Anima Mundi . Austin Chronicle . 01-26-98

Anima Mundi

DIRECTED BY: Godfrey Reggio

REVIEWED: 01-26-98

What hath Koyaanisqatsi wrought? Well, Powaqqatsi for one thing, and Anima Mundi for another. Of course, there's nothing wrong with those groundbreaking visual smorgasbords -- nothing, that is, except the god-awful music of Phillip Glass. As with predecessors K and P, Anima Mundi is dense with arresting images. Here, director Reggio's expert eye is turned towards the wild kingdom, as he attempts to capture the animal soul under the auspices of the World Wildlife Fund's Biological Diversity Fund (and nary a panda in sight!). The footage here -- of ostrich, mantas, springboks, and more -- is truly stunning, a complex visual orgy that reveals the sublime patterns and geometries that grace the natural world. Unfortunately, this fine optical feast is saddled by the synthesized score of Glass -- a digital papfest that grows ever more tiring until it verges on the obnoxious. Call me a heathen, but I liked Anima Mundi best when I turned down the Glass and turned up some good ol' Flatt & Scruggs. Leapin' lemurs! Now we're talking.

--Jay Hardwig

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