Funeral Parade Of Roses (EOTWS)

End Of The Week Shorts #52 extract: Funeral Parade Of Roses (1969)



Watching this for the first time today, I have to say that this was, more than anything else, too opaque, quite jittery and even a little drab. 
Combining melodrama with absurdity, avant-garde experimentation, playful rule bending and documentary, Funeral Parade of Roses tries to tell a story about the troubled life of a transvestite. Whilst each form of investigation has its merits, aesthetically and formally, each strand proves to be fascinating or intriguing in its own right, but not necessarily in conjuncture with all that is around it. Without a strong sense of cohesion this then feels like New Wave garble, more concerned with abstract deconstruction than the construction of a story, character or piece of art. 
With that said, however, I certainly feel another watch may reveal another film. So, take my words as they are.

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