Pop Pop Video (1980)

Dara Birnbaums PopPop Video has been hailed as a classic of the new wave The tape juxtaposes fragments from a soap opera with sequences of ice skating races The graceful movements of the skaters punctuate repeated excerpts from a dreadfully intense discussion between a doctor and his patient He doesnt do anything doesnt say anything Its just the way he looks at me That sound crazy The narrative builds up slowly as a few more words of the deadly dialogue are released Extended in this way the pathos is bare the narrative content becomes meaningless and the result is particularly moving Katherine Elwes Performance JulyAugust 1981