Akerman, Global Lens and Katrina Dogs

If Chantal Akerman is one of the world's most important filmmakers, you'd never know it from the spotty availability of her work. At least things are starting to change thanks to a recent rash of DVD reissues beginning with last year's release of her 1975 masterpiece Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles in a typically lavish two-disc set from Criterion. Icarus Films followed by issuing a DVD of her essential 1993 offering From the East and now, through their Eclipse imprint, Criterion fills out the picture of her early work with their three-disc Chantal Akerman in the Seventies. Now all we need is someone to make available her forgotten work from the '80s.

My consideration of the Eclipse set can be found at Slant which also features a review of Mine, a doc about Katrina survivors separated from their pets, and a re-posting of my take on A Room and a Half from last year's New York Film Festival. For the Voice, I cover MOMA's Global Lens series.