What happens when a movie star retires at the pinnacle of his career and pursues a career in hip-hop? Well the answer to that question is exactly what happens in this... documentary. Starring Joaquin Phoenix and directed by Casey Affleck (Ben's younger brother and Joaquin's brother in law) the documentary is clearly trying too damn hard.
Right from the start we're made to believe that Joaquin has quit acting. Who're you trying to fool Joaquin? The documentary was busted for being a mockumentary, and quite frankly it even did a bad job there. Don't get me wrong, I love mockumentaries. Spinal Tap is probably the best one ever made out there, but Spinal Tap mocked the genre, the larger than life characters, here Affleck and Phoenix mock the audience, culture and the documentary itself. The subject of the documentary, according to Phoenix and Affleck, are actually "celebrity" and "fame". It's the kind of subject matter that Orson Welles would love to have taken on, but we don't have Orson, we have Casey and Joaquin. This is the sort of movie that has come about because of the "Borat" and "Ali G" movies. More driven towards shocking audiences rather than entertaining them. On the plus side, the looks on people, the celebs, and everybody who greets Joaquin, are priceless. But even that isn't enough.
By the end of it all, I just wasn't there anymore.
Note: This review is for my blog. If you'd like to reprint this, please email me for permission. If you're from SHE Magazine, please stop stealing my blogposts. I hope you get a yeast infection and die. Thank you.
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