A. Rimbaud

And now for something completely different: Patrick Wang (The Bread Factory) presents the life of French poet Arthur Rimbaud in this staggeringly adventurous and deeply considered movie. If a one-man show can be described as epic, this is an epic, a three-hour performance taking Rimbaud (Blake Draper) from the age of 15 to his untimely death at 37 in 1891, ranging from Paris to Italy, London, Yemen and Ethiopia, all without leaving a black box theatre.

Wang embraces theatricality but this is also a bracingly cinematic piece, the camera in a choreographed dance with the actor, while every other part is played off-camera by a musical instrument: for example, Verlaine’s side of a conversation is relayed as a musical fragment on a viola. It’s surely fair to assume you have never seen anything quite like this, but it’s not a stunt, rather it’s a thoughtful and creative engagment with Rimbaud’s life and work, and what it means for us today.

A. Rimbaud will screen three times, on successive Sunday evenings.

Writer-director Patrick Wang will be in attendance Oct 18

When was the last time you felt like you were watching something wholly original? […] Patrick Wang explodes [the biopic] in A. Rimbaud, his wildly unconventional portrait of the 19th century poet… Wang springs surprises in almost every scene. Blake Draper is mesmerising to watch… A. Rimbaud is poetic, audacious and singular; Wang has made a film in the spirit of his subject, and it is an extraordinary achievement.

Philip Concannon, Sight & Sound

Utterly original… [Rimbaud’s] grand endeavor to animate not just his reality but the entire world with poetry finds a perfect vehicle in Wang’s filmmaking imagination.

Jawni Han, Reverse Shot

The best three hour, one-man biopic you will see this year… It’s wonderful and fascinating.

Siddhant Adlakha, Variety