FLicKeR (2009)
In 1960, Brion Gysin invented the Dream Machine, a hypnotic light device with the power to induce hallucinations, drugless highs, and revolutionize human consciousness. It looks simple enough; a 100-watt light bulb, a motor, and a rotating cylinder with cutouts. Just sit in front of it, close your eyes, and wait for the visions to come. The Dream Machine enthralled mystics and freethinkers everywhere; Kurt Cobain had a dream machine, and William S. Burroughs thought it could be used to “storm the citadels of enlightenment.” With a custom-made Dream Machine in tow, director Nik Sheehan takes us on a journey into the life of Brion Gysin; his art, his complex ideas, and his friendships with some of the most eccentric counter-cultural icons. Taking the Dream Machine as the basis of its explorations, FLicKeR asks crucial questions about the nature of art and consciousness, and imagines a humanity liberated to explore its creativity in complete freedom.
Watch Trailer
Cast
Reviews
Pretty Good
There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes
Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.
It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.
This film offers a glimpse into the life of the artist Brion Gysin, and a fairly good illustration of his "Dream Machine", which is purported to allow a user to experience visual hallucinations by setting up a flashing pattern of light which affects the brains alpha-waves. It features some archival footage, photos, and audio, as well as the narrator's impressions of some of the people, events and places described in the film (New York, Paris, Morocco)and video documentary footage of locations and interviews with various people who knew or admired (or in one case is rather dismissive) of Gysin. Your experience as a viewer will fall somewhere between entertainment and serious study of art history.