Street of Crocodiles (1986) - Part 1

[jackflash341]

If true art reaches even one person it has succeeded.

[eazypop]

who did the soundtrack??

[THX11003]

I love their work.

[nigen]

I had to get drunk to watch this...

[tehatemachine]

So THIS is where tool got it's ideas from!

[AtheismFrees]

I have read Brno's 'Street of Crocodiles' and played this great interpretation to all of my 6 kids. I filmed my daughter Mia Mae's explanations of what she was watching when she was aged 4 and have just re-watched them. What she says is SOOO damn deep!!! All my kids are vehement Free thinkers and I believe the Quays' amazing artwork fuelled their blossoming passion for detail, humanity, history and the realisation that just because you play by society's rules, society doesn't owe you a living.

[dogeymon83]

Someone told me to check out these films if I'm a fan of horror. But the brothers don't make anything like horror. These quay films are beautiful and darkly romantic.

[RandyKelts]

The have a 2 DVD set that has 13 of their shorts and loaded with commentaries and other extras.

[RandyKelts]

Tool got their style for their videos from the quay brothers. They've been doing shorts since the 70's.

[Dansilverbabe]

@RandyKelts in my last comment i thought it reminded me of Tool..thanks for the info! :)

[TyakaB]

American McGee clearly referenced this haunting work in Alice: Madness Returns)

[zonilo1]

@TyakaB

Yep this film is delving into the mind of Bumby....

[benikage666]

I know this came first, but this movie reminds me of Tool!!! Epic film, epic legacy! NIN is... meh.

[phlhascoolshorts]

@nuclearlullaby no, this is sick

[ClearAbyss]

Why is this kind of stuff always so highly rated? I didn't understand a single thing that happened. I don't see what's so brilliant about it. The unfortunate thing is, I'm a visual arts major and I have to do papers on this kind of nonsense all the time. Would anyone mind explaining what the hell is going on in this thing? I see nothing note-worthy about any of their work.

[TheSlimySeconds]

@ClearAbyss Because it asks you to read it, and understand it illogically by using mood, sounds, visuals, and subtleties. The fact that you didn't get this may be besides the point. I think its possibly besides the point for anyone to actually understand these type of films literally. They defy explanation. Its a deliberate exercise in ambiguity. Whatever we pull out of this in terms of meaning, will ultimately be our subjective ideal. To me, that in itself is a stroke of genius.

[littlelottie419]

@ClearAbyss youre not supposed to understand it, its surrealism

[315Timothy]

Bruno Schultz's Street of Crocodiles is a beautiful book. These guys did A great job. Maybe y'all should check out the book. reading is fundamental.

[kackarol1989]

@315Timothy There is no book like "Street of Crocodiles" its just a story from "Cinnamon`s shops" by Bruno Schultz

[vivaladan009]

I've heard that tim & stephen quay purposely keep this hidden from mainstream to the point of politely asking people to take them off their websites and whatnot, so everybody can stop getting so worked up about that fact that people in general know more about lady gaga than this. gaga goes out of her way to do the opposite of what these guys do as far as publicity.

[ffwoodycooks]

6:06 - Tom Servo communicates with a small child.

[SilentHillAsylum83]

I can't believe this is the first time I have watched this, because it's shocking to see how much ahead of it's time this seems/was/is.

Awesome video, thanks!

[1alopezpr]

Most of the best videos (with true art related in it) don't have alot of views and ratings,cause they are not meant for the average people. And sometimes is about to be at the right place at the right time. None the less,I'm glad I'm one of those few that really apreciated true art.

[BlackRaven156]

Truly haunting, these images have stayed in my head for years and years! They have set the bar for animation and cinema in general so very high.

[MaverickMediaUK]

@BlackRaven156 Absolutely. I saw Street of Crocodiles in 1986, never forgot it but forgot what the title was or who had created it. At first I thought it was something done by a Czech animator... anyway found it in the end.

[BlackRaven156]

@MaverickMediaUK Cool, yeah, they're great. I like Jan Svakmajer as well. I'm pretty to new to Czech animation but from what I've seen it's great, but The Brother's Quay have to be my favorite animators. I 'd love to make a live action film that had the same kind of atmosphere and visual texture as films such as this.

[TheSicdic]

@MaverickMediaUK is it scary? for real ?

[itsmollybabes]

Creepy 

[valqaz]

BRUNO SCHULZ

[Dadianooo]

9:54

the kid says: 'pungent smells, ohh'

[Dadianooo]

Well, here I must say the literature lessons at school are damn profanity and they really suck. Teachers can't urge on to the books. I've had to read that novel and You know what? I did not. Cause it seemed to be boring. But if You only get Your hands on something by Yourself, at home, You can really get and feel the greatness of it... Fantastic.

btw. try this after weed.

[Mesarphelous]

@fuckingcute15, whose comment was removed

En realidad estoy en lo correcto. Calle de los cocodrilos es mejor que la música popular mediocres.

Dickhead.

[Thatdarndoug]

the music just really sets the mood for this masterpiece

[idemark]

Say what you want about Lady Gaga, or society or what have you. It really has nothing to do with the fact that THIS IS WHAT NIGHTMARES ARE MADE OF.

[briladynamite]

this is absolutely fantastic!!!

[delanersrox]

Tool got a lot of inspiration for their music videos from this short film. Trent Reznor's music video "Closer" was also inspired by it. It's amazing! I love it! It reminds me a lot of the things my mysterious mind would create when I was little.

[EvilDeadHateCrew]

this is some seriosuly deeply disturbing animation, incredible

[dollfin000]

Is this Theatre De Complicite's interpretation?

[AlexDraco]

Probably the most atmospheric movie of the Quay Brothers... Needless to say, it's brilliant.

[MysteryEzekude]

I'm currently researching this animated stop-motion film. Its music intensifies its eerie atmosphere.

[intrstrnr]

i will definitly eat some acid and watch this again and ill tell you what its really about. maybe shrooms are a better choice?

[nebakenezzer]

wtf

[nebakenezzer]

wtf? I dont get it

[MrSkipBertman]

The shots in this are to fast. The A.D.D. camera perspective defeats this video.

[ocsabi]

zseniális alkotás

[saintbrenna]

This is brilliant and brilliance is always the easiest thing to use and abuse.

[suburbcinderella]

why do i feel lady gaga is gonna steal of this imagery like NIN did to become more "original"?

[XxDoodlegirlxX]

It is wonderful, but I have never really understood it. It scares me a little too, but It is amazing and very clever.

Love it <3

[theronandemily]

media exposure.........thats why.............

[koolykool44]

WTF is this shit? Like an acid trip gone bad.

[mozwoman19]

The quays have inspired me to want to do film.

[jsv121]

Greatness will always be outweigh by the mediocre.

[POLODESAREPOLASE]

beautifull

[BillyNooo]

I taped this back in the 80's off some midnight tv show. It is wonderful to see it again but in much higher quality. Stil high up on the creep meter though.

[jdm1978]

@BillyNooo

we are a privileged portion of humanity who have brains

[mostafaredha112]

Man, that was creepy..

[MaskoftheWraith]

Right there from 05:04. Can anyone explain to me how I perform that technique on a video camera? How I can start with the object of initial focus being blurred and pulled away to emphasise another object within the shot?

[bsr35802]

@MaskoftheWraith

It's called Rack focusing. you need to set your camera up for manual focus and basically just switch focus from one object to another.

[MaskoftheWraith]

@bsr35802

Thanks very much man. My Moving Image Arts teacher mentions all these techniques; but doesn't actually tell you how to do them.

[nevernever4ever]

i saw this on Sundance channel randomly one evening and even though it freaked the shit outta me i couldnt stop watching. theres something fascinating and sort of erotic about it

[NuclearLullaby]

This is pure brilliance! Yet somehow we are living in a world that no longer respects & admires this type of stuff! A world void of originality & creative thoughts! Radio & TV these days makes me sick! Seems you have to go out of your way to find ANYTHING good! Glad some one put this here & I hope the world can learn to admire this stuff!

[SSJ4Yujiro]

Brothers Quay Forever

[andreaprodan]

@NuclearLullaby

Yep! That's right... we have to be sleuths, detectives, sherlock holmes to find good stuff. Capitalism has deprived us of quality and of intellect. How long will Youtube allow us forrays into variety is my question.

[90102452150]

@NuclearLullaby fucken agreed <3

[THELIVINGJOKE]

@NuclearLullaby I am glad this is not as popular as a Gaga video. It is nice to like something that isn't liked for the sake of what the media deems to be "significant" at the time.

[conceitarturo]

@NuclearLullaby I think you might like a short called More, but more commonly found by "happy product" it's fairly recent

[Gmancrap]

Clearly people do. I mean 62,541 is a lot of views for a film like this.

[Mesarphelous]

Why does this have 2,000 views while Lady Gaga shit gets millions?

[MaverickMediaUK]

That's a good question.

[Rasseroo]

You need to ask? The great mass of humans are fools.

[vasyasol]

Simple, there is millions retards

[mahound9]

@MaverickMediaUK do you think that maybe Lady Gaga was one of the 29,375 (to date) views of this?

[MaverickMediaUK]

@mahound9

Lame bananas can do whatever they wish on youtube, it troubles me not.

[conceitarturo]

@MaverickMediaUK I cant commend you enough for that reaction. Nothing is more boring than the average "the (number) people who dont get this (inside joke dissing the dislikers)". But in YT it gets 9835534 thumbs up. All it does is make the people who enjoy whatever is being shown look like intolerant idiots who cant bear a world with tastes different from theirs. Your taste doesnt define you, thumbing up something clever doesnt make you clever, MAKING something clever actually makes you clever

[afthefragile]

because she flaunts her ass and boobs and people like that sorta crap...

[janar17]

because capitalism is molded the people to that.

their blinded.

[MasQueRaid777]

@janar17  *they're

[mittROMNEY666]

@Mesarphelous i like this and lady gaga so fuck you

[Mesarphelous]

@mittROMNEY666 Congratulations on liking prepackaged shit music, "mittROMNEY666"

[mittROMNEY666]

@Mesarphelous i mean the videos. theyre pretty good

[karattop]

@mittROMNEY666 FAG

[zbridgjpxupzm]

@Mesarphelous

you must be out of your mind

(to expect the same amount of views for this and lady gaga's videos.)

[KENKENNIFF]

@Mesarphelous Lady Gaga represents the truly horrific, like staring into a dark sun

[BawbTheRevelator]

@Mesarphelous Easy: Lady Gaga's a Common Denominator on Speed...er, Hype. Experimental psych and neurophysiology tell us there's an upper tolerance for ambiguities in all organisms. Please forgive the didactic stuff :)

[SLIMSLO1]

@Mesarphelous because the uncool outnumber the way cool and that in itself is what makes it cool!

[MysteryEzekude]

@Mesarphelous I guess that's how people are - they tend to pay more attention to the more popular stuff. It's like how people tend to like parodies more than original work.

[Krooster26]

@Mesarphelous just don't fight it, they'll go away eventually, and if you do, you're no better than they are

[chiodeguate1]

@Mesarphelous Lady GaGa is found everywhere they know we'll listen, watch and read. This work of art is only found on YouTube. Sucks huh?

[Lodovico2046]

@Mesarphelous Because the over-whelming majority of people do not want to make a personal interpretation of things (a.d.d. culture) but rather the simplest or quickest realization.

[brad0war]

@Mesarphelous bacause this is almost unheard of outside the art community and is really unsettling to watch while Lady Gaga is mainsteam and only slightly unnerving ^^.

[alvarock68]

@Mesarphelous cuz this is not for everybody..  this art is for selective brains

[scipionis121]

@Mesarphelous Lady Gaga is a genious, and the Brothers Quay too.

[JarvisCockerisGod]

@Mesarphelous cause shes a shlaaag

[FraAngelico729]

@Mesarphelous "Why does this have 2,000 views while Lady Gaga shit gets millions?"

Because Lady Gaga is normal and digestible for the easily entertained. This is exceptional.

[tpmableful]

@Mesarphelous Because Lady Gaga's more popular, douchebag.

[evesplittheatom]

@Mesarphelous Because they are a brain dead generation of retarded ingrates.

[XxToxicDesiresxX]

a friend of mine got me into this movie and im glad you were able to put it up and in high quality! Amazingly bizarre movie. Thanks!

[Wieteusz]

Hello, I am from Poland, and I am glad that you've found "ulica krokodyli" by polish writer Bruno Schulz interesting. This is one of the best stop motion I've ever seen. Thanks for that

regards

[zlot1]

Brilliant, been waiting for a proper version of this to pop up on youtube for ages. Cheers!

[NIBOR831]

I am compelled to continue this nightmarish quest.