Synopsis
The 1986 Eurythmics tour of Japan. It is the end of the world tour during which Annie Lennox (vocals) and Dave Stewart (guitar) promote their latest album Revenge. It is also, between concerts, the shock of discovery: a world of sounds as cultivated by the Japanese, both brutally technological and highly refined traditional expressions.
A word from Tënk
Long panther coat, bleached hair, ghetto-blaster on the shoulder and synthesisers - there’s no doubt about it, we’re back in the 1980s. As he follows Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart on their Japanese tour, Amos Gitaï offers us much more than a simple chronicle on touring musicians; he casts a critical gaze on the position of the West with regards to a different culture and the dangers of trivialising it. Over long sequences, the two musicians, who seem genuinely fascinated by Japanese culture, appear very often like bulls in a china shop, finally paying little attention to their hosts.
The excellent work of the chief camerawoman, Nurith Aviv, is also worthy of note on concert shots, filmed camera on the shoulder in sequence shots, perfectly embracing the group’s performances.
Brand New Day is a two-headed film that offers us an insight into the cultural, and therefore political challenges of its time.
Sylvain Bich
Film projectionist
