The Cold Majesty of the Numb .mov

"The Cold Majesty of the Numb. Unfinished, unseen. UNRELEASED."

(from the Filmography of James O. Incandeza, in David Foster Wallace's book 'Infinite Jest' )

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Tentative hands attempt at puncturing the surface of the fish to reveal the necessary if ritualistic act of gutting in order to eat. Fire-lit hands and glistening mackerel are suspended through a manipulation in the perception of time, and a gracefulness of touch contrasted with the violence of the act.

This film speaks to the mesmerizing if mysteriously perplexing quality of cartridge-loops and stands as one of James O. Incandenza's unreleased masterpieces.

Fish, being cold blooded and primitive creatures, symbolize a deep level of unconsciousness or the psyche. They are symbols for describing sudden psychic experiences, and often appear within dreams. To catch a fish is to pull content from the waters of the unconscious onto the dry land of one's conscious mind. The fish and fishing also can mean the process of dreaming and dream analysis itself; pointing to Incandeza's habitual plot-within-a-plot circular logic and self-referential filmmaking narratives.

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a Film by Malado Baldwin

Cast: Sarah Walko, and approximately seven mackerel of Quahog Bay, Maine

Camera: Malado Baldwin

Editing: Malado Baldwin & Jesse Dancy

*Fish were harmed in the making of this film, but were promptly eaten.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• David Foster Wallace
• James O. Incandenza
• Infinite Jest
• fish
• fishing
• gutting
• cutting
• subliminal
• unconscious
• subconscious
• conscious
• psyche
• dreams
• ritual
• maine
• mackerel
• film
• video
• cartridge-loop
• sarah walko
• malado baldwin
• jesse dancy