Review of Coven (1997) by Josh M — 06 May 2009

There's almost no way to screen American Movie without screening Coven afterward, and I think it's the best way to watch it. Why? Because it's always a bit of a revelation to see that Coven is shockingly not really that bad.

Yes, Mark's dialogue can come out a little hammy, and the plot doesn't work all that well, but there's no denying that he has a nice eye for shots. More than that, though, is the sense of heart and soul poured into even this, a way to pay the bills.

Watching Coven after American Movie shows just how much of Mark is in the story - from the scenes of a struggling writer raging against the life he finds himself in to a series of "helpful" interventions, this is every bit as much a reflection of Mark as something like Marnie was of Hitchcock, and it makes the movie all the more interesting.