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Film Tue Apr 27 2010
Comedy and Tragedy in Exit Through the Gift Shop
Last week I was lucky enough to catch a preview of the new "street art disaster" documentary, Exit Through the Gift Shop, which opens Friday at Landmark's Century Centre Cinema.
Most of the people I've talked to who have heard something about this film think it's a film about Bansky, and it's not. It's really about the progression of street art as a whole, and how money ruins everything.
Don't get me wrong, there is a lot of Bansky in this film. The worldwide-revered and famously secretive British artist agreed to be interviewed for this film, (probably because he directed it) albeit in the shadows with a distorted voice. And, he's hilarious! Who knew?
Exit Through the Gift Shop is the story of how eccentric French resale shop keeper and amateur film maker Thierry Guetta attempted to locate and befriend Banksy, only to have the artist turn the camera back on its owner with hilarious and heartbreaking results. Guetta videotaped and archived just about every waking hour of his adult life, and through a series of serindipitous affiliations and occurances, was able to catch some incredible footage of the development of the street art movement from the very beginning. The film features interviews with and footage of the most infamous artists at work, including Shephard Fairey and Invader.
The most interesting aspect of the film, though, is Guetta's progression from enthusiastic neophyte to something very, very sad-- an evolution that mirrors that of the street art world itself. Anyone with any interest in art and/or the art world should see it. Seriously. Go.