Killer of Sheep. The Charles Burnett Collection

Editorial Review
One of the 100 Essential Films. -National Society of Film Critics

DVD Details: USA, 1977, 80 minutes, B&W, Region 0, NTSC, In English; Special Features of this 2-disc deluxe box set: KILLER OF SHEEP commentary track with Charles Burnett and the Program Director of the Film Society of Lincoln Center, Richard Peña; KILLER OF SHEEP cast reunion video by Ross Lipman (who restored the film); KILLER OF SHEEP trailer; Burnett's second feature, MY BROTHER'S WEDDING (1984. Color. In English. Starring Everett Silas and Jessie Holmes): the original 115-minute cut and the director's 82-minute cut; three rediscovered short films: SEVERAL FRIENDS (1969. 23 minutes.), THE HORSE (1973. 13 minutes.), and WHEN IT RAINS (1995. 13 minutes.); the new short on Hurricane Katrina, QUIET AS KEPT (2007. 5 minutes.); and liner notes by film critic Armond White.

A masterpiece of African American filmmaking and one of the finest debuts in cinema history, KILLER OF SHEEP was chosen for the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. In the Los Angeles community of Watts, Stan, a sensitive dreamer, is growing detached and numb from the toll of working at a slaughterhouse. Frustrated by money problems, he finds respite in moments of simple beauty: the warmth of a teacup against his cheek, slow dancing with his wife, holding his daughter. Combining lyrical moments with neorealist style, Burnett unfolds his story with compassion and humor. KILLER OF SHEEP's haunting images and extraordinary soundtrack are a revelation in this new high-definition transfer from the UCLA Film & Television Archive's brilliant 35mm restoration.

View the trailer here: http://www.killerofsheep.com/trailer.html.

The 2-disc special edition also includes an additional full-length feature (original release & director's cut), MY BROTHER'S WEDDING: When MY BROTHER'S WEDDING was rushed to a festival screening before the director could make his final cut, it received mixed reviews and was never released - denying audiences the chance to discover Burnett's remarkable second feature. The film critic Armond White called this 'a catastrophic blow to the development of American popular culture.' Revisited decades later, following restoration by the Pacific Film Archive and a complete re-edit by Burnett, MY BROTHER'S WEDDING proves to be funny, heartbreaking and timeless. Pierce Mundy works at his parents' South Central dry cleaners with no prospects for the future - his childhood buddies are all in prison or dead. With his best friend just getting out of jail and his brother busy planning a wedding to a snooty upper-middle-class black woman, Pierce navigates his conflicting obligations while trying to figure out what he really wants.

A treasure that demands to be unearthed in all its funny-sad tenderness. - Village Voice

Astonishing! Marvelous and rare... Humorous, loving and honest, devoid of either condescension or political posturing... An indelible reminder of what real independence looks like. - A.O. Scott, The New York Times

Never less than engrossing! As ever, it's a joy to look at and listen to: Burnett's movies are quite unlike anyone else's. - Time Out New York

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Customer Reviews

Genius!!!

2008-04-08
i can't tell you, you have to watch and use your cognitive thinking skills. hopefully, your synapses will fire and connect and you too, like me, will be amazed and angered alternatively. amazed because, well, like i said: watch! angered because the PTB(powers that be) realized that giving widespread release of ANY chas. burnett material would encourage people to think about themselves and the world's conditions and ultimately do something righteous! THANX for listening!!!

The Raw Power of Film

2008-03-23
Someone once said that you only truly witness art two or three times in your life... art that changes you completely, art that transforms your world.

So if you've got any left in you, be sure you see this film. I saw it rather accidentally I was on a three day vacation in a mountain cabin. But the damn place had satelite television. I had no intention of sitting in front of a screen, but once this film started I could not turn away.

Unfortunately, too many reviewers give away vital pieces of the film, or cannot construct a coherent sentence.

All you need to know is that this is a vital piece of American culture that should be viewed by everyone. What is most profound about this film is that, while about the poverty-stricken black experience in Los Angeles, it is NOT about race. It is not about injustice in the political system. It is not about socioeconomic conditions.

This film is about humanity, and it's so refreshing to see an artist work at this level; with no axe to grind, no sacred cows to slaughter.

The ending is so profoundly beautiful, that it nearly brings me to tears remembering it.

See it. Now.

Brutus

Echo Detained

A visual poem

2008-02-08
Shot in the early 1970s in Watts as Charles Burnett's MFA master's thesis and later hailed by critics as a masterpiece, it has never been released theatrically until now. Lovingly restored, it is a profound visual poem depicting poverty and listlessness among urban African-Americans, both timeless and perfectly expressing its time. Burnett shot the film himself, and dozens of the images he captured caught my breath with their off-kilter candor.

Overrated.

2008-01-18
Pretty pumped when I bought this... but it's pretty dismal overall. I thought I could handle the poor plot, but I couldn't. I'll go to the playground if I want to watch a bunch of little kids throw rocks at each other. Oh well... Not that it is without it's merits, just not for everyone.

hustle and flow

2008-01-11
Perhaps the most striking, or is it subtly impactful, things about Killer of Sheep are the children; children that climb and fight and laugh and sing and kick and crawl out from under things, and leave bikes behind as if property meant nothing when they're brought up in a world where nothing is not only a given, but practically a birthright. These are kids that are like kids, not hollywood creations, beautifully represented with the logic of children. the film opens with a stern reprimand to take some responsibility by a father to a boy of about 13, and as soon as that wake-up call is administered, it is punctuated with a slap in the face by the mother, and from that moment on the film is plunged into a lethargy so profound that you can feel the stifling heat of a neighborhood that's got nothing but scraps to kick around. Killer of Sheep is a masterpiece of American black poverty, accompanied by a rich and mournful soundtrack, from the bent-but-not broken dignity of Paul Robeson, to the deep blue sensuality of dinah washington, to the sweet voices of 70s soul, to 1950's roadhouse blues. Here, in stark black and white, are a people that barely dare to speak of the middle class, whose motion takes them sideways, sometimes downward, but forward in only the smallest of increments. And even those steps are dashed by what at first glance would be the fates, but, in reality, is the state of the conditions -- the car ride without a spare tire, the unsecured engine falling out of the bed of a pickup. The juxtaposition of the poor blacks and the sheep going to slaughter should be heavy-handed, but miraculously is, instead, a sad poetry. And even more miraculous are the myriad tiny beauties, the smallest touches the director Burnett illuminates again and again: the warm coffee mug rubbed against a man's cheek and compared to the body of a woman, the little girl in a rubber mask, another young girl singing along with the radio to a doll, a son hiding from his mother on the roof of the house . . . The sheep at the slaughterhouse where the father works are herded and their fear is palpable. They intuit their fate, yet where can they run when boxed in a pen? The adults are of two kinds in the film: those seeking small pleasures, and those too tired or beat up to do anything but sit. It's not a slaughterhouse, but there is no escape. Still, in the end, there are those children, and they flow like fresh water in a fetid pond. Their exuberence is nearly chaos in a void of structure and purpose. Yet when three women gather in the final images of the film to share the joy of one's new pregnancy, you can't help but feel lifted by the promise of hope children somehow always bring into the well of human despair.

The packaging of the DVD really sucks

2008-01-04
One of the 100 Essential Films. -National Society of Film Critics

View the trailer here: http://www.killerofsheep.com/trailer.html.

A treasure that demands to be unearthed in all its funny-sad tenderness. - Village Voice

Never less than engrossing! As ever, it's a joy to look at and listen to: Burnett's movies are quite unlike anyone else's. - Time Out New York

Killer of Sheep is Profound -- Seemingly Unintentionally 2007-12-29
I am so pleased that Charles Burnett's "Killer of Sheep" has been finally released after years of challenges. I was fortunate to see the film many years ago as part of an underground circuit at Tuskegee Institute. I found the style and material contained in the film to be compelling and my first experience with a media which accurately portrays a particular aspect of African American culture. When Spike Lee's "She's Gotta Gave It" was released years later, it was regarded as the first of its kind and revolutionary with respect to African American film making; however, "Killer of Sheep" was not only a predecessor, I am confident that Spike Lee was heavily influenced and inspired by the work of Charles Burnett. "Killer of Sheep" is a MUST SEE!!!

Timecapsule Contents 2007-12-28
Seemingly unearthed from a timecapsule, this film resembles a Richard Wright novel as interpretted by Harmony Korine. The terms "landmark" and "masterpiece" are a bit beyond this film's scope, yet it's documentary-style cinematography and subtle performances are undeniably powerful. (7/10)

Amazing film! 2007-12-28
I recently got this movie and its an amazing film. Its everything that the summary says and more. It captures life as it really is and not the hollywood junk that I'm used to. The beauty of it really touched me (as cliche as that may sound) and now I'm on to my sixth time that I'm watching it. I highly recommend this film to add to your collection or if you just want to watch a great movie.

Great Film(s)...Inconsiderate Packaging 2007-12-05
This is a review of the poorly-designed packaging of the great film "Killer of Sheep" only. Other reviewers have discussed the merits of this brilliant film and the unfortunately-neglected accompanying feature, "My Brother's Wedding".

Like the poor recent edition of "I Am Cuba", Milestone has released good-quality transfers of these significant and previously-unavailable films but shown them no respect by packaging in a way which compromise the DVD's themselves.

The DVD's are stuck into, truly, the tightest pouches(!) of a cardboard DVD case. Not only were the DVD's slid in once by the manufacturer--scratching the playing surfaces--but you must pull them out with some effort from the too-tight pouches to view them, thus scratching them again. For the price of this product, a standard plastic (double) snapcase would be reasonable to expect and much more secure storage.

Unfortunately, this is the only way to purchase "Killer of Sheep". I suggest pulling out the DVD's carefully and then placing them in another DVD case to prevent further desecration with subsequent viewings.