Linear (film)
| Linear | |
|---|---|
DVD cover
|
|
| Directed by | Anton Corbijn |
| Produced by | Iain Canning Emile Sherman |
| Story by | Anton Corbijn Bono |
| Starring | Saïd Taghmaoui |
| Music by |
U2 Brian Eno Danny Lanois |
| Cinematography | Martin Ruhe |
| Edited by | James Rose |
|
Production
company |
See-Saw Films
|
| Distributed by | Universal Music Group |
|
Release date
|
9 March 2009 |
|
Running time
|
57 minutes |
| Language | English |
Linear is a 2009 film directed by Anton Corbijn. The film includes music from U2's 2009 studio album, No Line on the Horizon, and was included on both digital and DVD formats with several editions of the album.
The idea behind the film originated from a U2 video shoot in June 2007. During the shoot, Corbijn asked the band to remain still while he filmed them; this created a "photograph on film", in which U2 did not move but the objects around them did. Impressed, the band believed that the listening experience could be enhanced with visuals, and in May 2008 they commissioned Corbijn to create the film. The film was created as a companion to No Line on the Horizon, and Corbijn has claimed that the film is not a music video, but rather "a new way to listen to a record" and "a new way to use film to connect to music".
The plot is based on the characters Bono created for the album No Line on the Horizon, with the story revolving around a Parisian motorcycle cop who has become disillusioned with his life, as well as the conflict between immigrants and the police in the city, causing him to leave and see his girlfriend in Tripoli. The film features a mix of black-and-white and colour filming, and runs for 58:20.Linear was completed in time for the album's original November 2008 release date, but as the band continued to work into December the film became out of sequence with the album. 10 of the 11 songs in the film were edited as a solution, and the original running order was kept intact. The film features Saïd Taghmaoui as the cop, Lizzie Brocheré as the waitress, Marta Barrio as the lone dancer, and Francisco Javier Malia Vazquez as the barman.
The film opens with a scene of Paris as night falls, before moving on to a journey through the city streets ("Unknown Caller"). At the end of the trip through Paris, a motorcycle cop (Taghmaoui) sits on his police-issued motorcycle, staring at some graffiti on a wall which reads "Fuck the Police" in French. Kicking his bike over, he pours gasoline on it, sets it alight, and watches it burn ("Breathe"). As dawn breaks, he gets on his own motorcycle and begins his journey through the French countryside before crossing into Spain, aiming to see his girlfriend in Tripoli ("Winter"). Pulling off for a break part-way through the journey, the cop lies on his back and watches a cloud form the image of the African continent before falling asleep ("White as Snow"). Waking up, he resumes his journey across Spain ("No Line on the Horizon").
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