Review of Cinema Verite (2011) by Marco G — 10 Jan 2013

Though I'm often not a fan of TV movies, HBO's "Cinema Verite", which is much more brilliantly put together and clever than most, is a gem among the brilliant films the channel has brought to us-- it may even be the best of them all.

The film itself is simply about the making of, and the behind the scenes, of the controversial (and ultimately important) 1973 documentary, "An American Family". Paving the way for the reality television genre, the series ultimately was important but misunderstood: and "Cinema Verite" puts everything together.

It chronicles both before the Loud family was filmed and after, and the results are very interesting. What America saw was bits and pieces of drama-- with this film, not only do we see every bit, but it's ultimately respectful (and true) yet just as compelling as "An American Family" itself.

Directing team Shari Springer Berman, and Robert Pulcini do a superb job of capturing the bits and pieces of the real life documentary, and the bonus scenes feel real, never dramatized just to make good television.

But the real triumph of "Cinema Verite" is the power behind Diane Lane (Pat Loud), James Gandolfini (Craig Gilbert, the man behind the original series), and Thomas Dekker's (Lance Loud) performances.

Dekker plays the famously homosexual Lance with truth and wit, and Gandolfini is ultimately terrific because he plays the shady Gilbert with charm-- because of his characterization, you can see why the Loud family trusted him in the first place.

Of course, though, the real treat is Lane, who not only portrays Pat as the person she really was but she never overacts, something obviously hard to do considering the emotions of the scene. She's realistic, and that's what this film ultimately needs.

"Cinema Verite" may be labeled as just another HBO TV-movie set to win Emmy's, but this time, it's actually deserving.