BARBARA RUBIN & THE EXPLODING NY UNDERGROUND: Unmasks Feminist Filmmaker
A new biopic directed by Chuck Smith details the life of the radical beat filmmaker, Barbara Rubin, a woman who ran in the same social circles as Andy Warhol, Allen Ginsberg and Bob Dylan. Known primarily for her overtly explicit and unconventional take on censorship-era cinema, Rubin was deeply involved in planting the seed of the New York underground and New Wave American cinema.
In Barbara Rubin and the Exploding NY Underground, Smith pays homage and immortalizes Rubin’s fleeting career through a pastiche of archival ’60s film super 8 footage, photographs, and testimony from artists she influenced.
An auteur on her own terms
While Rubin’s influence on the ’60s New York counterculture is a curious, exotic topic, the documentary falls flat in some parts, ostensibly when it comes to the subject of Rubin’s body of work. Her only major film, Christmas on Earth, was a provocative, amateur art piece that she directed at only 18, featuring experimental bacchanalia, shocking nudity, masks and wailing rock n’ roll tunes from The Velvet Underground.
During the Hays-Code era, it was regarded as a progressive piece of underground cinema in the ’60s because of it’s liberal portrayal of, at the time, non-traditional sex and Rubin’s absurd, whimsical flare of showing it through dual reels. Even more so, having the work of a young female filmmaker showcased alongside an overwhelmingly male voice was unheard of, and her seminal piece soon became a key part of underground feminist cinema.
Yet, unlike her contemporaries, Rubin’s work never rose to the top of artistic relevance, Christmas on Earth eventually faded into the noise of the era. Smith‘s documentary makes it clear that her sphere of modern day influence is besides the point, that Rubin was a catalyst: “She was the one who helped make the chemistry of that period, everyone wanted to talk to her, write to her, be with her…” Said the late Jonas Mekas of Rubin.
Exactly where Smith‘s doc falters is when it takes Rubin’s work too seriously. Mainstream audiences are left shocked after viewing scenes from Rubin’s confrontational and at times crass art piece – confused when the intro of the documentary fades ambiguously into the image of a naked, frontal orifice. In fact, while Smith‘s documentary tries hard to, it fails to convince audiences that Christmas on Earth holds up today as anything other than an arty nude film.
Regardless, Barbara Rubin and the Exploding NY Underground hooks viewers when it vies into a thrilling character study of a multifaceted, increasingly conflicted individual, energetically trying to make her mark as a feminist voice in Bohemia, while at war with her own ever-changing identity. The final chapter of the documentary explores Rubin’s religious indecision, where she emphatically abandons her life as a filmmaker and converts to Hassidic Judaism, only to later marry into a group of Hare Krishna – even taking to dressing as a nun.
Conclusion: Barbara Rubin & the Exploding NY Underground
Barbara Rubin and the Exploding NY Underground represents a piece of a history. Emblematic of a moment in American art history, her story is just one dug out from the rubble of the bustling, energetic Beat Generation, among the likes of Patti Smith, Ginsberg, Warhol and company – where it was spirit, energy and the will to express yourself that mattered above meticulous technique. Rubin’s existential musings, substance abuse and reluctance to stay the same, paint the portrait of a woman scared to be rendered obsolete in a rapidly shifting world.
While Barbara Rubin and the Exploding NY Underground isn’t for everyone, Smith‘s documentary is worth a look for any fans of the New York counterculture movement. Fans of the hit documentary Regarding Susan Sontag will dually enjoy this tale of a composite woman who lived strictly on her own terms in 1960’s New York.
Will you catch Barbara Rubin and the Exploding NY Underground? Let us know down below!
Barbara Rubin and the Exploding NY Underground was released in theaters in the US on May 24, 2019. For all international release dates, see here.
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