Kurt and Courtney (1998)
Kurt and Courtney created by Nick Broomfield focuses on Kurt Cobain’s mysterious suicide in 1994 and whether his wife, Courtney Love, was to blame. Broomfield is constantly seen in front of the camera interviewing subjects and actively taking part in the investigation though out the film. His presents on screen plays an essential role in the piece especially when it comes to interviews as he possesses a special relationship with each interviewee that could not be witnessed if he was behind the camera. A lot of this charm is down to his calm and placid manner. Through this he achieves the most in depth answers possible as the questions come across as un-biased while still intriguing and straight shooting. |
Due to this it would be fair to classify the piece under the mode of participatory, like all his other films. Within the piece due to the obvious presence of the film crew, as well as unsteady camera movement, such stylistic traits of the film match the clichés associated with the reflective documentary mode, also like all his other work.
These stylistic choses of the film’s mise en scene give the piece a rather raw feel though out. This overall atmosphere is exaggerated by such shots as the dreary land scape of Cobain’s home town of Aberdeen, Washington as well as the interviews themselves which are captured in the subject’s dingy home surroundings rather than a clean studio to give a strong indication of their personality. Such aspects of the documentary perfectly demonstrate a poetical manipulation.
Despite the persuasive poetic visual medium, Broomfield himself is not biased to his opinion in regards to the investigation but rather allows the audience themselves to make their own conclusion.
Louis Theroux: A Place for Paedophiles (2009)
A Place for Paedophiles documents Theroux's visit to a mental hospital in California named Coalinga. Contained there are more than 500 dangerous convicted paedophiles. Many have already served there prison sentence but are sent to Coalinga for the foreseeable future as they are still regarded un-safe. Like Broomfield, Theroux's style of documentary making features many aesthetics heavily associated with the poetic documentary mode. |
In the case of A Place for Paedophiles, such aesthetics begin immediately starting with a vast establishing shot of a desert presumably close to Coalinga creating an initial sense of place. After the gripping introduction interview snippet, shots of long decerlet roads and signs reflecting the arrival to Coalinga can be witnessed. These shots are all constructed as though filmed in a car. Delivering shots such as these give strong imagery of Theroux's journey to Coalinga while also casting a rich mese en scene for the rest of the film.
Throughout the documentary Theroux dose not over weigh the film with biased thoughts and opinions on the controversial subject matter. Instead He confers his findings and progress with the audience in a very observational and systematic way. Like in the case of all his films however he expresses his overall feelings on the subject matter in the form of a closing speech which rounds up the piece, anchoring the audiences opinion of the film through doing so.
God Bless Ozzy Osbourne (2011)
God Bless Ozzy Osbourne is a biographical documentary focusing both on Osbourne’s musical and private life. A producer of the film was Ozzy’s son Jack and it was directed by Mike Fleiss and Mike Piscitelli who followed Osbourne on tour for two years to gathering significant footage. The documentary strongly reflects the hardship and struggle that both Osbourne and the people around him went through while the rock star carried out his wild binge of drugs and alcohol which lasted forty years and how this had an effect on Osbourne as a parent. |
Within the film particularly at the beginning and the very end there are clear signs of observational documentary film making being reflected. This is seen within the fly on the wall style footage of Osbourne’s pre performance back stage rituals including skipping, exercising on a cross trainer and praying. This works effectively as the audience is able the witness as honestly as possible personal aspects of Osbourne’s off stage persounder rarely investigated closely before. Such footage puts the star in a much more earthly light. As a result such footage could also be seen as very poetic in its nature. The scene following Osbourne’s back stage rituals is contrasts dramatically heavily as it depict Osbourne’s usual satanic like presence on stage as the concert begins.
What works so well about the film is how even without a presenter or a voice of god the piece still manages to manipulate the audiences emotions buy conveying haunting and somber interviews of shocking and controversial stories from the lowest and darkest times of Osbourne’s drug binging days. One that stands out is how Osbourne, completely high on drugs, attempted to kill his wife Sharon and could not even remember the event happening the next day. Aspects of the documentary such as these are extremely performative.
Exposure: The Other Side of Jimmy Savile (2012)
The Other Side of Jimmy Savile is an investigative documentary focusing on the many un-discovered allegations against Sir Jimmy Savile accusing him of being a paedophile. The documentary is hosted and investigated in to by Mark Williams-Thomas a child protection specialist. The claims were all made by women who were at the time of the event very young teenagers. These have only arisen since Savile’s death. Like a lot of the other films I have analyzed, The Other Side of Jimmy Savile is a participatory |
style of documentary. Unlike the other films however the piece is not weight up evenly and left to the audiences interpretation, but rather very biased and one in its argument leaving no doubt to the audience Williams-Thomas’s personal feelings on the matter. This is a strong example of political reflexivity.
Throughout the documentary with each traumatic memory recollected by Savile’s various victims re-enacted scenes visually reflecting the scene being described can be witnessed. Although clumsy, poorly executed and extremely un-necessary, the re-enacted footage gives the audience a strong awareness of the horrific atmosphere created by such atrocities, something the film makers obviously did not think the interviews themselves did alone. As a result of such visual medium these aspects of the film act as examples of docufiction.
