I had never thought much of Andy Warhol as a filmmaker. The thought of watching a motionless movie of the Empire State Building (his movie Empire) or of watching somebody eat (this one) something just seemed to me to be pointless, pretentious and tedious. But then again-- I had never actually seen one of his films. This was just an opinion based on what I had heard about them.
However, a few years ago, I was visiting the Andy Warhol museum in Pittsburgh and I happened to stumble across _Eat_ playing in the cinema room. And then-- I got it! This stuff is supposed to be funny, amusing, and playful-- not taken with high church seriousness! Or at least _Eat_ is. Watching the guy in the movie take 30 minutes to eat an apple (or a peach or whatever it was) sounds like it should be tedious, but it's not. In truth, it was actually one of the funniest things I'd ever seen. He takes a bite, he chews, he chews, he chews, he pauses, he chews some more, he looks at the apple again, chews some more, swallows-- no, he's still chewing.... Yeah, it sounds really dull to hear me describe it like that.... but really, if you actually watch it, it's incredibly comical. The other two people who came out of the movie room when it was over were also in hysterics. I know it sounds crazy, absurd, and unbelievable-- but this movie really is incredibly funny. You have to watch it to see why, though.... it really just can't be communicated in words.
However, a few years ago, I was visiting the Andy Warhol museum in Pittsburgh and I happened to stumble across _Eat_ playing in the cinema room. And then-- I got it! This stuff is supposed to be funny, amusing, and playful-- not taken with high church seriousness! Or at least _Eat_ is. Watching the guy in the movie take 30 minutes to eat an apple (or a peach or whatever it was) sounds like it should be tedious, but it's not. In truth, it was actually one of the funniest things I'd ever seen. He takes a bite, he chews, he chews, he chews, he pauses, he chews some more, he looks at the apple again, chews some more, swallows-- no, he's still chewing.... Yeah, it sounds really dull to hear me describe it like that.... but really, if you actually watch it, it's incredibly comical. The other two people who came out of the movie room when it was over were also in hysterics. I know it sounds crazy, absurd, and unbelievable-- but this movie really is incredibly funny. You have to watch it to see why, though.... it really just can't be communicated in words.