Review of Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010) by Suzanne K — 18 Apr 2011

I actually went to see The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, but I missed the screening, so I ended up seeing this instead. I was sort of expecting a movie with some insight into street art or graffiti (as it's more commonly known), but the movie was so, so much more.

What you're actually shown is a movie, not so much about Banksy or street art, but about the concept of art and what actually constitutes the label 'art' in the first place. Which is actually very smart, when you consider Banksy and his career. You see, there still remains massive debate about Banksy and what he does and if it's art or if it's simply graffiti, and the film manages to raise these ideas without actually tackling them head on.

The film focuses on a guy called Thierry Guetta, an obsessive film maker, who records pretty much everything ever. At some point in his life, his obsession became focused on the subculture of street art and street artists. He dedicated months, if not years of his life, to following street artists around and recording what it is that they do. He eventually crosses paths with Banksy and that's where their 'partnership' began. Recording Banksy as he made his art in LA, Banksy eventually pushed for the publication of the footage. That's when he realised that Guetta may not be a particularly talented film maker. This, I assume, is where Banksy took the role as director, using Guetta's footage to make this film. In the meantime, Guetta- egged on by Banksy, entered the world of street art. Eventually opening his own exhibition to massive success, both critically and financially. Which was lucky for him, as he literally poured all of his and his family's money into the project. But this is where the problem lies. Guetta merely displayed a pastiche; using other artist's work as 'inspiration', he hired a team of people to create the works of art very similar to what he had witnessed as he had filmed the other artists in the past.

This raises a lot of interesting and pressing questions. Guetta didn't even create the works himself; he merely loosely directed a team. Is this truly art? If it isn't, does the fact that everyone took it as serious art demean art (or even just street art) as something deeply inspired and intellectual? Does it mean that really, even if there is little inspiration behind the works, really the art lies only in the perception? Does the public project art onto what is called 'art'?

Guetta used the alias 'Mr. Brainwash', which actually does add depth to what he did. He brainwashed the public with hype and advertising into taking his work seriously. He was successful in this, but we must ask ourselves if that really was his true intent, or simply an accidental and fortunate outcome.

So, all in all, I believe this to have been a successful and very good documentary into the world of contemporary art. But for the cinema, this is not. Hugely enjoyable and motivational to all artists, no doubt, as one can't help but admire the sheer determination these people have for their work, but I could have got that from a TV documentary. Cinematically, this is a bit of a failure. There isn't really any visual stimulation or particularly nice shots. In fact, visually, this is a very boring film, which again questions the now very successful 'artist' Guetta, as it is his footage.