Documentary Review – Exit Through the Gift Shop
Exit Through the Gift Shop is a documentary about the life and ideas of street artists around the world from a firsthand point of view. It starts with a man, Thierry Guetta, being introduced to street art by his cousin. He films everything. He eventually claims he’s going to make a documentary on street art and starts to make some connections. He meets popular artists around the world and helps them with their adventures. He’s grown to be a friend of many. He has hundreds of tapes filled with everything he’s ever filmed, but he still lacks meeting or having any footage of Banksy, one of the most famous street artists from Britain. By complete luck, Banksy ends up staying with Thierry in Los Angeles. Banksy allows Thierry to follow him around anywhere he goes and invites him back to Britain with him. This starts Thierry’s new life. He starts working on the documentary, but it ends up being awful. Banksy tells him to try some of his own art. Thierry Guetta creates his own styling and goes by the name of Mister Brainwash. He eventually produces one of the largest, most advertised showcases ever before he’s developed a name for himself with help of a large staff. He loses some respect due to this (including mine). He makes millions and attracts the attention of thousands.
Exit Through the Gift Shop is a strange and unique documentary. It has all the normal aspects of film: literary, dramatic, and cinematic, but not in the usual way.
Literary: Exit Through the Gift Shop was not a scripted documentary. The characters were themselves. It was shot by Thierry Guetta, and artist himself. It was set wherever the artists went (mostly California). The movie had the intentions to inform viewers about street art and its motives. However, these motives weren’t exactly conveyed by the main character himself. The main mood of the film is curious.
Dramatic: The actors in this documentary were nothing out of the norm. They wore normal street wear and didn’t have any make-up on other than unintentional paint. The actors were the artists, so they were mostly a bit secretive, but layed-back. This film was shot mostly in Los Angelees with footage in a few other countries as well as some archival footage.
Cinematic: Nearly the entire documentary was shot handheld with a normal video camera, not some $50,000 cinema camera that shoots at 4k. It was shot by just an average man from Los Angeles. Most angles are from below or behind due to the artists wanting to remain mostly anonymous or the art being on a roof. There wasn’t much in the ways of editing: not much color correction, etc. The lighting was pretty much what was provided throughout the shot. The music and sound effects are mostly what’s given in the background of the shot. It was a pretty basic film that wanted to communicate an idea, not be a work of art (get it?).
I enjoyed this documentary somewhat. I’m interested in street art and graffiti: I like the way it expresses yourself, but forces you to express yourself in a risky way. It shows that they truly care about what they’re communicating. I think most of the people were doing it for this reason and not do be some rebel and anarchist, or a looked-down-upon figure of society. I actually respect them for what they do now. However, the main character, Thierry or Mr. Brainwash, started to bother me in the second half of the film. He became to full of himself. I would recommend this documentary to anyone. I feel it expresses the perspective of these frowned-upon figures, and I think most people would probably even be able to relate to them. Many people are quick to judge, and this documentary makes you pause and think. This film is powerful for viewers. It’s one of the few films about the subject of street art and really tells the viewer what these artists truly mean.
Exit Through the Gift Shop, 87 minutes, Rated R, 8.1/10 (IMDB)
Exit Through the Gift Shop is a documentary about the life and ideas of street artists around the world from a firsthand point of view. It starts with a man, Thierry Guetta, being introduced to street art by his cousin. He films everything. He eventually claims he’s going to make a documentary on street art and starts to make some connections. He meets popular artists around the world and helps them with their adventures. He’s grown to be a friend of many. He has hundreds of tapes filled with everything he’s ever filmed, but he still lacks meeting or having any footage of Banksy, one of the most famous street artists from Britain. By complete luck, Banksy ends up staying with Thierry in Los Angeles. Banksy allows Thierry to follow him around anywhere he goes and invites him back to Britain with him. This starts Thierry’s new life. He starts working on the documentary, but it ends up being awful. Banksy tells him to try some of his own art. Thierry Guetta creates his own styling and goes by the name of Mister Brainwash. He eventually produces one of the largest, most advertised showcases ever before he’s developed a name for himself with help of a large staff. He loses some respect due to this (including mine). He makes millions and attracts the attention of thousands.
Exit Through the Gift Shop is a strange and unique documentary. It has all the normal aspects of film: literary, dramatic, and cinematic, but not in the usual way.
Literary: Exit Through the Gift Shop was not a scripted documentary. The characters were themselves. It was shot by Thierry Guetta, and artist himself. It was set wherever the artists went (mostly California). The movie had the intentions to inform viewers about street art and its motives. However, these motives weren’t exactly conveyed by the main character himself. The main mood of the film is curious.
Dramatic: The actors in this documentary were nothing out of the norm. They wore normal street wear and didn’t have any make-up on other than unintentional paint. The actors were the artists, so they were mostly a bit secretive, but layed-back. This film was shot mostly in Los Angelees with footage in a few other countries as well as some archival footage.
Cinematic: Nearly the entire documentary was shot handheld with a normal video camera, not some $50,000 cinema camera that shoots at 4k. It was shot by just an average man from Los Angeles. Most angles are from below or behind due to the artists wanting to remain mostly anonymous or the art being on a roof. There wasn’t much in the ways of editing: not much color correction, etc. The lighting was pretty much what was provided throughout the shot. The music and sound effects are mostly what’s given in the background of the shot. It was a pretty basic film that wanted to communicate an idea, not be a work of art (get it?).
I enjoyed this documentary somewhat. I’m interested in street art and graffiti: I like the way it expresses yourself, but forces you to express yourself in a risky way. It shows that they truly care about what they’re communicating. I think most of the people were doing it for this reason and not do be some rebel and anarchist, or a looked-down-upon figure of society. I actually respect them for what they do now. However, the main character, Thierry or Mr. Brainwash, started to bother me in the second half of the film. He became to full of himself. I would recommend this documentary to anyone. I feel it expresses the perspective of these frowned-upon figures, and I think most people would probably even be able to relate to them. Many people are quick to judge, and this documentary makes you pause and think. This film is powerful for viewers. It’s one of the few films about the subject of street art and really tells the viewer what these artists truly mean.
Exit Through the Gift Shop, 87 minutes, Rated R, 8.1/10 (IMDB)
*As you can see, this wasn't really written for the sake of being well written. I don't entirely feel a review is the most effective way to learn about media. Experiencing it, I'd say, is simpler, and likely achieves the objective. I watched this documentary, formed my own opinions, learned about street art, and paid attention to how the film was made. So basically, I think I learned what I needed to. I also think I have a general knowledge of how to make a video at this point, as well. Often times, video-making can be quite formulaic, especially a documentary. The ones that aren't, I've found, are usually some of the most interesting, however.
