09 February 2014

The Square, 2013 - ★★★


The Best Documentary Oscar nominee list is always strange, frequently missing out the best films (Stories We Tell) and including largely unknown films such as The Square. Without the Oscar nod I doubt I would have known about this film, with the nod I expected great things. Unfortunately like so many documentaries this is nothing special; rarely cinematic, poorly scripted, muddled messages and lacking enough background to ever be fully engaging. I've frequently said that the subject matter should never matter for a great documentary and just capturing fascinating footage of real life events or people doesn't necessary make a great a film.


The film does a great job of throwing you into the middle of all of the action taking place in The Square over the last few years. There are some truly devastating and unbelievable moments captured on film but I came away lacking a fuller understanding of the situation which is perhaps the biggest problem.


February 09, 2014 at 10:12AM

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