Collapse

Mark Harris

Mark Harris

Pain in the ass
Saw this doc over the weekend at Angelika.

http://www.collapsemovie.com/COLLAPSEMOVIE/

Was pretty well done, but I thought leaned way way to hard on Errol Morris. So hard, in fact, that it felt like a direct imitation.

However, I felt like the constantly moving camera got in the way.

Also, in general, I don't think the director made a hard enough choice about what his film was about. It starts off about what the guy is talking about, and at the end, kind of delves into the man himself, but I feel like it just doesn't commit to it enough. There was one telling moment when the director asks him a question and Ruppert just goes off on some other subject entirely. And that's where I kind of wish it would have gone more. Would have told us more about him as a man I think.

Compared to, say, Morris's McNamara doc, where he took you right into the heart of this guy whom many hate and showed you his private griefs, regrets, etc. This one didn't get there.
 
Compared to, say, Morris's McNamara doc, where he took you right into the heart of this guy whom many hate and showed you his private griefs, regrets, etc. This one didn't get there.
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McNamara documentary was about a single men, his vision(or lack of it) and his disguised redemption, hence the need to go "into his heart" - whatever it means- ;)
I haven't seen the Collapse yet, thanks for reminding it. Knowing Ruppert's ideas quite well I dont think this documentary would be about the man himself but rather what he is talking about -as you observed-...
Perhaps this doc is one of those "look at what I am pointing at, not to my hand" case.
If it is informative I dont care too much about the filmic qualities of a doc... A political doc is very rarely well made anyway...
 
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I think this movie might be one of the more overlooked and important documentaries of the last few years. Whether or not you agree with Ruppert's assertions as to where we're collectively going, there are facts here that are not open to debate (peak oil, global overpopulation). He presents them with conviction and clarity, and though I think the filmmaker, Chris Smith, would portray Ruppert as unhinged, what we get instead are theories, based in fact, that come across as nothing short of frightening.

Even if you take Ruppert out of the equation as a messenger, the message is still unsettling.

http://www.filmeveryday.com/2010/02/01/collapse/
 
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