The American Movie DVD is vital viewing for any fans of this documentary about Hollywood dreams in Wisconsin because it contains Coven, the short film directed by the movie's subject, Mark Borchardt. Coven is the bizarre, ultra-low-budget film the audience sees being made in American Movie; being able to watch them back-to-back is highly enjoyable. Borchardt comes off like an inspired loon in the documentary, but watching his art stand alone adds extra depth to American Movie -- it's fun to watch him agonize over scenes and how to shoot them and then to see the finished product in all its black-and-white lo-fi charm. The commentary on the film is also an excellent feature that uses a group approach, bringing in filmmakers Chris Smith and Sarah Price as well as Borchardt and his acid-casualty, guitar-slinging sidekick Mike Schank. They do a good job staying off each other's toes (Schank even excuses himself for a cigarette break), and Smith and Price give Borchardt room to elaborate on his life and filmmaking. Also included are some deleted scenes (Smith claims they had enough for two more movies). The sound and picture have been remastered for DVD and the movie is presented in full screen.
Customer Rating
5
Hilarious and smart! One of the best!
on January 10, 2009
Posted by: AJ01
from Phoenix, AZ
Many people call this the best documentary ever made! A man from milwauke has incredibly large dreams, but is stuck in his everyday life to his human situations. close friendshelp him to accomplish his dreams of becoming a big time film maker. You, as the audience, begins by making fun of the people in the film, but end up loving each of them!
What's great about it: Everyone ends up loving this piece of art! The characters are humbling, funny, and impossible not to relate to.