An Optical Poem
Explore An Optical Poem (1938), including ReelBot’s take, cast, runtime, where to watch, and similar movies worth adding to your list.
1938 · 7 min · Animation · Music · TMDB 6.8/10
Overview
A dance of shapes. A title card tells us this is an experiment in conveying the mental images of music in a visual form. Liszt's "Second Hungarian Rhapsody" is the music. The shapes, all two-dimensional, are circles primarily, with some squares and rectangles, and a few triangles. The shapes move rhythmically to the music: receding from view or moving across the screen. Red circles on a blue background; light blue squares; white rectangles. Then, a red background of many circles with a few in the foreground. Red gives way to blue then to white. Shapes reappear as Liszt's themes re-occur. Then, with a few staccato notes and images, it's over.
Directed by Oskar Fischinger