CLOSE-UP // A FILM REVIEW OF "THE SUBJECT"
note: This review was previously published on August 11th, 2020 as part of our 2020 Bentonville Film Festival coverage. It is now being reposted here for the general release.
The raw emotional grip of a documentary can truly change your perspective on many subjects. We have even come to rely on docs, or even "reality television," to tell us a bit more about ourselves, a bit more about the world around us. But when we're looking at a documentary about a life, about race, when does it cross from information and knowledge to exploitation? That's the main focus of Lanie Zipoy's film THE SUBJECT, starring Jason Biggs as Phil Waterhouse, a white documentary filmaker who's made his reputation on making young black men his subjects.
Phil isn't a bad guy, or at least doesn't seem like it right away. Though it strikes you fairly quickly that he's definitely carrying a white savior complex around town. He's an esteemed documentary filmmaker. Hollywood loves him. Sundance loves him. But recently, an online article has him shook. You see, Phil has made his bread and butter off of the backs of young black men. He's picked young subjects to film who are, in his words, "A-typical." He's proud of his success and is even working on a new docuseries, which is again following around young black youth. He's recently come under fire online and been accused of exploitation, especially after his award winning film caught the death of a young teen named Malcolm Barnes (Nile Bullock) on film. As he struggles with wondering if he's actually making a difference and if the internet article is right about him, he discovers someone is filming his every move, breaking through his privacy and making him the star of his own film. As each day passes, Phil's life unravels in unexpecting ways, as he finds out that being the subject of a story isn't everything it's cracked up to be.
THE SUBJECT is tense film, well-directed by Lanie Zipoy and beautifully written by Chisa Hutchinson. Zipoy's eye often catches Phil revealing more to the audience than he understands himself and it's tightly edited, tense scene after tense scene. Jason Biggs is great here. He doesn't ever try to make Phil anything more than he is in the exact moment we see him in. He seems to discover who Phil is right alongside of us, making his performance richer and richer. He's trying to do good, but seems to be unclear of why he wants to do good, or how he's actually helping.
The film juggles a lot of things: white guilt, racism, gang violence, white privilege, exploitation and handles them all with a powerful force. Anabelle Acosta and Carra Patterson provide strong performances throughout the film. Acosta is supportive and nurturing, but also unwilling to put up with any of Phil's shit. Patterson brings a complex performance that molds and alters more than a few times. As the doomed teen Malcolm, Nile Bullock breaks your heart, as does Phil's current subject, Kwame (Caleb Eberhardt). Both young men are struggling to be heard, and possibly talking to all the wrong people. Finally, coming in late in the film, Aunjanue Ellis is truly stunning. To say any more would spoil the film, except to say that when she arrives, the film basically becomes a powerful two-person play. But it's safe to say that her performance will knock you out.
THE SUBJECT doesn't ever feel like it's trying too hard, or trying to be important. It just is important. The exploitation of black youth in today's society is a big problem, and to address it head on with a tense and surprising script such as this is refreshing. Biggs and the gifted ensemble around him shine in a film that makes you ask hard question after question regarding race and the boundaries that seem to not exist around us at all. All the while, it continues to knock the wind out of you again and again. It's painful, but progress always is.
GRADE: A-
WRITTEN BY Chisa Hutchinson DIRECTED BY Lanie Zipoy STARRING Jason Biggs, Anabelle Acosta, Aunjanue Ellis, Nile Bullock, Carra Patterson, Caleb Eberhardt. NOW PLAYING IN SELECT THEATRES AND ON VOD. FOR MORE INFORMATION: