“Bound by Flesh” (2012), Leslie Zemeckis’ splashy, heavily edited, busy but still talking-head-driven documentary about the Siamese twins, Daisy and Violet Hilton, who became sideshow stars in the early twentieth century, collates a fantastic amount of fabulous material while never attaining cinematic form. The editorial pace manages to be both pummeling and deadening. Zemeckis’ earlier work includes the so-so documentary on classic burlesque, “Behind the Burly Q.” 90m. (Ray Pride)
“Bound by Flesh” opens Friday, August 29 at Siskel.
Ray Pride is Newcity’s Senior Editor and Film Critic. He is a contributing editor of Filmmaker magazine.
Ray’s history of Chicago Ghost Signs is planned for publication next year. Previews of the project are on Twitter and on Instagram. More photography on Instagram.
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