7.8 /10 1 Votes
4.1/5 Mubi Director James Benning | 7.3/10 IMDb Initial release 2004 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Awards National Society of Film Critics Experimental Film Award Similar Ten Skies, Sogobi, Landscape Suicide, North on Evers, Casting a Glance | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 lakes 2004 by james benning
13 Lakes is a 2004 16mm film by American independent filmmaker James Benning. It is an instance of slow cinema, placing emphasis on introspection and contemplation. The film was added to the US National Film Registry as a "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant film" in 2014.
Contents
The film is 135 minutes long and consists of 13 ten minute static shots of lakes from throughout the United States of America. There is no conventional plot, characters or dialog. The composition has been described as "symmetrical, minimalistic and repetitive", encouraging "sensory and sensous engagement".
In several cases, boats can be seen and sounds such as waves, motors, bird calls, thunder and rain can be heard. Benning has said that he does not intend the work to be about environmentalism.
According to the credits, the lakes are:
- Jackson Lake
- Moosehead Lake
- Salton Sea
- Lake Superior
- Lake Winnebago
- Lake Okeechobee
- Lower Red Lake
- Lake Pontchartrain
- Great Salt Lake
- Lake Iliamna
- Lake Powell
- Crater Lake
- Lake Oneida