In 1968, Danish poet and filmmaker Jørgen Leth created Det perfekte menneske (The Perfect Human), a curiously-compelling short film in which a narrator unemotionally describes and analyzes the everyday routines and rituals of a Danish man and woman. It's almost a parody of an anthropological film—Leth studied anthroplogy at university—but it has the feeling of an experimental film of the era, which, of course, it is.
" I was very interested by the aesthetic universe of commercials," Leth said in a 2018 interview. "…I wanted to use the simplicity of the commercial and aesthetic precision—in a new fiction, a new fictional idea… This film is a laboratory, where I study humans."
Leth became a sports commentator—covering the Tour de France for Danish television for decades—and directed several acclaimed sports documentaries.
The Perfect Human score is by Fluxus composer Henning Christiansen.
