Multiple SIDosis (1970)
*** (out of 4)
The song "Nola" is the subject of this 9-minute short from experimental filmmaker Sid Laverents. It's doubtful very many people had heard of this film until it was selected to the National film Registry in 2000. That gave it a bit more of a spotlight but I still think most people would turn it off in the opening minutes, which would be a shame because it's actually quite charming. Through split screens we get to see Sid himself playing all the instruments used in the song and he basically experiments with overdubbing to bring everything together. This might seem like a normal thing today but that wasn't the case back when this was first made. There's certainly nothing ground-breaking here and it's doubtful this film is going to change anyone's life but the fans of the bizarre should at least be entertained by it. I personally thought it was rather mesmerizing and especially the various split screens towards the end of the picture. I was really impressed with the editing and the way Sid decided to use certain shots and how to use the split screens. A lot of experimental films just throw images together but you can tell there was a vision behind this one.