Talking Heads

Norberto L pez Amado and Carlos Carcas' terrific-looking documentary traces the career of prolific English architect Norman Foster from his humble origins in Manchester, UK, to the top of his profession, visits some of his most iconic structures, and explores how the Mozart of Modernism has been influenced by the world of art in his designs. Alternating soaring, sensuous aerial and interior cinematography of landmark projects (including the Hearst Tower in NYC, the Faber and Dumas offices in Ipswich, England, the Millau Viaduct in Gorges du Tarn, France, the HSBC headquarters in Hong Kong, the reconstruction of the Reichstag in Berlin, the Great Court of London's British Museum and Terminal 3 of the Beijing airport, the largest building on the planet), expert talking heads commentary, and interviews with the man himself, the film outlines the major turning points in Foster's life. After a first firm formed with Yale classmate Richard Rogers dissolved, Foster progressed into socially utopian industrial architecture. Sharing his visionary friend Buckminster Fuller's philosophy of more for less, Foster soon earned acclaim for his spare, expressive designs and new ways of dealing with materials. As his practice went global, he moved beyond individual buildings to create entire urban living environments, including Masdar in Abu Dhabi, which is designed to be the first zero waste, zero carbon-footprint city in the world, complete with driver-less vehicles and elevated walkways.

Professor Michael Eric Dyson argues that cultural issues may be the only hope for Republicans as the economy heads for an upswing.