4 (2007)

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As directed by Aussie helmer Tim Slade, the documentary 4 constitutes a protracted cinematic meditation on the four seasons. Slade divides his film into four sections: spring, summer, fall and winter. Each section features a soundtrack performance of one of Vivaldi's Four Seasons by a different… More As directed by Aussie helmer Tim Slade, the documentary 4 constitutes a protracted cinematic meditation on the four seasons. Slade divides his film into four sections: spring, summer, fall and winter. Each section features a soundtrack performance of one of Vivaldi's Four Seasons by a different classical violinist, and carries the viewer to a milieu most aesthetically resonant at that particular time of the year: Tokyo, with its radiant cherry blossoms, for spring; Queensland and Alice Springs for the Australian summer; New York for autumn; and Helsinki, Finland (the land of 24 hour darkness and the magnificent Parade Stretch) for winter. In each section, Slade works beyond the confines of travelogue by interpolating a collage of human interest material into the film. Examples include Australian aboriginals in the 'Down Under' segments and a visit, in the Manhattan segment, with an Australian-raised violinist of Taiwanese extraction who sits in a New York Deli and earns the sobriquet of 'honorary Jew.' ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi