I got a chance to check out 'American Cannibal' at Tribeca, and was truly blown away. The film is a wild ride through the creative process of two writers forced to choose between artistic integrity and the ever-alluring charms of 'success' and all its pitfalls.
The documentary follows Gil Ripley and Dave Roberts, two hungry young TV writers who face their first encounter with the harsh realities of the business after a sitcom pilot they wrote is rejected by the networks. This failure sends them into a whirlwind of desperate pitching as they try to find a home for their new project: reality television. Through a series of hysterical pitches, their voyage takes them all the way from IFC to the seedy porn underworld of immorality czar Kevin Blatt (promoter of the infamous Paris Hilton sex tapes).
What follows is pure tragedy as the viewer has a ringside seat to the disaster of reality television. The laughs are continuous, as the two scribes are rooted in comedy writing and their real life back-and-forth exchanges blow away any scripted Hollywood buddy movie. Another stand-out is Kevin Blatt, the larger-than-life 'accidental pornographer' that serves as a major supporting character in the story. Blatt's presence (like many of the events the film captures) seems like a lucky accident for the filmmakers; from his first appearance onwards, his immorality is magnetic and his rants inspired. (I heard a fellow movie-goer describe him as the 'Tony Soprano of Porn.' Dead on.)
'American Cannibal' is brilliantly edited, sprinkled with morsels of cynicism from reality TV insiders. Viewers will be aghast at the behind-the-scenes grit of the industry, while simultaneously gripped by the personal arc of the two protagonists. I highly recommend this film and believe it stands as a prime example of edgy and engaging documentary film-making, maintaining a delicate balance between the sleazy, cut-throat spectacle of reality television and the endearing conflict of two writers just trying to get a break.
The documentary follows Gil Ripley and Dave Roberts, two hungry young TV writers who face their first encounter with the harsh realities of the business after a sitcom pilot they wrote is rejected by the networks. This failure sends them into a whirlwind of desperate pitching as they try to find a home for their new project: reality television. Through a series of hysterical pitches, their voyage takes them all the way from IFC to the seedy porn underworld of immorality czar Kevin Blatt (promoter of the infamous Paris Hilton sex tapes).
What follows is pure tragedy as the viewer has a ringside seat to the disaster of reality television. The laughs are continuous, as the two scribes are rooted in comedy writing and their real life back-and-forth exchanges blow away any scripted Hollywood buddy movie. Another stand-out is Kevin Blatt, the larger-than-life 'accidental pornographer' that serves as a major supporting character in the story. Blatt's presence (like many of the events the film captures) seems like a lucky accident for the filmmakers; from his first appearance onwards, his immorality is magnetic and his rants inspired. (I heard a fellow movie-goer describe him as the 'Tony Soprano of Porn.' Dead on.)
'American Cannibal' is brilliantly edited, sprinkled with morsels of cynicism from reality TV insiders. Viewers will be aghast at the behind-the-scenes grit of the industry, while simultaneously gripped by the personal arc of the two protagonists. I highly recommend this film and believe it stands as a prime example of edgy and engaging documentary film-making, maintaining a delicate balance between the sleazy, cut-throat spectacle of reality television and the endearing conflict of two writers just trying to get a break.
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