Morel’s Trap, or the Cinematograph of Immortality
Abstract
A short story by the Argentinian author Adolfo Bioy Casares, elaborating the well known literary motif of the mad scientist conducting suspicious experiments on a distant island was adapted for the screen several times, and inspired serious work such as Alain Resnais The Last Year at Marienbad and Quay brothers’ The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes. Casares’ book, describing a machine for recording spatial images, that are indistinguishable from the originals is not only an inspiring piece of science fiction, but also a small treatise on the essence of film reproduction of the world and the moral consequences of further development of image registering technology. Modern technology creates virtual reality ever closer to Morel’s invention. But is not the Internet its modified version? Once data is entered into the Internet it gains its independent, perhaps eternal life.
Keywords:
Adolfo Bioy Casares, Quay brothers, Alain ResnaisReferences
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Authors
Marcin Giżyckikwartalnik.filmowy@ispan.pl
Rhode Island School of Design United States
Krytyk i historyk sztuki; autor książek z dziedziny historii filmu i zjawisk kultury artystycznej. Wykładowca w Rhode Island School of Design w USA. Opublikował m.in. Nie tylko Disney – rzecz o kinie animowanym (2000), Koniec i co dalej? (2001), Słownik kierunków, ruchów i kluczowych pojęć sztuki drugiej połowy XX wieku (2002), Wenders do domu! Europejskie filmy o Ameryce i ich recepcja w Stanach Zjednoczonych (2006).
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