Before I Close My Eyes

This video focuses on three contemporary Vietnamese men, dressed in Vietnam War-era uniforms, as they watch a recording of the historic televised suicide of Hòa thượng Thích Quảng Đức, the Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhist monk who burned himself to death at a busy Saigon intersection on June 11, 1963, an act of protest that shocked the world and ultimately led to the demise of the American-supported Diem regime. The video is structured, shot for shot, after the pivotal mental breakdown scene in Ingmar Bergman’s 1966 film PERSONA.

Director

Bruce Yonemoto

Released

January 1, 2010

Language

English