Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival 2008

In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, idiosyncratic composer, cellist, and dance-music producer Arthur Russell crafted records that reverberated through New York nightclubs; he also collaborated with Philip Glass, Allen Ginsberg, Laurie Anderson, and director Robert Wilson. Since his death in 1992, his influence has flourished: his oddball notions of disco echo through the grooves of contemporary dance act Hercules & Love Affair; indie rocker Jens Lekman curated an EP of Russell’s art-pop songs; and his track “This Is How We Walk on the Moon” surfaced in a British T-Mobile ad last year. In WILD COMBINATION, director Matt Wolf mixes Russell’s music—some of it unheard for decades—with perceptive reminiscences from colleagues and family, performance clips, and evocative landscapes. Anchoring it all is the profoundly moving love story of Russell and his partner Tom Lee. This mesmerizing documentary mirrors Russell’s free spirit, while successfully translating his distinctive aesthetic into an eclectic yet cohesive film.