''Street of Crocodiles'' is a 21-minute-long stop-motion animation short subject

directed Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and produced by the

Brothers Quay Stephen and Timothy Quay ( ; born June 17, 1947) are American identical twin brothers and stop-motion animators who are better known as the Brothers Quay or Quay Brothers. They were also the recipients of the 1998 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding ...

and released in 1986. "

The Street of Crocodiles ''The Street of Crocodiles'', also known as ''The Cinnamon Shops'', ( pl, Sklepy cynamonowe, lit. "Cinnamon Shops") is a 1934 collection of short stories written by Bruno Schulz. First published in Polish, the collection was translated into Eng ...

" was originally a

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

written by

Bruno Schulz Bruno Schulz (12 July 1892 – 19 November 1942) was a Polish writer, fine artist, literary critic and art teacher. He is regarded as one of the great Polish-language prose stylists of the 20th century. In 1938, he was awarded the Polish Academ ...

, from a story collection published under that title in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

translation Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...

. Rather than literally representing the childhood memoirs of Schulz, the animators used the story's mood and psychological undertones as inspiration for their own creation.

Plot

A man closes up a lecture hall; he spits into a box and snips the string holding a gaunt puppet. Released, the puppet warily explores the darkened rooms about him. The desolate ambience and haunting musical score are meant to convey a sense of isolation and futility. As the short continues, the mute protagonist explores a realm of what are described by the directors as "mechanical realities and manufactured pleasures". As the protagonist chooses to join this world, the camera slowly reveals how unfulfilling the surroundings actually are.

Themes

Although heavily metaphorical, the piece also exemplifies the experimental and curious nature of the Quays' work. Rather than examining the potential symbolism of such props as screws, dust, string, meat, and wind-up monkeys, many shots seem to focus on the movements and inherent characteristics of the materials. As they do in most of their films, the

employ a more musically grounded structure in place of a straightforward literal narrative in ''Street of Crocodiles''.

Reception and legacy

Terry Gilliam Terrence Vance Gilliam (; born 22 November 1940) is an American-born British filmmaker, comedian, animator, actor and former member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. Gilliam has directed 13 feature films, including '' Time Bandits'' (1981), '' ...

selected ''Street of Crocodiles'' as one of the top ten best animated films of all time. Critic Jonathan Romney went further still, voting it one of the ten best films of all time in the 2002 decennial critics' poll for '' Sight and Sound'' magazine. The "unofficial"

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

version of the Nine Inch Nails video '' Closure'' contains a clip in which

Mark Romanek Mark Romanek (; born September 18, 1959) is an American filmmaker whose directing work includes feature films, television, music videos and commercials. Romanek wrote and directed the 2002 film ''One Hour Photo'' and directed the 2010 film '' Neve ...

, the director of the video for " Closer", explains that the video was heavily influenced by this animation. In tribute to the Brothers Quay,

Christopher Nolan Christopher Edward Nolan (born 30 July 1970) is a British-American filmmaker. Known for his lucrative Hollywood blockbusters with complex storytelling, Nolan is considered a leading filmmaker of the 21st century. His films have grossed $5&nb ...

made a documentary called ''Quay'' which also included this film. The film is available through two separate DVD/VHS releases. The first was produced in 2000 by the New York-based Kino on Video and released on

NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...

. Entitled ''The Brothers Quay Collection: Ten Astonishing Short Films 1984–1993'', it is now out of print The second edition was produced by the

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and released in November 2006. The two-disc set, entitled ''Quay Brothers – The Short Films 1979–2003'', has been licensed to Zeitgeist Films in New York, who brought out their own

''Phantom Museums – The Short Films of the Quay Brothers'' in April 2007. The BFI and Zeitgeist versions feature an optional audio commentary by the Quay Brothers, which was recorded in London in May 2006. The collected short films were released on Blu-ray October 20, 2015. The Brothers Quay Take Christopher Nolan’s ‘Quay’ Documentary On Tour, Cartoon Brew
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References

External links

* * {{Amg movie, 202031, Street of Crocodiles
Manufacturing Dreams: The Quay Brothers’ STREET OF CROCODILES on Vimeo
1986 films Films directed by the Brothers Quay Films based on works by Bruno Schulz Films based on short fiction Stop-motion animated short films 1986 animated films British animated short films 1980s avant-garde and experimental films 1980s British films