Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession

Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession is a 2004 documentary film about Los Angeles pay cable channel Z Channel which was directed by Xan Cassavetes, daughter of Hollywood director and actor John Cassavetes. It was screened out of competition at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.[1][2]

Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession
Directed by	Xan Cassavetes
Produced by	Marshall Persinger Rick Ross
Starring	Jerry Harvey Robert Altman Jacqueline Bisset Theresa Russell Quentin Tarantino F. X. Feeney
Music by	Steven Hufsteter
Cinematography	John Pirozzi
Edited by	Iain Kennedy
Distributed by	IFC Films
Release date	2004
Running time	122 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

The documentary is about Z Channel, which was one of the first pay cable TV stations in the United States. Z Channel became famous for showing an eclectic variety of films, including foreign language, silent, documentary, director's cut, forgotten, overlooked, under-appreciated, erotic as well as mainstream films, without commercials and uncut and letterboxed when possible.[3][4]

The film also tells the story of Z Channel's programming director Jerry Harvey who was a true film lover, programming genius, and a man almost single-handedly responsible for getting many great films shown to the public. It gives insights into Harvey's constant battle with personal demons which resulted in him ending his own life and the life of his wife in a murder-suicide.[5][6]

Throughout the film a variety of footage featuring some of the films shown on the Z Channel is used. This serves to underline the diversity offered on the channel in particular its attempts to expose its American viewers to undubbed foreign language films.[7]

The films ends with a montage of scenes of such films with Irving Berlin's "What'll I Do?" theme being played over the top of them as performed by the actor William Atherton from the film The Great Gatsby (1974).[8]

People interviewed for the film

• Robert Altman[9]
• Alexander Payne[10]
• Quentin Tarantino[11]
• Jacqueline Bisset[12][13]
• Theresa Russell[14]
• Jim Jarmusch[15]
• Stuart Cooper[16]
• F. X. Feeney[17]
• Penelope Spheeris[18]
• James Woods[19]
• Henry Jaglom[20]
• Vilmos Zsigmond[21]
• James B. Harris[22]

Selected films featured on Z Channel

• Heaven's Gate[23]
• Once Upon a Time in America[24]
• Overlord[25]
• Pat Garrett and Billy The Kid[26]
• McCabe and Mrs. Miller[27]
• Das Boot[28]
• The Wild Bunch[29]
• The Leopard[30]
• 1900[31]
• That Most Important Thing: Love[32]
• Ride the High Country[33]
• Salvador[34]
• Black Orpheus[35]
• Paths of Glory[36]
• My Darling Clementine[37]

Reception

Z Channel has an overall approval rating of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.[38]

At Metacritic, the film scored 85/100 based on 4 critics.[39]

Home media

The film was released to DVD in 2004 as a 2-disc special edition, which included numerous bonus features. A standard 1-disc edition followed in 2005.[40]

See also

• Cinephilia
• 2004 in film
• The Snob's Dictionary-The channel mentioned in the Film Snob edition

References

1. "Festival de Cannes: Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
2. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004)- MUBI
3. Summer Rental: 'Z Channel'|Commonweal Magazine
4. New Beverly Cinema
5. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession on AV/Film
6. UNCUT
7. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) - Trailer on YouTube
8. Film Montage from "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession" (2004)-YouTube
9. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
10. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
11. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
12. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
13. Jacqueline Bisset - Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession
14. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) - Trailer on YouTube
15. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
16. Z Channel: Overlord on YouTube
17. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
18. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) - Trailer on YouTube
19. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
20. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) - Trailer on YouTube
21. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) - Trailer on YouTube
22. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) - Trailer on YouTube
23. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
24. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
25. Z Channel: Overlord on YouTube
26. Film Montage from "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession" (2004)-YouTube
27. Film Montage from "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession" (2004)-YouTube
28. Film Montage from "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession" (2004)-YouTube
29. Film Montage from "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession" (2004)-YouTube
30. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
31. 'Z Channel' on the Air-Washington Post
32. Z Channel: The Important Thing is to Love
33. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) - Trailer on YouTube
34. Film Montage from "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession" (2004)-YouTube
35. Film Montage from "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession" (2004)-YouTube
36. Film Montage from "Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession" (2004)-YouTube
37. The Death of Z Channel--What Now? : The History : Beset by troubles, quirky station will switch to all-sports
38. "Rotten Tomatoes". Retrieved 2010-09-05.
39. "Movie Review". Metacritic. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
40. Amazon.com: Z Channel - A Magnificent Obsession

External links

• Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession at IMDb
• Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession at AllMovie
• Promo on YouTube