By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.75 cats
Director: Carlos Carcas | Norberto López Amado
Country: china, france, germany, hong_kong, spain, switzerland, united_kingdom, united_states
Year: 2012
Running time: 78
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1620785/
Bruce says: “Norman Foster is one of the greatest living architects. His Reichstag in Berlin, the British Museum, the London gherkin, the Bilbao subway, the Hearst building in New York and the HSBC headquarters in Hong Kong are all worldwide landmarks. HOW MUCH DOES YOUR BUILDING WEIGH, MR. FOSTER? explores the life and mind behind the work.
”Unlike many contemporaries Foster came from humble beginnings. In Manchester, his father was a pawnbroker and his mother, a waitress. While it might be said he came from the wrong side of the tracks, he nonetheless grew up with a strong work ethic that has served him well. After graduating from school his middle class values led him to the workplace for security rather than pursue higher education. As his interests formed and talents emerged Foster changed direction ending up across the Atlantic at Yale University in 1961 studying with Paul Rudolph who headed the architecture school there. Unlike other schools of architecture, Rudolph did not impose any ideology on his students; they were pushed to pursue their own vision.
”During the course of the film directors Amado and Carcas follow the chronology of Foster’s working career while giving the viewer many examples of the buildings he has designed, buildings that actually come to fruition. ‘Everything inspires me. Sometimes I think I see things others don’t,’ is how Foster describes his success. The film also explores Foster’s thinking beyond his projects, expanding his vision to the communities his buildings inhabit and examining how they function. Foster also elaborates on the client relationships. ‘The more pressure the clients put on the architect the better the end product,’ he explains. As behooves his Yale training Foster claims that he still ‘no stylistic goal.’ In terms of his career Foster philosophizes, ‘You must always go one step further, if you can’t it’s time to stop.’ For years he maintained a close relationship with Buckminster Fuller, a friend and source of knowledge. Foster is acutely aware of the direction the planet is going and the need for immediate change. His Masdar City project in Abu Dhabi will be the first community to have a zero carbon, zero waste ecology.
“The film devotes little time to Foster’s personal life. We learn that his first wife and business partner died of cancer at a very young age. Footage of Foster with a small child of about six does not identify the relationship. In spite of the gaps, HOW MUCH DOES YOUR BUILDING WEIGH, MR. FOSTER? is very satisfying. 4 cats”
Julie says: “This film did not get enough into the character I think- it didn’t engage me as I’d hoped it would. Some of the geometric principles raised were interesting though and fit right in with what I’d been studying for the last couple of years.
“The best part was this response from CC in Q&A – especially the last part starting with ‘An Actor.’ Not sure why they couldn’t have had live Q&A it was painful reading through this …. but worth finding this gem of a comment I thought. 3.5 cats for film; 5 cats for the commentary”