Throughout the reading and the brief introduciton to the movie I read how documentary’s are thought to be realism on reality but they are mostly manipulation of actuality. Daniel spoke briefly about the three main factors of documentary which are the they purport to present actual people, events, objects and ideas outside the film. Documentary films often argue or manipulate the audience and they have an interesting relationship with narrative. Whilst mockumentary’s are also part of this genre all tackle elements of the real world. There is no completely objective documentary’s, they want us as audiences to pay attention, to tune in and out at certain moments. As for an observational documentary they can be harder to tell whats going on, they ultimately try to manipulate the viewer to your point of view. The overall purpose of documentaries is to leave with not a lesson but a feeling, the idea between complex themes making sure you follow along without falling asleep. Often they use tools such as; archive footage, public domain, original interviews, footage, reenactment and news clips.
Documentaries that we discussed and I have seen is Supersize me Morgan spur lock 2004, One year lease Brian Bolster 2014 which shows rentals and apartments rather than getting angry they use voicemails as a film it’s observational and mash up. Louis Theoroux is another documentary maker who makes it very easy to see what they’re trying to do, he really produces the rawness and discover an honest side to different people and events. Werner Herzog a documentary maker who often goes on philosophical tangents and he is very self aware of his style and how he puts things together. We looked at Grizzly man Werner Herzog 2005 where he interviews cut form news and what the guy shot himself combined with Herzog a tangents.
I think the thing about documentary’s is how much you think about them afterwards, for me I think about that voice tape and how tragically horrific that would’ve been to listen too, it makes me wonder what was on there and how the events went down. Out of all the screenings we have seen this semester this was the one I reacted to the most, I laughed and Timothy’s bizarre and quirky personality and I cried when his friends told stories of him. I think what I love the most about this is just how raw and honest the whole thing was.
The whole documentary itself was a journey, the beginning set up the situation and established who Timothy was and what happened.
My all time favourite parts of this documentary was the bee scene, I don’t know why but it just got me. I could not stop laughing for a few minutes. I think because the first half of the scene really shows his true emotion of who he is, reflecting his kind natured spirit and his love for all animals and things. Yet the second half really reflects his quirkiness and just the things he comes up with is so bizarre making him such a loveable character I find it really upsetting that he died. However I think after watching the film I understand that its where he wanted to be and he wouldn’t of had it any other way.
Throughout the reading I read how they try to manipulate in a way, the way a viewer find their opinion of the piece. For me this stems as true as Herzog set up Timothy in such a witty and engaging, loveable guy that I felt inclined to support him and everything he believed in. So when we saw a clip of a guy saying “he got what he deserved” I felt quite offended by that, almost as if he were dishonouring what Timothy stood for. It made me consider people who climb everest, yes they understand the risks they are taking and they will happily die for the cause they believe in but that doesn’t mean that if an avalanche kills them its what they deserved.
Overall this movie took me on an emotional rollercoaster, it was incredibly touching and such an engaging film that carried me from beginning to end on Timothy’s journey. I love the combination of original footage, news voice overs and interviews of the people that knew Timothy, Herzog used all of this specifically and calculated to help establish the story into something more substantial and represent who Timothy is as a human being. I thought this documentary was really beautiful in all aspects, it was honest and raw and that is something I really engage with in documentary’s.
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