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Music, mysticism, and the Mississippi:

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Memphis, Tenn. occupies a unique place in the folklore and musical legacy of America, as demonstrated by the cultural traditions of its two foremost landmarks: Beale Street and Graceland. Its pre-     eminent status as an incubator for Blues, Gospel, Jazz, Rockabilly and Soul was a determining factor for independent director Tim Sutton to base his second film, the eponymously titled “Memphis,” in that fabled city.

For Sutton, an upstate New York native, the town represents a part of “the heartland of America,” a phrase that transcends an advertising gimmick contrived to sell cars. He points out that as “the northern tip of the Delta,” it was the place where Country Blues arrived in the city to fuse with other influences to produce other, original American musical forms. Consequently, the city has, in his words, the dubious distinction of having “a blessed nature and a cursed nature.”

It simultaneously exists as a place spawning unsurpassed artistic excellence and as the ominous site of the Martin Luther King’s assassination; as a place where scores of musicians of staggering talent died penniless to be laid out in unmarked graves—such as the mythical singer O.V. Wright, whose stature beckoned the likes of Al Green and Aretha Franklin to sneak into his recording sessions, and who in Sutton’s words possessed “the voice of God.”

As a testament to unsung geniuses like this, Sutton has crafted an atypical story structure that disregards the three-act drama (the setup, confrontation, and resolution) that is a staple of contemporary television, motion pictures, and print in favor of a style that does not fit into traditional approaches.

Into this magical realm, Sutton places emerging Blues-Soul musician Willis Earl Beal (whose last name coincidentally evokes the cultural and historical thoroughfare), in a tale Sutton admits, “deliberately straddles the line between drama and documentary.” Superficially this yarn chronicles our protagonist as an out-of-towner in the midst of a creative “block,” as he negotiates a landscape populated with characters intent on projecting their aspirations upon him. Thus, Beal and the audience encounter music industry gadflies absorbed with squeezing a financially lucrative recording from him; the Baptist preacher and church folk insisting that he use his God given talent; and a love interest simply longing for a committed relationship (devotees of classical R&B will recognize members of the legendary “Hi Rhythm Section,” the back up band for Al Green and Ann Peebles, in a recording studio scene).

In the midst of all this exists Beal, a forlorn figure unable or unwilling to fulfill the desires of those he associates with. Sutton bluntly said his films are not for everyone, and this seems to be a primary motivation behind the choice to use non-actors (including Beal) in this and his first film, “Pavilions”, a tale about the experiences of a White New York teenager transported to a new in Arizona. Both films aim for an ethereal point of view, an effect enhanced by the selection of non-actors and utilization of the same cinematographer, the gifted Chris Dapkins.

Dapkins and Sutton seem pre-occupied with the imagery of trees as a motif for growth and nurturing, and an overall embrace of the minimalist school of filmmaking.

Interviewed by phone, Sutton admitted that a deliberate objective of his technique is the omission of sections of storyline, in a “fragmented kind of storytelling,” in which five different movie-goers might reach five different interpretations at the closing credits. Ideally this makes for stimulating critique and conversation after the theater experience.

As a lay Jewish man from upstate New York, Sutton originally planned to become an ethnomusicologist like Alan Lomax, who documented folk music traditions in the middle and late 20th century. Along the way, he earned a degree in African American studies from the University of Wisconsin, and began his own odyssey as a filmmaker in search of his own artistic vision.

“Memphis” is an art film completely separate from the consumer-driven market that propels most of the motion picture industry, and is ideally suited for the venue where it is slated to begin its one-week screening date—the Sundance Cinemas Sunset 5. Newly refurbished, the venue is a rustic shrine to the art house crowd where theatergoers can wash down hummus and lobster rolls with craft beer and wine.

“Memphis” starts Friday, Sept. 12, at the Sundance Cinemas Sunset 5, 8000 West Sunset Blvd., in West Hollywood. For more information visit http://memphis-film.com/

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