Koyaanisqatsi [1] came out in 1983, and I remember that Siskel and Ebert both gave the film a thumbs up dispite having no plot, no characters, no dialog (follows from the “no characters” bit) and thematically a bit confusing, since koyaanisqatsi means “life out of balance” and the film tries to show the conflicting nature of man and nature but all the visuals are simply too beautiful to convey this meaning.
Still, it seemed an intriguing film, but one that I didn't get around to watch until the late 80s.
I'm at FAU (Florida Atlantic University) [2] sitting in “Music Appreciation Class” with my friend Bill when the professor walks in pushing a cart with a TV (Television) and VCR (Video Cassette Recorder) and announces that we're watching a movie called Koyaanisqatsi because the score was written by one Philip Glass [3], a modern composer. He slips the tape into the machine, presses “Play” and turns off the lights. I sit back expecting an interesting film.
Ninety minutes later, we wake up.
It's a soothing film. Flowing visuals. Flowing music. Coma inducing if you aren't prepared for it. Koyaanisqatsi may be this great film, but my feeling is that it makes for a great background experience, not a forground one.
That is, unless you've got a major caffeine rush going.
[1] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085809/