gunn in this comedy on directv. It played a few screenings but never received any real distribution or a theatrical run and remained unknown outside of scholarly circles for decades.
Kathleen collins was a brilliant, highly talented professor of film. Its the only feature that collinswho died in 1988, at the age of fortysixmade. When the wife goes off on an almost unbelievable journey to find ecstasy, her husband is forced to see her in. In the film, a professor of logic, sara played by seret scott, is married to a painter. Losing ground 1982 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. When the wife goes off on an almost unbelievable journey to find. The film, in which a painter bill gunn and philosophy professor seret scott retreat upstate to alternately tend. Finding her artist husband away from their upstate ny summer studio, professor sara seret scott fends off a student filmmaker, then locates victor bill gunn who has, it turns out, been painting a puerto rican model maritza rivera, in director kathleen collins. In plays like in the midnight hour 1981 and the brothers 1982, and in films like the cruz brothers and miss malloy 1980 and losing ground 1982, her. Seret scott plays sara a philosophy professor at a college in new york city.
Watch losing ground on criterion channel stream of the. With the release of losing ground and the publication of her writings, the work of kathleen collins is one of the great discoveries of the last decade. The film had its first theatrical release in 2015 at film society of lincoln center, opening the series tell it like it is. Losing ground 1982 watch full movie online netflix us. Losing ground is a 1982 masterpiece film that never received a full theatrical release but won awards on the festival circuit and became the first featurelength drama directed by a black american woman. This lowbudget 1982 drama was one of the first features directed by an africanamerican woman, but its much more than a historical footnote. Her screenplay, which differs in some significant ways from the film, is included in screenplays of the africanamerican experience, 1991, edited by phyllis rauch. Tell it like it is, a chapter of new york from 1968 to 86. Losing ground steps forward at lincoln center the 1982 film losing ground, written and directed by kathleen collins, was one of the first features. What happened to kathleen collins the village voice. Such an odd film, but it does come together, which is an accomplishment. Duane jones and seret scott in kathleen collinss losing ground 1982. About the film 1982 losing ground, the feature length film directed by kathleen collins, is only the second feature length film to be directed by an africanamerican woman.
Her husband, victor bill gunn, is a freespirited painter and her complete opposite. Overview of losing ground, 1982, directed by kathleen collins, with seret scott, bill gunn, duane jones, at turner classic movies. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to. Films like do the right thing 1989 and eves bayou 1997 broke barriers and demand to be sought out. I can recommend collins short story collection, whatever happened to interracial love as well. Kathleen collinss groundbreaking 1982 movie losing ground opens on a black female philosophy professor seret scott talking camus and sartre to a. Women in film members receive free admission to this series at the box office. Collinss next film, losing ground, followed in 1982 and starred seret scott, bill gunn, and duane jones. Feb 06, 2015 duane jones and seret scott in kathleen collinss losing ground 1982. Jan 30, 2015 the film that opens the series, kathleen collinss losing ground, from 1982, will play for a week, making up for the fact that it has never had a theatrical release. Finding her artist husband away from their upstate ny summer studio, professor sara seret scott fends off a student film maker, then locates victor bill gunn who has, it turns out, been painting a puerto rican model maritza rivera, in director kathleen collins losing. Collins 1982 losing ground was restored and reissued in 2015. The film s only new york city screening was on a monday night on january 24, 1983 as part of the museum of modern arts cineprobe series.
This lowbudget 1982 drama was one of the first features directed by an africanamerican woman, but its much more than a historical. A groundbreaking film by director kathleen collins, this work follows a. Losing ground was first shown in june 1982 at irvington, nys town hall theater, presumably as a local premiere. Made in 1982, kathleen collinss losing ground her first and only feature and the first feature film ever made by a. Losing ground definition of losing ground by the free. Kathleen collinss losing ground is a lively movie as well as a ghostly one. Nearing the completion of a book project, thirtysomething intellectual sara seret scott appears to be entering the. Tell it like it is, a chapter of new york from 1968 to. A film that never saw theatrical release, losing ground was one of the first movies ever to be directed by an africanamerican woman. Barely released in 1982 and all but unseen for over three decades, kathleen collins s losing ground is a lively movie as well as a ghostly one. With seret scott, bill gunn, duane jones, maritza rivera.
One of the first feature films directed by an african american woman, kathleen collinss losing ground tells the story of a marriage between two remarkable people, both at a crossroads in their lives. Poltergeist was released theatrically by metrogoldwynmayer on june 4, 1982. Losing ground meditates on art as it examines a marriage in peril. Directed by kathleen collins 1982 united states starring seret scott, bill gunn, duane jones. Bonus features commentary track by professors lamonda horton stallings and terri francis 2015 theatrical trailer the cruz brothers and miss malloy 1980, 50 mins, color kathleen collins and ronald gray s first film video interviews with ronald k. Richard brody on kathleen collinss losing ground 1982, one of the first american films directed by a black woman. Losing ground 1982 is one of the few independent films made in the 1980s by a black woman director. There are moments in losing ground the 1982 independent film written, edited, and directed by kathleen collins that are so rich in mood, texture, and longing i cant catch my breath. Kathleen collinss 1982 film losing ground the latest selection in kinoscopes screening series at the new school, and the last of this seasonhas historical interest to burn, as one of the first features to be directed by an africanamerican woman.
The film never received distribution outside of festival screenings in director kathleen collinss lifetime. Losing ground, a film by kathleen collins home facebook. Jan 23, 2017 when kathleen collinss 1982 film losing ground was screened at new yorks film society of lincoln center in 2015, it immediately became inconceivable to me that film history might have been written without it. Collins died at age 46 in 1988, leaving behind two films and a vast trove of short stories, diaries, and screenplays. Marital strife causes an evenkeeled professor to behave in ways that shake her relationship. Her second film, losing ground tells the story of a marriage of two remarkable. Losing ground opens with sara seret scott, a philosophy professora role still rarely played by black womenlecturing before a chalkboard, followed by a countershot showing her audience of rapt students. Losing ground, kathleen collinss 1982 film, which wasnt released until 2015, is about to come out on dvd and bluray, thanks to milestone films. Losing ground is a semiautobiographical 1982 film written and directed by kathleen collins starring seret scott, bill gunn, and duane jones.
Watch losing ground online stream full movie directv. Losing ground is a semiautobiographical 1982 film written and directed by kathleen collins. Losing ground is an underrated entry in the black film canon. Julie dashs feature daughters of the dust and short film illusions, and kathleen collinss losing ground. Kathleen collinss ecstatic selfdiscovery the new york. March 12, 2019 a comedydrama about a black american female philosophy professor and her insensitive, philandering, and flamboyant artist husband who are having a marital crisis. The year losing ground was made, 1982, marks an important point in the film forum seriesthe beginning of an era of movies not only featuring black women performers, but also written and directed by black women filmmakers. What kathleen collins, an early black women director, can. The principle difference between this and other such films is that all the characters are africanamerican. Her 1982 film losing ground was the first featurelength dramatic film directed by an african american woman. The film features families and service providers discussing the experiences and struggles as they advocate for children with autism. Kathleen collinss lost masterwork, losing ground the new. Duvernay didnt have to wait 33 years for her film to be released.
Losing ground meditates on art as it examines a marriage. Her second film, losing ground tells the story of a marriage of two remarkable people, both at a crossroads in their lives. A groundbreaking film by director kathleen collins, this work follows a black philosophy professor, sara rogers seret scott, and her. Directed by kathleen collins 1982 united states starring seret scott, bill gunn, duane jones one of the first feature films directed by an african american woman, kathleen collinss losing ground tells the story of a marriage between two remarkable people, both at a crossroads in their lives. When losing ground was released in 1982, it was one of the first films to be directed by a black woman, and it would remain collinss only full length feature when she died of. Losing ground is a amusing but standard menage a trois, set in a small college town. I love it when films with characters who are artists use work by real artists, and jack whitten is amazing, though an odd fit with the dialogue around art in the film, but then what art wouldnt have been. A comedydrama about a black american female philosophy professor and her insensitive, philandering, and flamboyant artist husband who are having a marital crisis. Forgotten treasures of black womens cinema the new yorker. Mar 04, 2019 another recent dvr watch was the 1982 film losing ground. Kathleen collins losing ground, a classic africanamerican film about a black philosophy professor, sara and victor, her artist husband. Desk set 1957 whipsmart network television research librarian bunny watson katharine hepburn finds her highly specialized job threatened when an efficiency expert spencer tracy begins sizing up both her brain and her office space, hellbent on replacing the entire department with a supercomputer.
Whats a criminally underseen film independent, adultthemed, brazenly honest, and the first featurelength drama directed by a black american woman since the 1920s kathleen collins groundbreaking dramedy losing ground has enjoyed a small resurgence this century as cinephiles rediscovered the remarkable 1982 picture which seemed lost to. Losing ground 1982 kathleen collins, billie allen, gary bolling, clarence branch jr. The truest test of a movie the current the criterion. Finally receiving a long overdue theatrical run, losing ground is one of the first feature films written and directed by a black woman and a. Losing ground, a nearly lost 1982 comedydrama film by director kathleen collins will be screening at cimatheque on saturday, march 24 and sunday, march 25. All of her students love her and tell her they really enjoyed taking her class. The classic black cinema series losing ground q city metro. Watch losing ground 1982 full movie watch losing ground 1982 full movie watch losing ground 1982 full movie watch losing ground 1982 full movie watch losing ground 1982 full movie new full movie. The film that opens the series, kathleen collins s losing ground, from 1982, will play for a week, making up for the fact that it has never had a theatrical release. The best movies from black directors youve never seen film. Unfortunately, she directed only this one commercial film, and tragically, she died when she was just 46 years old.
Losing ground 1982 changes the movie database tmdb. Losing ground opens for a week starting friday, february 6th at the film society of lincoln center in new york. Black intimacy explores the ways in which black familial, romantic, and platonic relationships have been portrayed onscreen, with a particular focus on black filmmakers attempts at navigating between intimate, personal stories and more broadly political material. Losing ground was not only ahead of its own time, but ours as well the 1982 film about the interior lives of black intellectuals, now streaming on the criterion channel. Sara rogers, a black professor of philosophy, is embarking on an intellectual quest to understand ecstasy just as her painter husband victor sets off on a more earthy exploration of joy. Collins succumbed to cancer in 1988 at the age of 46 after completing just one feature. More voices mean more stories, and that can only be a good thing. The independentlymade losing ground 1982 was produced before the american indie film culture established itself with the successes of spike lee, jim jarmusch, wayne wang, the coen bros. The classic black cinema series losing ground the harvey. Emblematic of the difficulties that women in the independent film industry faced at the time, the film. Losing ground the landmark american indie on milestone. The classic black cinema series losing ground sunday, january 14, 2018 1982 losing ground, the feature length film directed by kathleen collins, is only the second feature length film to be directed by an africanamerican woman. Losing ground, kathleen collins, 1982 got you in a closeup. Apr 17, 2016 barely released in 1982 and all but unseen for over three decades, kathleen collinss losing ground is a lively movie as well as a ghostly one.
59 376 1153 812 356 234 1132 1033 884 559 546 1573 1423 489 447 499 428 71 308 299 136 1534 897 1401 1546 248 392 813 1257 487 280 81 1596 371 1403 413 1106 1201 644 781 951 301 1452 131 696 285 1365