A Mighty Wind
(2003) dir. Christopher Guest
viewed: 12/02/03
This mock-documentary format was getting tired several years ago, and by the time director Christopher Guest had created Best in Show (2000), the format of these ensemble, collaborative wacky character-driven comedies really made one wonder if he knew any other way of making a film. And the subject matter of these films has been getting increasingly focussed on cultural minutiae (dog show culture and now middle-aged folk musicians).
And as they go for more subtle turns in their comedy, the peaks and valleys of the films begin resemble one another, with high points only moderately funny than the low points. So, this is how I took A Mighty Wind. It’s passably entertaining, and where Best in Show was somewhat demeaning of its characters and a tad harsh, Guest this time finds more genuine affection for his characters and goes for a little more sentimentality than he has shown in any previous work. Whether this is a sign of his consideration for the subject matter or a reaction to his handling of characters in his previous film, I can’t say.
What it all really points to is how clever and funny and original Rob Reiner’s This Is Spinal Tap (1984), which was co-written by Guest, really was. It’s been years since I’ve seen it, but I reckon that it holds up pretty well.
One other smallish complaint about this film is that for some of its dramatic moments, the style breaks away from anything that is intrinsically documentary-like, which seems a little weird since the documentary style is such a part of these films. Perhaps it was getting somewhat constraining. I don’t know. Seemed a little lame to me.
