Documentary Film Review Archives

American Experience: Walt Disney — Review by Jim Martin

The PBS – American Experience: Walt Disney documentary provides an uncensored, well researched, exploration of Walt Disney, the man, his work, and his passion for achieving goals. The 221 minute documentary looks into Walt Disney’s contributions to the art of film, his strengths and weaknesses. The film examines Disney’s great insight into American culture and at other times his opaque insensitivity to historical, political and social issues facing Americans. Walt Disney was an artist and an entrepreneur, greatly aided in his goals by Roy Disney, his brother, who complemented Walt’s obsessive personality with practical nuance.

American Experience: Walt Disney informs and entertains. It is a great biography of Disney and the development of animated feature films. From a historical filmmaking point of view the documentary is a treasure trove of information, enhanced by the unlimited access given American Experience, to the Disney historical archives. There are photographs, and documentary footage of Walt Disney though out his life. Disney seemed to have someone there taking pictures or shooting activities all the time. The film’s narrative structure is greatly enhanced by this visual actuality of these events. Interviews with those people who knew Walt Disney also help tell the story. There is a linear chronology of Walt Disney’s life contrasted with events around him. Clips from classic Disney films are included throughout the documentary.

Walt Disney’s early attempts at creating short cartoons for distribution ultimately lead to Mickey Mouse; demonstrating Disney’s innovation including the first use of audio for an animated short. These early scenes in the documentary may be of particular interest to aspiring filmmakers as well as Disney fans.

One of the most interesting aspects of the documentary is Walt Disney’s idea to create a feature-length animated film that was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Because of Disney’s determination to create a perfect, artistic film that transcended the notion that animation was only for cartoons, Snow White took five years to make and greatly exceeded its original budget. When it was finally released it was a huge national and international success. It achieved all that Disney intended, except winning an Oscar for Best Film. It did win an Oscar for innovation which didn’t really meet Disney’s expectations.

American Experience: Walt Disney is set up in two parts that total four hours. It is well-edited and does not lag or get redundant. In fact there seems to be a pick-up of pace in the last hour to cover Disney Land creation, it’s success, the beginnings of Epcot, Disney World in Florida and Walt’s untimely death at age 65 from Lung Cancer. This is a biographical film about Walt Disney; however, it might have included more about his brother and alter ego Roy Disney. This is not to say Roy’s important role in Walt Disney’s life is ignored. It’s that Roy seems to always be in the shadows making things happen and trying to rein in his brother. It would have been interesting to know more about Roy and how he accomplished these things. Perhaps Roy Disney is another story.

The documentary does not gloss over Walt Disney’s problems with his employees, unions, his obsession with communists everywhere, or his insensitivity to minorities and racial stereotypes like those seen in Song of the South and other Disney films, television programs and other endeavors. In many ways it seems from watching the documentary that Walt Disney mirrored the cultural biases of his generation.

American Experience: Walt Disney does what an excellent biographical documentary should do. It explores reality, in this case the life of Walt Disney, with the goal of understanding who he was as a person and what he created during his lifetime. The successes, the failures and personality traits of a creative human being in the context of the world they lived in.

American Experience: Walt Disney aired on PBS in mid September 2015. It is available on Apple TV, PBS online and on DVD from PBS and Amazon.

Review by James R (Jim) Martin – Documentary Filmmaker and Author

Create Documentary Films, Videos and Multimedia: A Comprehensive Guide to Using Documentary Storytelling Techniques for Film, Video, the Internet and Digital Media Projects.

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American Experience: Walt Disney

Review also appears on jrmartinmedia.com

Rothko’s Rooms – The World of Mark Rothko Abstract Artist

ROTHKO’S ROOMS, produced and directed by David Thompson is a journey into the world of Mark Rothko (1903 to 1970), who in the period from 1940 into 1960’s was one of the leading American Painters in the Modern Art world. The unique thing about this educational documentary is that it goes beyond mere facts and history. Using action, interviews, archival elements, and additional footage, the documentary story penetrates Rothko’s abstract view of the world — unlocking the door to Rothko’s abstract work. This is a beautifully crafted documentary film well worth watching.

Rothko’s work and fragments of his life are brought into focus with the aid of voice over narration by Dilly Barlow. Also interviews and commentary with Sean Scully, Artist, Brian O’Douherty, writer/artist, and other artists, friends, family, critics, art historians, collectors and museum curators. One technique used throughout the documentary is to conduct the interviews in front of subjectively lit paintings by Rothko. This has an amazing effect, like being there with someone giving you a guided tour. Classical music, Mozart (Rothko enjoyed Mozart), is used in the film under interviews and in other scenes. Between interviews and commentary there are moments when you are allowed to spend a few moments on your own with the work and music.

ROTHKO’S ROOMS looks at Mark Rothko’s life from age ten when his family moved from Russia to Portland Oregon. Upon graduating from high school he won a scholarship to Yale. According to his daughter he did not begin his career as an artist until after he finished studying and then moved to New York City. The documentary makes a beautiful transition from archival photographs of Rothko to New York City and a series of shots of the city in a twilight rush of colors. The lighting and cinematography in ROTHKO’S ROOMS is excellent and helps to tell the story. It goes beyond simply getting a good exposure. The sound track whether it’s music or the sound of a subway train pulling into the platform, also helps set the mood and subjectively narrate scenes.

ROTHKO’S ROOMS goes a long way in helping one to understand abstract modern art; how the work represents emotion, environment and the artist’s presentation of those realities. The film looks at Rothko’s early years, his time at Yale, his evolution from the early years and New York abstract minimalism to his later painting. Like many artists Rothko did not like labels. He wanted his work to stand on its own. Rothko said: “I’m not interested in the relationship of color or form or anything else. I’m interested only in expressing basic human emotions – tragedy, ecstasy, doom and so on… The people who weep before my pictures are having the same religious experience as I had when I painted them.”

ROTHKO’S ROOMS examines the circumstances surrounding Mark Rothko’s refusal to deliver work he was commissioned to create for a space in the new Segrams Building in New York City. He apparently did not understand that the work would be exhibited in a Four Season’s restaurant. He visited the restaurant before the installation happened and returned the $35,000 fee he had received. This work is now exhibited in the Tate Modern in London, England.

ROTHKO’S ROOMS is both an informative and entertaining documentary. It should be watched by anyone interested in understanding modern art, Mark Rothko’s work or enjoying an excellent documentary film. But the major achievement of this documentary is that it brings you closer to Rothko’s work and his message.

J R MARTIN – AUTHOR – Documentary Directing and Storytelling – REAL DEAL PRESS

ROTHKO’S ROOMS -2000 – 60 MINUTES PRODUCED AND DIRECTED BY DAVID THOMSON, CAMERA MIKE ROBINSON, FILM EDITOR MALCOLM DANIEL © BBC -DISTRIBUTION KULTUR

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Rothko’s Rooms / Mark Rothko

Create Documentary Films, Videos and Multimedia: A Comprehensive Guide to Using Documentary Storytelling Techniques for Film, Video, the Internet and Digital Media Projects.

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