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The Way Things Go

DVD

- (Actor), David Weiss (II) (Director), Peter Fischli (Director) Rated:
NR
4.5 out of 5 stars 68 customer reviews
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(Dec 22, 2009)
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(Mar 19, 2002)
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$69.95 $7.99
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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

THE WAY THINGS GO is a film by "the merry pranksters of contemporary art" (New York Times) renowned Swiss artists Peter Fischli & David Weiss, that chronicles the lifespan of their most famous kinetic sculpture as it amazingly self-destructs.

Inside a warehouse, Fischli and Weiss build an enormous and precarious structure made out of common household items such as tea kettles, tires, old shoes, balloons, ladders and wooden ramps. Then, with fire, water, gravity and chemistry, they create a spectacular 100 foot long chain reaction performance of physical interactions, chemical reactions, and precisely crafted chaos worthy of Alfred Hitchcock.

"Comparable to no other film ever made" (Riverfront Times), THE WAY THINGS GO has appeared in hundreds of galleries and museums, and has been applauded by critics worldwide.

Review

Ingeniously choreographed...a Duchampian extravaganza! --New York Times

Dazzling, amazing... downright hypnotic! --Time Out New York

A Rube Goldberg drawing come to life.... how did they do it? --Chicago Tribune

Special Features

None.

Product Details

  • Actors: -
  • Directors: David Weiss (II), Peter Fischli
  • Format: Color, NTSC
  • Language: English
  • Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Rated:
    NR
    Not Rated
  • Studio: FIRST RUN FEATURES
  • DVD Release Date: March 19, 2002
  • Run Time: 30 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (68 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B00005UW7W
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #120,003 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
  • Learn more about "The Way Things Go" on IMDb

Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 starsYoung children love it but it is for all ages
By ChristineMM TOP 1000 REVIEWER on September 6, 2002
Format: VHS Tape Verified Purchase
The video is approximately 30 minutes of non-stop motion showing cause-and-effect. The background is an old factory and there is no music score or narration, just the real sounds of the fire lighting, of things dropping down and rolling, etc. A very active imagination (or imaginations) thought up the ideas of what would roll, drop, ignite, etc. to make the next thing happen. The recording is a bit amateur and sometimes the lighting is a bit dim, but the content is so fantastic and real but it doesn't matter to our family because we love it.
My family began watching this when our youngest was nearing two years old and my oldest was four: both were glued to the screen. My husband and I enjoy it as well. Our four-year-old was so inspired he wanted to create a similar and large set-up (with fire and everything) in our home! I was able to convince my son that we could not do a large set up with fire, etc. so while I was busy makign dinner, on his own he made a chain-of-events set-up out of wooden unit blocks and wooden cylinders, and toys that would roll. He called me to see his demonstration and then we had discussions about ideas of what would work, tried them and then brainstormed other ideas when it did not work. I was surprised at the creative thinking this video inspired in my four-year-old.
I am just amazed at the creativity and imagination at work in this video and that such a huge project was set up and obviously practiced many times to ensure that it would work as it was being filmed.
This is entertainment and education rolled into one. This is a welcome change for children to watch from the usual children's video programs that are available (although it is for people of all ages).
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5.0 out of 5 starsI shall never look at an old pair of shoes the same...
By cookieman108 on March 28, 2005
Format: DVD Verified Purchase
The Way Things Go (1987) aka Der Lauf Der Dinge (perhaps loosely translated from German meaning The Laughing Dingo...okay, maybe not...the German I learned in high school didn't take very well) is an odd and wonderful film that I think would be well served shown in the various science and art classes one often has to take during ones stint in receiving a basic education.

In an old warehouse, artists Peter Fischli and David Weiss, who must have pillaged a local junkyard, create an extensively elaborate set up involving tires, chairs, rocket tea kettles, spray bottles, sugar cubes, old shoes, wooden ramps, small carts, garbage bags, balloons, fireworks, pools of liquid (sometimes flammable), gelatinous goo, along with other common, household items, with a result that I can only describe as a wondrous adventure in `planned chaos'. I used to do a similar thing with dominoes, spend hours lining hundreds of them up, only to watch them all fall within a matter of minutes, but this is so much more. Fischli and Weiss use all forms of matter, fire, water, and gravity to effect the forward motion (illustrated by transformations, propagation, reactions, and kinetics) of contraptions and such, resulting in constantly evolving concept of one thing leading to another, or, to put it another way, an artistic representation of cause and effect. I say it would be useful to show this in school science classes, as it's an implicit demonstration and display of the laws of thermodynamics, and presents the material in such a way that one may forget they're actually learning something, being mesmerized by the events occurring on the screen.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsSimply amazing
By wiredweird HALL OF FAMETOP 1000 REVIEWER on January 25, 2004
Format: DVD
You really have to see this one to believe it. The spinning bag unwinds its tether and gradually descends. At some point, it reaches down to a balanced tire, and gives it a gentle push ...
For about the next half hour (it seems like a lot more), each object in the chain bumps into the next, pulls the support from under it, launches a bottle-rocket into it, or somehow kicks off the next step in the chain. There must be hundreds of steps, involving flame, weighted cylinders rolling up hill, and a few episodes of oozing spooge.
The presentation is very plain, just the documentary of this incredible sequence chaining cause to effect. There is no sound track except for the noises made by the parts of this wild "machine". Even the parts themselves look like nothing special: teapots and tires, soda bottles and sugar cubes. It's the action that counts, and the time and creativity that brought it into being.
Perhaps the creators cheated at a few steps. There are some cuts in an otherwise continuous stream of action. If some purist lets that interfere with their enjoyment of the spectacle, it's their loss. If someone wants a "point" to the sequence, that's not my problem. It just is, and it's wonderful.
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5.0 out of 5 stars6th grade science review
By A Customer on May 19, 2004
Format: VHS Tape
If you've read the other reviews you already know what this video is about. What I'd like to add is that I am amazed every year that my sixth graders watch this video, with no dialogue or music, and are enthralled with it for the full 30 minutes. I show it after we've done an extensive motion and energy unit and simple machines unit. Before watching it I explain 3 or 4 reactions that they may not get on their own, which piques their interest. It is the one video they remember years after leaving 6th grade!
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