For the
sake of not having to write the same intro a million
different ways throughout the rest of time, just know that
this column avoids the overly long and sometimes dull
process of full film reviews and instead opts to break
things down based on what I thought going in, what happened
while I was there and what I learned at the end of it all.
Thanks for reading!
The
Breakdown - If A Tree Falls
The Impression:
Been a big week for documentaries and this one, the least
known about of the lot, prickled my interest because of its
subject matter: the Environmental Liberation Front. For
those not in the know, these media-named "urban terrorists"
were the core of a radical environmental movement that
focused on burning down structures that they deemed as
center points for the destruction of the environment. It’s a
fascinating subject and any more information I can garner on
it seems exciting.
The Reality:
If A Tree Falls feels almost strange in the context
of the modern documentary. It isn’t over-polished, it
doesn’t seemingly have a bias that it’s aiming its footage
towards, it’s just a film about a subject. That subject
being Daniel McGowan, a lofty member of the E.L.F. and one
of ten members indicted by the United States government for
domestic terrorism. The story of the ELF is fascinating, as
the story of most radical movements are, and Curry does an
adequate job of gathering the right interviews and the right
archival footage and piecing them together in to a fine
telling of the ELF’s story. What irked me about the film was
the presence of Daniel McGowan as the sort of bookend of the
narrative. McGowan spent months on house arrest (even
getting married while homebound) and Curry finds him a
wealth of knowledge, yet I found the inclusion of his story
to be a distraction. I would’ve much, much rather been
presented with more extensive information about the players
and the crimes and those who hunted them. McGowan’s presence
in the film feels like Curry’s way of giving the crimes and
the consequences a human face, but it’s not needed.
Interviews with the folks behind the ELF would’ve sufficed
and given the film a more even tone. Yes, the final moments
with McGowan and his final sentence pack an emotional punch,
but it feels tacked on to an otherwise fine film.
The Lesson:
I’m harsh on documentaries. Writing about them confuses me
and confusion makes my small brain buzz with anger.
- Noah Sanders
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