Week 12 Screening 2

Searching for Sugar Man 2012. Dir Malik Bendjelloul.

Searching for Sugar Man opens by way of posing a question about the central character of the film, Rodrigez. This questionmark over the fate of the films protagonist invites the viewer both into the search and into the narrative of the documentary. This technique of inviting the viewer into the central mystery of the film is a powerful means of sustaining the viewers attention, especially when the story itself is so powerful. Not knowing the outcome of the story is shared with the interviewees of the film while they present their version of events as they happened. Using rodrigezs’ own music for the soundtrack and beautifully shot footage the film is a pleasure to view which enables receptivity. Through the interviews different ideas of the whereabouts of Rodrigez and what happened to him are put forward unopposed, this cycle of hearsay is used in such a way as to deepen the mystery surrounding the faith of Rodrigez. The film continues to follow the search for Rodrigez, revealing to the viewer only what was known at each stage of the journey that is recounted. This technique gives the story greater strength and keeps the viewer interested in each discovery and thus the film itself.

Link

http://www.1channel.ch/external.php?title=Searching+for+Sugar+Man&url=aHR0cDovL3d3dy5ub3d2aWRlby5ldS92aWRlby83NzA3Yjc2ZWM2MTU1&domain=bm93dmlkZW8uZXU=&loggedin=0