THE DRAUGHTSMAN’S CONTRACT
1982,
Zeitgeist Films,
108 min,
UK,
Dir: Peter Greenaway
Director Peter Greenaway’s first arthouse hit was this stylish and beautifully rendered murder mystery set on a rural English country estate in 1694. An artist (Anthony Higgins) is hired to draw landscapes for a wealthy couple; in its meticulous detail, the young man’s art unwittingly captures evidence of foul play. An elegant, multilayered puzzle that goes way beyond a simple “whodunit” to explore class and sexual politics.