Review of Andre Gregory: Before and After Dinner (2013) by Kenny V — 05 Oct 2013

Interesting but ultimately self-indulgent film by Cindy Kleine. Certainly, the art of and the artist, Andre Gregory, is deserving of a documentary. He has trained some of the most important talent of the last 40 years and is an eccentrically interesting person.

The problem is that the film is directed by his wife who seems to want to make the film as much about herself as about him. There are also themes of of "latent homosexuality" and "false memory" that run throughout the film that are never fully expressed or explored.

These themes come up either as questions or accidentally. The film works best when Kleine drops her narration and simply films Gregory interacting with others -- especially his long-time friend and co-collaborator, Wallace Shawn.

Worth a look if you have an interest in the art of acting or the slowly vanishing concept of a stage artist.