Last night while I was in Boston I had the chance to catch a showing of the documentary Spellbound. It's about the contestants in the National Spelling Bee. I got the sense that the movie would have been a lot better if it had been a bit longer. Length seems the most challenging aspect of documentary film making. You want to satisfy the viewers hunger for information about the world you are introducing them into, but you don't want to bore them with too much. At the end I found myself wishing the film had shown me more.
Posted by matt at July 8, 2003 10:45 AM | TrackBackI was able to catch Spellbound in Atlanta. (The theater gave me the poster for free, and it's now hanging in my room.) I found the film too short as well (I think part of the trouble was profiling students after the bee), but also tremendously moving. What most affected me was the story of Angela's father, who crossed the border into the States to give his children a chance at a better life, and eventually traveled to Washington, D. C., to see his little girl prove her mastery of a language he can't speak. That's why I love America.
Posted by: mesh at July 8, 2003 11:53 AMI agree, the film was tremondously moving. The film has the potential to be an incubator of sorts, for the canvas of the future intellectual tapestry of America. I love how the movie began and ended with Angela's father's cow-calls. And the simple pleasure he seemed to derive from their continuing success.
I wanted to make the night a documentary double feature. But Seth didn't want to pay 8.75 to see Capturing the Freidmans
Posted by: matt at July 8, 2003 01:45 PMThat's too bad; I want to catch that one too. But it's a lot of gas money to hit Atlanta every weekend.
Posted by: mesh at July 8, 2003 03:41 PMMatt, you start reading the New Yorker unironically and I will beat the living piss outta you. I can't believe you just used the phrase "the canvas of the future intellectual tapestry of America." If you were in town, you'd be gettin' a beating.
Posted by: JosiahQ at July 9, 2003 10:01 AMYou're a neo-Con aren't you. Typical. BTW fix my blog would you. The right side doesn't fit. Matt
Posted by: matt at July 9, 2003 10:06 AMNeither does mine. Neither does Josiah's. Life is a hard road to travel.
Posted by: mesh at July 9, 2003 10:58 AMjust change the window size, you tossers.
Posted by: gosey at July 9, 2003 05:01 PMMy window's as big as it will get. I think. But I don't really understand technology invented after 1954. Sorry.
Posted by: mesh at July 10, 2003 11:19 AMhee hee hee....i love you, mesh.
Posted by: gosey at July 10, 2003 11:47 AMDangit, I can see the pages just fine on my browser, what the heck are you gusy using, ie 4.0? Freaking upgrade.
Posted by: JosiahQ at July 10, 2003 12:25 PMI'm using Mozilla, which is basically Netscape 1.4. Your page is fine in my browser, however mine is not.
Posted by: matt at July 10, 2003 11:38 PM