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Exit Through The Gift Shop
Rating: 8/10
Cast: Banksy, The Art World, Thierry Guetta
Director: Banksy
Fresh from dominating the scene at the New Zealand International Film Festival, comes this marvellous doco about the pop art world and those who dwell within it.
It's about the birth of the street graffiti movement which swept up a generation and defined a movement.
Narrated with laconic ease by Rhys Ifans, its "star" is Thierry Guetta, a French filmmaker who somehow managed to find himself in the birth of the scene simply because he never put down a camera.
Guetta is a French immigrant in Los Angeles, who's obsessed with the street art scene and sets out to capture it for a documentary he's making - however, Guetta, a weaselly man in his forties simply manages to do this just by being in the right place at the right time.
Intoxicated with the art world around him, Guetta sets out to interview all of those involved under the idea of making a doco -even though he doesn't know what he's doing - and somehow manages to instill confidence in everyone around him.
However, Guetta finds he can't get an interview with the one man who's become synonymous with the street art scene, a character known only as Banksy, who never lets his face be seen in this film - and has his voice disguised throughout. Banksy became notorious for his pieces of art in the UK - and the more the mystery around him grows, the more desperate Guetta becomes to meet him.
One day, their paths cross - and Guetta decides he will follow into the art scene...with disastrous and hilarious results.
Exit Through The Gift Shop is laugh out loud funny in places, riotous in others - and will suck you in with its smart style but you may wonder if this is a prank initiated by Banksy who's famed for duping the world.
It's clever film making and could be the dawn of the prankumentary as it seems at times that this piece could be a mock doco with the wool being pulled firmly over the public's eyes - and the art world.
It's a smart twist which makes you wonder how real this film actually is and gets you talking and thinking as you leave the cinema - isn't art about provoking discussion?
This film is easily the lead contender for doco of the year - see it now and see if you can work out exactly what's going on.
Watch the trailer for Exit Through The Gift Shop here.
