Jan Svankmajer is becoming one of my favorite filmmakers. His Alice movie introduced me to a new world of cinematic animation and surrealism. And now Faust takes me further into that world. Again, he has chosen to adapt one of my favorite books, Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus.This movie has less stop-motion animation than Alice, but it has more surreal imagery. Again Svankmajer shows a talent to create scenes full of dread, dark humor and mystery. Characters quote from the original play, sets change around instantly, opera invades the movie halfway in, men turn into puppets, plasticine creatures become human. This is just a sample of what anyone can find in the movie. And the art direction is great: the sets are grimy, dusty, decadent. It looks like it takes place in a very old world.Once again the filmmaker isn't concerned with realism. This is fiction, and he knows it. When puppets show up, he closes in on the hands moving them. Other times he shows an audience watching the play within the movie, and sometimes Faustus can't even distinguish which is which.This is a great surrealist movie, perhaps superior to Alice. Anyone who enjoys Marlowe's play or a good strange movie should get a kick out of this.

For mainly a Czech film, this is a good surreal film with interesting puppet and stop motion sequences. I can really only work out most of the beginning, where Petr Cepek as Faust is given a map in the street from some guy. He ignores this at first, but eventually he is convinced to go to where the map points out something in red. In this place which seems to be a theatre of some sort, there are many of surrealist events that (for me) make hardly any sense. It seems to be Faust has been given some powers and rule over the many puppet and clay characters, or something like that. It ends with him running out (like the previous visitor), and getting run over. All voices by Andrew Sachs. Worth watching!

The first time I saw 'Faust', I was instantly compelled, and completely indulged in it's content, framing, sound, atmosphere..if you are a Svankmajer fan, or just finding out about his work, this is one film that I recommend owning. Svankmajers 'Faust' has become one of my number 1 favorite films, of all time. I have watched it more than 1,000 times over the last 5 years, and still adore every moment of it. Definitely touches upon dissimilar content than 'Alice'. And I do think that it may be difficult for some viewers to get use to its random, and experimental aspects of sound and imagery. I do wish that I could find the Czech Language version..or does that not exist? I have the English language version on DVD and VHS...does anyone know if there is an original undubbed copy available somewhere?

Faust embodies what it is to be Surreal. Svankmajer has captured the essence of a dream in full form and put its application to the archetypal story of Dr. Faustus.The integration of live action, puppetry, and stop-motion animation is the work of a true genius/madman.If you are looking for something to exercise the bizarre regions of the brain and the human imagination, WATCH THIS FILM. you shan't regret it.