And now for something completely different. An actually serious film review regarding a film that’s great for anyone who wants to believe Detroit is dead and buried–and insulting to everyone else.
By Ulises Silva
Documentaries have the power to educate, inform, and raise awareness, especially on topics or places that are only accessible through film by most people. Documentary filmmakers, then, have a responsibility to present their portrayals in a careful, balanced manner. To do otherwise is to introduce inaccuracies and exaggerations that, to viewers who may not know better, become irrefutable fact.
Which is why Detropia, a documentary by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady that portrays Detroit as a microcosm of the eroding U.S. manufacturing base and its dire economic consequences, is an unwarranted slap in the face to the city of Detroit and its residents. Continue reading
