Given the state of the world, it is entirely possible that there may come a day when a renegade scientist operating from immaculate surroundings in a Canadian science-fiction epic won’t be a surefire scenario for getting at the anxieties of bureaucracy and The Body. But to experience Panos Cosmatos’ 2010 debut feature Beyond the Black Rainbow is to take that journey on the well-worn chrome rails of a dark theme-park ride — deliberate, moody, drawing strength and structure from where technology and imagination (and the instincts buried deep within the reptilian brain) mingle their flow. The film, finally making its Nashville theatrical premiere (on 35 mm, no less), is a demanding tale about human endurance imprisoned in the machinations of weird men, with lots of experimental drug therapies, sentry automatons and the collapse of the barriers that stand between regular folks and the beyond. Like everything Cosmatos has made, it’s beautiful and gory and imaginative. Every image could be painted on the side of a van, and it gives mood and vibes — a Panos Cosmatos film doesn’t feel designed, it feels evolved directly into your cerebral cortex. The score, by Sinoia Caves (as well as a closing song from SSQ!), is the pulsating stuff of majestic nightmares, and the film itself is happy to take up residence deep where the spine and the skull tangle. This, especially at midnight, is essential viewing. There will be an intro from yours truly.
Midnight at the Belcourt
2102 Belcourt Ave.
