ZIDANE, UN PORTRAIT DU
21e SIÈCLE
by Douglas Gordon and
Philippe Parreno
2006, 90 min, music by Mogwai
The all-action portrait of soccer superstar Zinédine Zidane plunges us into an actual match between Real Madrid and Villarreal on April 23, 2005. On television the cameras follow the ball, in this film they follow Zidane. The lone, elegant and intensely focused figure is set against the roar of 80,000 spectators in attendance. We study Zidane’s face, movements, and extraordinary poise, from the first kick of the ball to when he leaves the field at the end of the match. Made by the acclaimed visual artists Douglas Gordon and Philippe Parreno, the film is both a new form of portraiture and a sports spectacle for a broad viewing public. Seventeen synchronized cameras were used, each focusing solely on Zinedine Zidane in real time, during a real - and often unremarkable - game. A mesmerizing portrait of a man at work, we see the legend running and in repose, muttering and thinking, waiting and watching – and throughout we watch Zidane’s watchfulness. Enhanced by Mogwai’s haun ting music, the majestic sound design recreates the sensorial environment of the large crowd as well as the isolated sounds of cleats on the pitch.
