Wall of Death

Wall of Death

  • Overview
  • Crew

Status

Released

Release Date

Mar 3, 2001

Runtime

0h 2m

Original Title

Wall of Death

Director

Marco Brambilla

Description

In the carnival act “Wall of Death,” first performed in the 1930s, a motorcyclist rides around the inside of a wooden drum, maintaining a delicate state of equilibrium between centrifugal force and gravity. The video is made up of a series of motion loops that become progressively shorter, creating the illusion of continuous motion: The rider is caught in a never-ending, never decelerating circle. The editing technique, inspired by the Kinetoscope films popular during the time the act was widely performed.