Pink Floyd The Wall (film)
Pink Floyd The Wall is a 1982 film by British director Alan Parker based on the 1979 Pink Floyd album The Wall. The screenplay was written by Pink Floyd vocalist and bassist Roger Waters. Though Waters initially considered himself for the title role, the film ultimately starred Bob Geldof, whose character Pink was loosely based on the biographies of both Waters and Pink Floyd vocalist and guitarist Syd Barrett, both of whom were founding members of the band. The film also stars Kevin McKeon as the young Pink, and includes brief appearences by Bob Hoskins and Joanne Whalley. The film features music from the original Pink Floyd album, much of which was re-recorded by the band with additional orchestration, some with minor lyrical and musical changes. Three songs from the album were not included in the film ("The Show Must Go On", "Hey You", and "Empty Spaces"), while two songs not present on the album were included in the film ("When the Tigers Broke Free" and "What Shall We Do Now"). The film is highly metaphorical and is rich in symbolic imagery and sound. It features virtually no dialogue and a non-linear storyline which is progressed entirely through Pink Floyd's lyrical music. The film is scattered throughout with fifteen minutes of elaborate animation sequences by the political cartoonist and illustrator Gerald Scarfe, who played a central role in developing the overall aesthetic of the production. The animation sequences include a bold and nightmarish vision of war, specifically of the German bombing campaign over England during World War II, set to the song "Goodbye Blue Sky". Roger Waters has expressed dissatisfaction with the final product of the film, and is reported to have been philosophically at odds with director Alan Parker during filming, who himself walked out of the project on multiple occasions due to the conflict. In a 1988 interview on Australian radio, Waters said: "I was a bit disappointed with it in the end, because at the end of the day I felt no sympathy at all with the lead character... and I found it was so unremitting in its onslaught upon the senses, that... it didn't actually give me... as an audience, a chance to get involved with it." [1] Despite Waters' dissatisfaction, the film is considered by many fans to be a worthy interpretation of Pink Floyd's album, and a powerful work of cinema in its own right. A documentary was produced about the making of Pink Floyd The Wall entitled The Other Side of the Wall that includes interviews with Parker, Scarfe, and clips of Waters, originally aired on MTV in 1982. A second documentary about the film was produced in 1999 entitled Retrospective that includes interviews with Waters, Parker, Scarfe, and other members of the film's production team.
Synopsis
Pink Floyd The Wall depicts the construction and ultimate demolition of a metaphorical wall. Though the film is highly interpretable, the wall itself clearly reflects a sense of isolation and alienation. Pink, the tragic hero of the film, is depicted at various stages of physical and mental development. The young Pink, having been heavily affected by the death of his father in World War II and by overprotection by his mother, is depicted in later life as a rock star in a state of mental dissarray and disillusionment. Pink is also depicted as the leader of violent, hateful political mob, bearing strong resemblances to modern neo-nazi groups. This stage in Pink's life, however, is clearly a symbolic representation of his state of mind.
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