Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould

It was the year 2002 when I first had an attempt to watch the movie, in 21. Istanbul Film Festival. I did not know much about Glenn Gould, nor had I ever listened to him playing, I guess the name of the movie and a little bit of information on the festival's booklet were what had captured my attention. Even though I had the tickets, I could not go and see it, can't remember why now.. Years later, last night, I finally watched it, this time knowing who Glenn Gould was, having listened to his incredible music for the past few years and knowing his passion of Bach and his eccentric personality.



The film, as can be understood from its title, consists of 32 short parts, in a somewhat more or less chronological order, consisting of re-creations of scenes in the artist's life with magnificient acting by Irish-Canadian actor Colm Feore and interviews with the protagonist's friends and acquaintances. The "32" parts refers to 32 parts of Bach's 'Goldberg Variations'.

François Girard, the director, states that;

...As Gould was such a complex character, the biggest problem was to find a way to look at his work and deal with his visions. The film is built of fragments, each one trying to capture an aspect of Gould. There is no way of putting Gould in one box. The film gives the viewer 32 impressions of him. I didn't want to reduce him to one dimension...

Starting and ending with scenes resembling his search for solitude, I believe the movie captures a great deal of the artist. I can not say that it is an instructive documentary; yet, it is like a ceremony to celebrate having had such an artist, in a rather humble way.