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Surviving DocFest
Well, I survived the annual three-day late winter ritual— the Belleville Downtown DocFest, now celebrating its eighth year. But only just.
DocFest is an endurance event. In addition to several plenary showings at the Empire theatre, there are six simultaneous showings at venues around the downtown, in seven different time slots, of a total of over 50 movies. It is impossible to see everything: you have to choose your target films carefully and flit between venues strategically. That it all runs so smoothly is a tribute to the organizers and the ubiquitous and goodspirited, green-T-shirted volunteers.
Three movies in particular made an impression on me.
The first was by local filmmaker Sean Scally titled Playing With Fire, about the munitions plant explosion and fire in Trenton just near the end of the Great War. Scally uses animation and contemporaneous photography to tell a riveting story of an accident that was almost bound to happen. He explores the possibility that the destruction of the British-owned (and insured) plant was a little bit too conveniently timed, coming as it did when the plant was an about-to-be superfluous asset,
The second was about Australian Indigenous musician Geoffrey Gurrumul, who died shortly after its completion. The eponymous film documents the tug on Gurrumul, between maintaining his ties with his family and traditions, and taking advantage of his rising popularity in world culture—a balance made all the more difficult by his blindness and preference for silence rather than conversation. The film gives us some glimpses into the appeal of his voice, but is probably best described as a story of his friendship with his producer, translator and co-performer Michael Hohnen,
The third was the film that won the 2019 Academy Award for best documentary feature; Free Solo, the story of American climber Alex Honnold’s solo ascent, using handholds and footholds only, of the sheer wall of the El Capitan rock face in Yosemite National Park, a feat previously thought of as impossible. Indeed, the wonder of it is how anybody could even contemplate taking on such challenge, let alone pulling it off. The film includes a scene in which Honnold undergoes a brain scan, which shows his amygdala isn’t stimulated by the prospect of risk as easily as most people’s, suggesting a biological basis for his proclivity to go to extremes.
There is a sobering scene in which climbers casually compare notes on the high incidence of deaths among the free-soloing community, which raises some disturbing questions. Is it right to lionize a person who voluntarily tempts fate; when fate has been cruel to so many others who would cherish the opportunity just to live a little longer, not necessarily on the edge? Is his rejection of the comfortable life for a short life of extreme experience something we can tolerate? Should public resources be employed to rescue extremers from the risks they voluntarily assume?
It is also remarkable that there is a film at all. A crew had to position itself on and near the rock face to capture shots of his ascent, putting itself in harm’s way. This raises the question whether capturing a death-defying stunt for popular consumption is something that should be applauded. Why do we watch these things, if not for the possibility that a death might actually happen? Why do organizations like the National Geographical Society fund them, if not for the knowledge that we like to see other people risk their lives for our entertainment?
The film also chronicles Honnold’s relationship with his girlfriend Sanni McCandless as he prepares for the climb. Both are aware of the fact that his focus on the climb may be compromised by their intimacy. We see her struggle to accept a role that puts her in a secondary position in his life, knowing that it is impossible to wean him from the risk-taking that defines his character, and knowing that the next risk he confronts will likely be an even bigger one. However, so far as I can tell, they are still an item.
Yes, I survived DocFest; but I doubt anyone is going to make a movie about my struggle. I was just navigating auditorium seats, not free soloing El Capitan.
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