‘Visitors’ – The new film from Godfrey Reggio, Philip Glass, and Jon Kane

There simply are no words. And I mean that literally, as you’re about to see.

When I learned recently of the imminent release of a new film by director Godfrey Reggio, he of Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi, and Naqoyqatsi fame, I was fairly stunned. Then the sensation was augmented when I watched the trailers. As I explained here three months ago, Koyaanisqatsi literally changed my life, and more than one person contacted me after I published that post to let me know they feel the very same way.

And now comes Visitors. Like Reggio’s first three films, this one features an original musical score by Philip Glass. Like Naqoyqatsi, it features visual design by filmmaker Jon Kane. It will premier at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, and will be presented there by Steven Soderbergh.

Here is the just-released teaser trailer, followed by an earlier trailer (from 2011) that was released when the project was being developed under the alternate title The Holy See. Even though they’re similar, be sure to watch the second one to its conclusion, which offers a striking “payoff.”

Here’s the film’s official description:

Thirty years after Koyaanisqatsi, Godfrey Reggio — with the support of Philip Glass and Jon Kane — once again leapfrogs over earthbound filmmakers and creates another stunning, wordless portrait of modern life. Presented by Steven Soderbergh in stunning B&W 4K, Visitors reveals humanity’s trancelike relationship with technology, which, when commandeered by extreme emotional states, produces massive effects far beyond the human species. The film is visceral, offering the audience an experience beyond information about the moment in which we live. Comprised of only 74 shots, Visitors takes viewers on a journey to the moon and back to confront them with themselves.

For what it’s worth, I predict a positively mythic impact.