Cinematheque takes the release of Charles Burnett’s acclaimed new film To Sleep With Anger as the occasion to re-screen his first feature film, Killer of Sheep (1976, 75 min.). One of the finest achievements of the recent independent feature movement, Killer… unflinchingly depicts the urban environment of the Watts ghetto in a narrative combining fictionalized characters with a portrayal of natural life in the inner city that is often astonishing in its authenticity. Brimming with vitality in both the life that it records as well as its sensitivity to the sounds and images of the Watts landscape, Burnett made a one-of-a-kind film which is also a unique cultural document. Also, Burnett’s short Horse.

pictured: Killer of Sheep (1976) by Charles Burnett