Believe It or Not #8: A bizarre little time capsule

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, only if you're a massive fan of old, weird archival footage. If you're looking for a structured story, you'll be bored stiff. But if you like seeing how people captured 'the strange' before the internet made every weird fact easily searchable, this is actually kind of charming. It's short, so it doesn't overstay its welcome. 🕰️

Arthur Hurley guides us through these segments with a tone that feels like he's telling you a secret he just read in a dusty book. It's not high-budget stuff, but it's got character.

The weird stuff

The chair made of growing trees? It looks like a prop from a local play, but you can't help but stare at it. I kept thinking about how long it must have taken to prune that thing into a seat. 🌳

Then there’s the city of wine cask dwellers. It’s exactly what it sounds like, and honestly, it’s one of those visuals that sticks with you for a few days after. It’s just so wildly specific.

The pacing is all over the place, which is a common trait in The 'High Sign' or other shorts of the era. One minute you're in a narrow alley, the next you're lost in a bungalow with 144 rooms. It's disorienting.

The film feels less like a movie and more like someone flipping through a scrapbook while you're trying to eat dinner.

I caught myself wondering why they decided to include that specific street. It’s barely a walkway, really. It made me think about Navy Blues in terms of how they capture movement, though this is obviously a totally different beast.

The narration is a bit repetitive, but that's just the style of the time. You either get on board with the oddness, or you stop watching. There isn't much middle ground here. 🤷‍♂️

It’s not trying to win an award or move the needle on cinema. It just wants to show you a weird house and a narrow street. Sometimes, that's enough for ten minutes of footage. Just don't expect it to change your life.