Review of Tabloid (2011) by Michael D — 07 Nov 2011

A strangely trivial project for Errol Morris. Joyce McKinney is a most entertaining speaker, and this former beauty queen's unlikely obsession with a Mormon missionary makes for a spicy first act. But from there, the story recedes into dull talk of paparazzi coverage and the bondage trade. Momentum grinds to a halt. Eventually, there's a notable tale about her cloning a beloved pet, but the question of the venture's success is not adequately explored.

Morris's efforts to make McKinney's narration more "visual" seem fairly desperate -- his device of plastering her words onscreen like tabloid headlines is hardly subtle -- and, really, the whole film should have been shelved as soon as Morris discovered McKinney's love object Kirk Anderson was not willing to be interviewed. Minus his version of the events, the story is hopelessly lopsided.