I like all of Man Ray's films, but this is the only one that I absolutely love. It was his first and is basically a series of experiments with light, shadows, and some innovative approaches to tampering with the actual film stock that precedes the films of Stan Brakhage. If you're a fan of his photography, this film is really little more than what you would expect - haunting black & white motion photography featuring nails, nude women and abstract objects.
I highly recommend watching this film to ambient music, especially some of the early Aphex Twin pieces. If you watch it in silence, you're going to deprive your senses and not really appreciate it as much. The film needs strange music to be enjoyed and as long as you're not expecting a story or characters, you should be pretty engaged. It's a great length, knowing to end before it gets too monotonous, unlike a lot of his later films.
I highly recommend watching this film to ambient music, especially some of the early Aphex Twin pieces. If you watch it in silence, you're going to deprive your senses and not really appreciate it as much. The film needs strange music to be enjoyed and as long as you're not expecting a story or characters, you should be pretty engaged. It's a great length, knowing to end before it gets too monotonous, unlike a lot of his later films.