Synopsis
Routemaster is a montage of rhythmically organised repetitions, involving an abstraction of movement that increases in frequency and scale. The basic framework of the film is provided by the interweaving of two sets of opposing materials. On the one hand, it uses black and white images that constantly accelerate and vary rhythmically, representing the inexorable movement of racing cars. On the other, it uses colour images, slowed to a crawl, details of a chequered flag fluttering in the wind. The escalating speed, increasing abstraction and repetition of mosaic images lead to manipulated but realistic images of human bodies used in crash tests. In the end, all that remains is the black and white flash of speed, the gyrating pulse of the mosaic, the detail of the human bodies and the intense soundtrack. Routemaster has some of the qualities of a live concert.
