My Architect: A Son's Journey

Theatrical Release Date: 2003 11 12 (USA - Limited)

UPC: 717119901547

Studio: New Yorker Video

Summary: My Architect is filmmaker Nathaniel Kahn's intimate exploration of his father's life. Louis Kahn, the renowned architect, was found dead in Penn Station in 1974. He died in massive debt. His obituary in The New York Times mentioned Kahn's importance to modern architecture, but did not mention that he had a son. As it turned out, very few people knew that Louis Kahn led a kind of double life. He had a wife and daughter, but he also had two other children by two mistresses. Nathaniel traces his father's past, from his childhood to his prominence in the world of architecture. He interviews Louis' peers, including Frank Gehry, Philip Johnson, and I.M. Pei. He also interviews his own mother and his two half sisters. The filmmaker tries to reconcile his father's prestige with his financial ruin, and his passion for his work with his insensitive treatment of the women in his life and the children he fathered. He also travels the globe examining his father's legacy -- the buildings he designed throughout the world. My Architect was shown at New Directors/New Films in 2003. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Category: Visual Arts [nf]

Awards: Gold Hugo – Chicago International Film Festival Best Documentary Feature – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Outstanding Directorial Achievement – Directors Guild of America Best Documentary – National Board of Review Best Documentary – Independent Spirit Awards Truer Than Fiction Award – Independent Spirit Awards Best Documentary Feature – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Features: ccQuestion and answer with director Nathaniel Kahn including extra scenes and rare historical footage of Louis Kahn
Original theatrical trailer
Scene selections

My Architect: A Son's Journey

Format: DVD

Release Date: 02/15/2005

Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Pre-1954 Standard

Audio: DD2 Dolby Digital Stereo

Runtime: 116 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English

Chapters: Side #1 --
1. Beginnings...
2. Looking in Philadelphia
3. Heading West
4. The Immigrant
5. Dreams of a Better City
6. Going to Sea
7. The Truth About the Bastard
8. The Nomad
9. Family Matters
10. The End of the Journey
11. Credits

Josh Ralske

Nathaniel Kahn's My Architect is a fascinating and moving document of the filmmaker's quest to understand his father's life and work. As Kahn's father was the historically important architect Louis Kahn, the film's exploration offers both a valuable look at late-20th century architecture and a deeply personal search, as Nathaniel tries to fathom why his father lived the way he did, forsaking his personal and financial responsibilities. Far from a hagiography, My Architect is critical, not only of the way Louis lived his life (not just his home life, but his inability to work well with others) but of some of the architect's heralded buildings as well. However, as Nathaniel travels the country, and the world, filming his father's buildings, and interviewing his associates, we get a clearer sense of the man's genius. From both an emotional and architectural standpoint, the film's highlight is when Nathaniel travels to Bangladesh to see the monumental, genuinely awe-inspiring capital his father designed for the impoverished nation in Dakha, which was not completed until nine years after Louis' death. As Bangladeshi architect Shamsul Wares tearfully explains to Nathaniel, "He gave us the institution for democracy." Louis Kahn's great work does not excuse his personal failings, but his story makes for an absorbing and thought-provoking film. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Harriet Pattison  Actor 
Esther Kahn  Actor 
Philip Johnson  Actor 
Anne Tyng  Actor 
Sue Ann Kahn  Actor 
Alexandra Tyng  Actor 
I.M. Pei  Actor 
Shamsul Wares  Actor 
Edmund Bacon  Actor 
Joseph Vitarelli  Composer (Music Score) 
Nathaniel Kahn  Director 
Nathaniel Kahn  Producer 
Nathaniel Kahn  Screenwriter 
Andrew Clayman  Executive Producer 
Darrell Friedman  Executive Producer 
Robert Guzzardi  Executive Producer 
Harold Honickman  Executive Producer 
Lynne Honickman  Executive Producer 
Susan Rose Behr  Executive Producer 
Susan Rose Behr  Producer 
Nathaniel Kahn  Actor 
Louis I. Kahn  Actor 

Country: USA