Last year, I had to study two pieces of music by Philip Glass that were in the soundtrack for Koyaanisqatsi (pronounced “koy-ahn-iss-kaht-see”, and meaning “life out of balance”), which I was told was a documentary sans narration. Sceptical as to how a documentary with no narration (or interviews, etc.) could possibly work, I watched one scene that I was studying music for, and did not see how, exactly, it could be classified as a documentary.
Recently, I was reading a discussion about documentaries, Koyaanisqatsi was recommended, and I got the urge to view it in its entirety. It was only then I realised what a fascinating documentary it actually was. It’s not the sort where you’re supposed to learn a lot about a particular topic; rather, it exposes you to different cultures, ways of life, and environments, juxtaposing them all. For example, the opening scene of aerial shots of a desert, is juxtaposed with the next scene of flowing oceans. Similarly, a scene of an empty city is placed next to a scene with heavily sped-up footage of a busy city.
Each scene is accompanied by a piece of music by Philip Glass, who although seems to make all his works rather similar, writes some beautiful music. My favourite scene by far of the movie was “The Grid” (part one, part two, part three).
In conclusion, I recommend this film, and am planning to watch the rest of the trilogy.
