48th NYFF 2010: Patrick Keiller’s Robinson in Ruins

Robinson in Ruins is the third in a trilogy of landscape essays from Patrick Keiller, the previous two being London (1994) and Robinson in Space (1997). They all feature a first person camera and narration with a false history, and stories about a fictional character named Robinson. Keiller had no intention of creating a series, but just kept wanting to revisit the experience.

The best part of these films is the cinematography—which is beautiful. Everything is static, and the compositions are all like paintings. Some are landscapes, some are close-up studies of, in the case of one particular highlight of Ruins, a bee gathering honey.

Keiller discussed his process afterwards, explaining that he works with a “recipe” or “itinerary” more than a script per se. The first two films had very specific “recipes,” with this one being looser, “less ground in more detail.” The camera subjects are identified beforehand, then they go out and shoot. A fine cut is created before the narration or narrative is even thought of.

The narration was recorded quite wonderfully by Vanessa Redgrave. It reminded me of her scene in the end of Atonement where she made snoozing through the rest of that film completely worth it. She gets the dry humor of Keiller and presents it with elegance, and well, very astute prose.

The first two films are said to be about the “problem of London” and the “problem of England,” respectively. This one is about the “problem of dwelling.” Summarized, this means Ruins is an exploration of how we cannot really make our own home the way we want it in today’s world. The character of Robinson was created from Kafka’s America. All three films use him as a device to express these ideas of not being able to be yourself in the space presented you. Keiller decided to create the character to enable the film to examine one’s own ill thought out ideas without having to do it in first person, to “advance a flawed hypothesis.”

The film certainly highlights how the British countryside has been somewhat abandoned in favor of more commercial areas. The first half of the film features no actual human beings besides two pedestrians who, as Keiller told us, randomly came into frame. As the film goes forward though, ideas and image get more industrious. That industriousness is not represented by people though, but rather through, for example, a bumble bee collecting honey and a spider spinning its web, both doing their work.

This film is certainly not for everyone, and it would be more accurate to say that it is only for a select few. The quality of the work is absolutely up there with anything else at the 48th edition of the NYFF, and in terms of uniqueness, it stands alone with The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceauşescu. To either attempt to combat the inaccessibility of Ruins, or simply to enhance the experience, decide for yourself, Keiller is presenting the film on DVD with chapters on a map, so that you can watch the film on any “route” you choose, and “navigate the film spatially.”

Ruins comes in at regular feature length running time, whereas the previous films were both 80 minutes. Keiller claims he went longer because “they will complain no matter what the length is.” Perhaps this “spatial” narrative will keep more viewers interest as well. Either way, it’s a unique piece that art film lovers will certainly enjoy, and a few who want something against the grain.