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Monday, 30 December 2013

The more than (sur-) real

The sur-real (or more than real) seems to suit some artistic mediums better than others. Surrealism's  incongruous juxtapositions (whether satirical or transcendent) seem to work best in instant impact formats like comedy, paintings or songs as opposed to sustained, unfolding narrative-based forms such as films and novels. Here I mean instant in the sense that the incongruity is immediately apparent and acts as a teaser generating a confusion or curiosity which can lead to deeper examination. The surreal looks great visually (i.e. Dali, Magritte et al), is hilarious as alternative comedy (from The Goon Show to Another Case of Milton Jones) and, as documented by Bob Dylan from Bringing It All Back Home to John Wesley Harding, is powerfully affective as images of a "strange, alternate, subterranean America"

I've been particularly enjoying more of Milton Jones' surreal comedy this break, so here are some great examples from the line of absurdist comedy of which he is part:

 

 
 
 
 
 
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Jonathan Miller's Alice in Wonderland - The Mock Turtle's Story.

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