Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream People Call Human Life (1995)

Directors:

Stephen Quay
Timothy Quay

Writers:

Alan Passes (writer)
Stephen Quay (writer)

Release Date:

23 August 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Jakob arrives at the Institute Benjamenta (run by brother and sister Johannes and Lisa Benjamenta) to learn to become a servant...

Plot Keywords:

Servant | Surreal | Multiple Languages | Surrealism | Funeral

Awards:

4 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Mark Rylance	...	Jakob
Alice Krige	...	Lisa Benjamenta
Gottfried John	...	Herr Benjamenta
Daniel Smith	...	Kraus
Joseph Alessi	...	Pepino
Jonathan Stone	...	Hebling
César Saracho	...	Inigo (as Cesar Sarachu)
Peter Lovstrom	...	Jorgenson
Uri Roodner	...	Schilinski
Peter Whitfield	...	Null

Also Known As:

Institut Benjamenta oder Dieser Traum, den man menschliches Leben nennt (Germany)
Institute Benjamenta
Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream Which One Calls Human Life (USA)

Runtime:

104 min

Country:

UK | Japan | Germany

Language:

English | German

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

France:U | UK:PG

Company:

Image Forum

Quotes:

Jakob: I shall never let myself be rescued, nor shall I ever rescue anybody.

Movie Connections:

Version of Jakob von Gunten (1971) (TV)

If you liked the abstractness and mood of "Eraserhead", you might enjoy this, too.

The Brothers Quay continue employ their unique style in their first feature film, except that this time around there are real people - not to mention dialog. Their first attempt at something half-way close to semi-normal turns out to be a visually excellent film, where images steal the show, while the plot (if there is one) remains known only to the Quay Brothers. The "story" is very vague, and in that way this film reminds me of "Eraserhead" (though "Eraserhead" is even more abstract); also reminds me of Lynch's movie as far as the mood and the small amount of dialog is concerned. There are some truly weird scenes here. And while watching "Eraserhead" is an intense experience, watching this film turns out to be rather relaxing at times. Additional viewings don't help much in clarifying things. Or maybe I'm just too dumb.