Review of Smash His Camera (2010) by Andrew S — 27 Nov 2010

I don't know if it is possible to make and interesting movie about a paparazzo, but I do know that the documentary Smash His Camera sure isn't.

It's about Ron Galella. Apparently, he's one of the most famous paparazzos working, although I have to admit I had never heard of him. I would have been curious to get inside his head. What's it like to be someone that I think is safe to call annoying, if that's even saying much. Smash His Camera looks that way some of the time, but most of the time is spent explaining how Galella took his most famous pictures, or the history of paparazzi.

Those things are not all that interesting to me. It just makes him look like a stalker.

There are some things that were pretty cool, however. It is pretty fascinating to see how seriously he takes his job. I don't think Galella does it because he needs to make money. Taking pictures of celebrities while hiding behind a bush seems like his passion. But even that only makes him look stranger to us.

Perhaps this guy is just weird, but I would have liked to have learned a little more about him to officially make that decision. Unfortunately, this movie does not offer us that information.