Review of Vernon, Florida (1981) by Josh G — 19 Oct 2008

Alright, being completely enthralled with Errol Morris after seeing four of his other documentaries, I may be a bit biased. I just wanted to get that out of the way up-front.

So. With that said, Vernon, Florida is an entertaining 1982 documentary about the mostly elderly residents in a small town. Sounds boring, right? But Morris has always had a knack for allowing people to say what is on their mind, rather than trying to coax something specific out of them, which gets them to open up enormously.

The movie chronicles the thoughts and lives of several different eccentric persons living in Vernon -- whether turkey hunters, an old man who collects wild animals, or a group of old men arguing about the best method for committing suicide. It's frequently funny, as when a man begins a discussion on the way the brain works with, "You ever seen a man's brains? I've seen them. I've picked them up, scooped them up. Put them in, do them up like brains. You buying brains?".

It's also often poignant. The point of Vernon, Florida -- or any of Morris' documentaries, for that matter -- is not to make fun of its subjects. In as skilled a manner as possible, the movie elicits humor from the people being interviewed and a sense of camaraderie. It's not difficult to see yourself in these people, in the way they are confident about what they are saying, in the way that they are eager to share their thoughts and experiences. Or, at the very least, maybe you'll see somebody you know in them.

Coming in at less than an hour, it's a short and sweet flick: there are few slow spots, and everybody has plenty to say. All in all, great fun and a great film.