Documentary Reviews

To start A2 Media Studies we have been watching documentaries as a class, to give us an idea on what to include when making our own documentary style films. The 4 that we watched were March Of The Penguins, TT:Close To The Edge, Supersize Me and 1D:This is us.

March Of The Penguins
The first documentary that we watched was March Of The Penguins, directed by Luc Jacquet. This documentary follows the lives of Penguins showing us how they adapt to the freezing cold temperatures of their habitat and stay in large groups in order to keep safe from any potential predators. We also see how the penguins reproduce and their unique way of one of the parents caring for the egg, whilst the other is out hunting for food to provide for the family. The film is clearly a documentary by the way that it is unedited and no humans interrupt the natural process of what is going on. Their is a 'voice of god' featured in the film, which is common in nature based documentaries, and is effective in explaining what exactly is going on in the film. The documentary was based in Terre Adellie in Antarctica and was released on the 26th January 2005. The documentary was produced and distributed by a range of companies, such as Warner Bro's, canal+ and the National Geographic Society. I felt like this documentary was so succesful due to the techniques used, particularly the voice of god and montages.

TT: Closer To The Edge
TT: Closer To The Edge is a succesful documentary which was directed by Richard De Aragues. " The Isle of Man Tourist Trophy is the greatest motorcycle road race in the world, the ultimate challenge for rider and machine. It has always called for a commitment far beyond any other racing event, and many have made the ultimate sacrifice in their quest for victory. A story about freedom of choice, the strength of human spirit and the will to win. It's also an examination of what motivates those rare few, this elite band of brothers who risk everything to win. The vision of top commercials director Richard de Aragues, this promises to be one of the most thrilling films of 2011. " The target audience for this film is people aged 18+, particularly those who are interested in Motorcycling. I personally did not enjoy this documentary, based on my interests, however I can appreciate that the documentary was succesful due to the techniques which were used in the production of it.

Supersize Me
Next we watched Supersize me, a documentary that proved to be extremely succesful both in the UK and America. Directed by Morgan Spurlock. "While examining the influence of the fast food industry, Morgan Spurlock personally explores the consequences on his health of a diet of solely McDonald's food for one month." The documentary follows Spurlock over a 30 day period, in which he ate nothing but McDonalds. The target audience for the film was Americans, as fast food has recently become a problem for them over the years and lead an increase in their population becoming severely obese, however the documentary did also become succesful here in the UK and acted as a real eye opener to its audience about what exactly they are doing to their bodies when consuming an excessive amount of fast food. It features all the common techniques used in documentaries including Actuality in relation to documentary films, Voice-over, Direct and Indirect Interviews, Archival footage, and Exposition, which make the documentary effective because people will want to continue watching.

1D: This is us
The final documentary we watched was a British Documentary Film based on the popular UK boy band One Direction. It opened in the United Kingdom on 29 August 2013, followed a day later in the United States. Produced by Syco Productions, Warrior Poets and Modest Entertainment and directed by Morgan Spurlock. The film follows Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zain Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne on their meteoric rise to fame. From their humble hometown beginnings and competing on the X Factor to conquering the world and performing at Londons famed O2 arena. It gives fans access all areas into the boys lives, following them and their family and friends as they tour. The documentary has a target audience of girls aged 12+.