Cavedigger

2013 "Underground. Under the radar. Underappreciated."
7.1| 0h39m| en
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Ra Paulette digs cathedral-like, 'eighth wonder of the world' art caves into the sandstone cliffs of Northern New Mexico. Each creation takes years to complete, and each is a masterwork. But patrons who have commissioned caves have cut off nearly all of his projects due to artistic differences. Fed up, Ra has chosen to forego all commissions to create his own Magnum Opus, a massive 10-year project.

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Reviews

Greenes Please don't spend money on this.
Limerculer A waste of 90 minutes of my life
Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.
Siflutter It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.
wlynn-13-66598 A remarkable film worth watching. I was held by, both, the beauty of Ra Paulette's creation and the complex honesty captured by the film-maker. I heartily recommend this quirky documentary to others. At a pragmatic level, I love the way the movie held me, simultaneously, in solidarity with the main character's struggle against other people's efforts to control his clearly visionary endeavor, and yet frustrated with his own seeming inability to "play-well" with others in the sandbox of his creations. The movie seem's especially potent as a metaphorical tale regarding the universal human dilemma to rise out of our existential day-to-day, down-in-the-dirt struggle to merely survive, in order to leave behind some extraordinary witness of our presence in the world.
Lewin Wertheimer Cavedigger, by Jeffrey Karoff, has just been nominated for an Academy Award for best short documentary. The nomination is more than deserved.This 40 minute jewel is about a unique artist who digs and sculpts caves in New Mexico. It is about creating beautiful art and the trials and tribulations of being a commissioned artist. The story told is of how the desire and drive to create singular art is stronger than all the other challenges of age, money, and client needs. Ra, the cave digger, is a kind, soft spoken man with a dream that he is creating and an inspiring level of perseverance in the face of whatever obstacles come his way. The beautiful film footage of these exquisite caves is awe inspiring and a wild trip that will equally captivate both nature and art lovers.
ikoslow-902-728247 Jeffrey Karoff has created a deep, rich exploration of a man who creates wondrous spaces dug out of the sides of mountains. The title is just a teaser as to the reality of his projects. Cave is defined as:noun 1. a hollow in the earth, especially one opening more or less horizontally into a hill, mountain, etc.Thus one thinks of something completely different than the brightly lit living spaces created by this artist. Not only does Karoff show the creation of the caves, but digs into the life of the artist and shows his personal and business relationships as well, All this done with a light touch, that leaves the documentarian completely in the background without distraction from the main focus. Words are inadequate to describe this piece and you must see it to get the full impact of the enormity of this artist's work. Thumbs up!
David Banks Cavedigger takes you on the journey of Ra Paulette, a singular, driven man whose art is creating caves in the sandstone hills of New Mexico.The word "caves" doesn't really do justice to what Ra creates, they are truly works of art that need to be seen, just as Cavedigger needs to be seen. It tells the tale of one man's need to express himself no matter the odds. His artistic goals sometimes run counter to those of his patrons, and his need to support his family, and his own race against time and age, working in an art form that's incredibly physically demanding. The documentary does a terrific job showing how and why this man is determined never to stop. He says that there may be an end to his need to create, but after watching this mesmerizing film, that's hard to imagine. For him, it's a spiritual journey, and Cavedigger itself is a journey into both the art he creates and the driven soul behind the art.