"We had no idea what kind of person we were getting..."

Hello Everyone :-)

What do these films have in common? ‘TT: Closer to the Edge’,  ‘Super Size Me’, ‘Marley’, ‘Man on Wire, ‘Tabloid’, ‘Catfish’, ‘Cave of Forgotten Dreams’ (I love Werner Hertzog) and not forgetting my favourite film of 2011, ‘Senna’. Answer: They’re all documentaries. Too long documentaries have lived almost solely in the televisual medium, often discovered late at night on BBC4 or More4 in a forgotten corner of the schedule.

Now, film makers are changing that. Documentaries are becoming more cinematic and catching the imagination of wider audiences, none more so that a film I was lucky enough to see during a week off work, ‘The Imposter’.

It’s a story so bizarre that I can scarcely believe it’s true, honestly if someone wrote this down as a work of fiction, went to a studio and said “I want to make this film” they’d be laughed out the place because it’s so unbelievable. ‘The Imposter’ is about the 1997 case of the French con-man Frédéric Bourdin, who impersonated Nicholas Barclay, a Texan boy who had disappeared at the age of 13.

The Director, Bart Layton, has done a fantastic job on this film. Every element has been carefully considered and it all comes together as a brilliantly cinematic, intriguing feature. I loved it.

Partly shunning the traditional archive footage and talking-head approach, the decision to include dramatised footage is an interesting one that ultimately pays off. These sections are basically used to show us things that weren’t documented on video by the family or news reporters at the time but the scenes are synced with the talking head dialogue. I like this, it’s not as cheesy as full-on dramatised scenes and they’re directed really well; very dramatic and full of tension.

It is universally acknowledged that in situations such as this there is no clear version of the truth, everyone has their own version of events. I think the film makers have been pretty even handed in their approach to ‘the truth’. ‘The Imposter’ could play out as a family wronged by an opportunistic con-man but the exploration of character makes it so much more than that.

Layton has chosen to film Bourdin’s talking-head pieces in close up so you scrutinise everything he does and he shows you just how engaging, funny and almost likeable he is… I said almost!

Your moral compass really starts spinning when little bits of information about Barclay’s family begin to surface. No one spells it out for you but things like ‘at the time of his disappearance Nicholas had three tattoos which Bourdin copied so he wouldn’t be found out’ are dropped into the dialogue. It takes a little time to settle before you start to think ‘wait a minute… what kind of family lets a 13 year old get tattoos?’ Towards the end of the feature I think the balance tips more in the family’s favour but the film never depicts them as being squeaky clean and it’s these shades of moral greyness that make the film so interesting.

It makes me happy that we live in a world where documentaries such as this are given the acclaim they deserve. ‘The Imposter’ is cinematic, engaging and doesn’t give a cut and dry answer to any of the questions raised for its duration. It’s a thoroughly entertaining watch that deserves as big an audience as it can get.

Just an added extra, big thank you to The Electric Cinema in Birmingham for putting ‘The Imposter’ on in the first place. Due to the fact multiplexes continue to shun documentaries it’s left to our Nation’s independent cinemas to give the public what they want and the Electric do just that. Their cinema is gorgeous, the staff are lovely and they have some of the nicest cakes I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating! If you live in the midlands and love films, pay them a visit; it’s a wonderful place :-)

Well that was plenty to be happy about but as I’m a firm believer in never being able to have too much of a good thing lets have a look at some…

Reasons to be Cheerful :-)

1.  ‘Skyfall’ is out soon! The trailer looks fantastic and more than anything I’m looking forward to seeing the gorgeous Ben Whishaw as Q! I love a man with a thing for geeky mugs (I may or may not have made that picture my desktop background…)!

2. Speaking of the lovely Mr Whishaw, The Hour is returning this season for a second series! Reading about the new series is so exciting! The BBC have clearly peaked at my Christmas list because EVERYONE I love is going to be in it! The established cast are going to return Ben ‘did I mention I adore him?’ Whishaw will be back as Freddie, Romola Garai returns as Bel and Dominic West will be playing Hector. New additions to the cast are Hannah Tointon of Inbetweeners fame, Tom Burke who I absolutely love from his wonderful performance in ‘Third Star’ and the alter-ego of everyone’s favourite sweary, spin-doctor, Peter Capaldi. I am so excited about this development! Can’t wait for it to start :-)

That’s everything I have for today!

Goodbye till next time :-)

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