Of the dead / Des morts (1979) dir. Thierry Zéno, Jean-Pol Ferbus Dominique Garny

Joining the long line of ethnographic documentaries, Of the Dead and its crystal-clear title takes us to three continents and six countries (USA, Mexico, Belgium, South Korea, Thailand and Nepal) to discover the disturbing world of funeral rituals. Made by Zéno, Garny and Ferbus, with Alain Pierre responsible for the music, the film is the result of two years of meticulous bibliographical research prior to two years of shooting, followed by a year spent editing 30 hours of film. It compares cultural variations, contrasting the intimate, family relationship with commercial and brutally industrial rituals. Influenced by Cinema Verite, the film shares with Wedding Trough the idea of cinematographic shock and the same limits to what can be shown. This vision of death at work has a sublime beauty about it and is, at times, difficult to bear.