American Movie

The passion we see here is inspiring, and some of my favorite moments were some of the black and white shots Mark Borchardt captured for his indie film effort, rather than the comedic moments of pathos. It seems he had a real eye for framing and aesthetics, and it's a shame he wasn't on a better path than partying and then the army. If he had in the end produced a work of genius or gone on to big things this documentary would have been more interesting to me. I was pulling for him and smiling over the eccentricities of all these people, including his crusty old uncle, mentally slow but loyal burnout of a friend, sweet and patient mother, and his brutally blunt brothers. It's authentic but began to feel a little bit like a circus, where the sadness of these lives are there for our entertainment, or a celebration of mediocrity. I was engaged throughout though.