The Brooklyn Rail

Mannequin hands rolling dice, faceless figures, mystical starfish charged with sexual innuendo, attempted crimes of passion, unrequited lust, luxurious locales, road trips—Man Ray’s films deliver all the weird, wild, and thrilling elements of cinematic storytelling, just in an avant-garde, “cinepoetic” form.

The American expatriate Dada artist Man Ray made history with four short, experimental films: Le Retour à la raison (Return to Reason, 1923), Emak-Bakia (Leave Me Alone, 1926), L’étoile de mer (The Starfish, 1928), and Les Mystères du Château du Dé (The Mysteries of the Chateau of Dice, 1929).

In 2023, these films were released collectively in their first-ever 4K restoration, titled Return to Reason: Four Films by Man Ray, which totals a tight 70-minute runtime. SQÜRL, a band featuring Jim Jarmusch (Night on Earth, Paterson), crafted an original score for the new restoration by WOMANRAY and Cinenovo. The restoration process took a global effort with original prints scattered internationally. Other partners included the Cinémathèque française, the Centre Pompidou, the Library of Congress, the CNC, and the Cineteca di Bologna.

Created in the earliest days of cinema a century ago, Man Ray achieved effects and intricacies of avant-garde narrative that feel timeless and that continue to impact experimental and commercial filmmakers alike. In her 1979 Southwest Review article titled “Independent Journeyman: Man Ray, Dada and Surrealist Film-Maker,” scholar Lauren Rabinowitz suggests, “[Maya] Deren’s central role in the development, expansion, and teaching of American experimental film in New York through the 1940s and 1950s, suggest that if Man Ray provided a model for her, she would have acquainted others with him as well.” Considering the vast impact Deren has had on American film unveils one significant lineage dating back to Man Ray.

It’s easy to go into watching films like Man Ray’s expecting the effects to feel cheesy and old-fashioned, but, while part of the joy of watching these films is to feel clever by guessing how the artist achieved certain visual tricks, Man Ray often outsmarts us. There are many “Oh, wow!” moments for contemporary audiences watching the restored pictures, usually provoked by the dazzling and beautifully composed imagery. His visual effects possess a satisfying tactility of a pre-digital age.

But the physicality of film can also be its downfall when not properly cared for. WOMANRAY and Cinenovo’s efforts to restore these four films represent an important responsibility we have to maintain film archives that continue to inspire new filmmakers across the globe. Not only do we need to maintain these film archives, but we also have a responsibility to grow them beyond a canon that has too often been narrowly and exclusively defined.

Just because Man Ray has starred in a century of academic scholarship does not mean his films need to be taken too seriously. Entwined in their surreal poetry, each tale encapsulates a playfulness and humor essential to both Dada and the fun of experimenting with a relatively new medium. Take Les Mystères du Château du Dé, par exemple! Funny, poignant, haunting scenes collide at this mysterious castle where visitors wind up by chance.

In the film, the austere white and geometric façade of a contemporary mansion—in which Man Ray saw echoes of cubism, says Rabinowitz—glows in front of the shadow of a medieval structure. The starkness of the Chateau of Dice and the large cutouts in the white stucco walls are suggestive of contemporary film screens, even in this rural setting that seems removed from time. One of the most epic scenes in all four films involves a rowdy group playing acrobatically in the chateau’s pool with a large mirror reflecting the action at one end—more cinematic rectangles surrounded by stark walls. Characters wear a panty hose–like material pulled taut over their heads to obscure the features in a dreamlike, surreal fashion. Continuing to play with black and white and the rectangular shape of screen or the square side of a dice, a group of characters lies on the floor around two dice in a patch of window light.

Quiet on set is the golden rule of filmmaking today, but it certainly was not necessary for Man Ray, who actually gave up making films partially because of the advent of sound technology, according to Rabinowitz. It’s a strange and meditative experience to watch such loud splish-splashing scenes hushed. For all we know, someone was yelling their lunch order in the background while someone else gossiped about Marcel Duchamp. SQÜRL’s score certainly emphasizes the surprisingly modern (and slightly trippy) vibe of the four short films, though at times it reads as a bit on the nose or overly repetitive. The score allows new artists to add their interpretations and sensibilities to an otherwise pristine restoration—a bit ironic considering the now necessarily collaborative nature of filmmaking and the fact that the rising need for collaborators became another motivating factor for Man Ray to ditch show biz. It was a different, but rapidly evolving world for film a century ago, but, interestingly, perhaps iPhones and other low-budget tech are bringing back the sense of inexpensive independent and creative freedom Man Ray found in the then-new medium.

So, should you catch Return to Reason for the unique experience of seeing these films on the big screen? Roll the dice and take a chance.