{"id":774,"date":"2016-06-01T20:59:51","date_gmt":"2016-06-02T01:59:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/chrisicisms\/?p=774"},"modified":"2016-06-01T20:59:51","modified_gmt":"2016-06-02T01:59:51","slug":"review-weiner-is-fascinating-frustrating-look-at-scandal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/chrisicisms\/2016\/06\/01\/review-weiner-is-fascinating-frustrating-look-at-scandal\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: “Weiner” is fascinating, frustrating look at scandal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"weiner3\"<\/a><\/p>\n

At one point in the new documentary \u201cWeiner,\u201d when disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner is asked a question by the crew filming his failed mayoral bid, he snaps that the point of a fly-on-the-wall documentary is that the fly doesn\u2019t talk.<\/p>\n

That moment sums up the success and limitations of \u201cWeiner.\u201d The filmmakers have unprecedented access to one of the decade\u2019s most surreal scandals, \u00a0yet the subject\u2019s constant attempts to control his image keep him at a remove, even with the camera a foot from his face. It\u2019s like watching a car crash where the driver doesn\u2019t stop to examine who\u2019s hurt, what the damage is or what went wrong; he just wants to get back on the road, even if the vehicle\u2019s in flames.<\/p>\n

Weiner, a Democrat from New York, gained attention\u00a0for his fiery outbursts on the congressional floor, only to have it all sputter out when he sent out sexually explicit pictures on Twitter. Weiner and his wife, Huma Abedin\u00a0\u2014 one of Hillary Clinton\u2019s top advisers\u00a0\u2014 salvaged their marriage, but it cost the congressman\u00a0his job. The butt of jokes across television and social media, he resigned in disgrace; the movie is not subtle about the fact that his surname set him up as a walking punchline. As the film opens, he\u2019s readying a 2013 run for mayor of New York that begins smoothly. Sure enough, though, with just weeks to go before the primary, another scandal breaks, as it\u2019s revealed that Weiner was involved in explicit online chats and texts with several women, often using absurd pseudonyms like \u201cCarlos Danger,\u201d which did nothing to help him with the late night pundits<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s rare to get such an up-close look at a scandal. Politicians are masters at shielding their constituents from the sight of the sausage-making. We live the scandals out on late-night television and hear their positions through spin. But \u201cWeiner\u201d directors Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg found themselves in the right place at the right time (for them). The film\u2019s early moments, as Weiner\u2019s mayoral campaign hits its stride, capture the momentum of the consummate politician working his magic on the community. Weiner\u2019s more than happy to let the crew film him marching in parades alongside supporters, winning over crowds at rallies and trouncing opponents in debates. That early energy makes it all the more awkward when the scandal breaks, and we watch volunteers learn about the news on TVs in the campaign office or catch Huma and Anthony in a moment of uncomfortable silence. As the press waits for a comment, the camera observes Weiner testily working out statements with his staff before kicking the crew out of the room for a private moment with his wife. It\u2019s the closest I can recall a film putting us to a scandal as it develops, and the sense of ever-developing catastrophe makes the film compulsively watchable.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy did you agree to let me film you,\u201d the cameraman asks the candidate more than once throughout the film. He never gets a straight answer, but it\u2019s easy to see why Weiner thought it might have been a good idea at the time. This was supposed to be his comeback, where he emerged victorious from past indiscretions with his political ambitions and family intact. And what we see of the former congressman throughout the film portrays an overly confident, ambitious and often narcissistic man. Even as his campaign implodes and his marriage is on the rocks, Weiner is brash and abrasive. He believes the scandal will blow over in 72 hours; he expects Huma to be by his side at press conferences. It\u2019s easy to imagine this man ready to stage a comeback and all too eager to have the cameras on him so he can say \u201cI told you so.\u201d Throughout the movie, we see that he is nothing if not sure of himself.<\/p>\n

But we also see that he\u2019s horrible at decision-making. That was, of course, obvious from the first errant Tweet. But what \u201cWeiner\u201d captures is the candidate\u2019s amazing ability to screw things up for himself, something he doesn\u2019t even seem to acknowledge until his concession call\u2019s been made. Throughout the film, Weiner shows a knack for self-sabotage, destroying his prospects even as he tries to control his image and stay in the fight. How else to explain his loud, antagonistic appearance on an MSNBC program (which he\u2019s then shown re-watching with glee, much to Huma\u2019s frustration)? Why else would he decide to call a heckler on the street a jackass? Is there any other reason he\u2019d give the press the finger on election night?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s very easy to look at Weiner\u2019s actions as those of a stupid man bumbling through a campaign. But in the glimpses of him on the campaign trail, or the videos of him speaking to Congress, it\u2019s very clear he\u2019s not dumb. He very well may have had great ideas and passion.\u00a0Throughout the film, there\u2019s a sense of mounting frustration, as past indiscretions continue to overshadow his campaign, and promises are drowned out by jokes about his name and his anatomy. In those moments of emotion, Weiner doesn\u2019t handle himself well.<\/p>\n

But that frustration is understandable, if not condoned. After all, Weiner had made people aware that other texts from his previous scandal could still come out; this wasn\u2019t a new indiscretion (although the texts\u2019 timing \u2014 coinciding with a \u201cPeople\u201d magazine story in which he pledged devotion to his family \u2014 didn\u2019t help). And while I disagree that Weiner\u2019s actions don\u2019t constitute adultery, many more prominent politicians have gotten away with much worse behavior and still had thriving careers. I imagine he had to be frustrated whenever he tried to pledge his commitment to the community, only to have the media continue latching onto the story because, hey, sex scandals sell, especially if the guy\u2019s last name is slang for the male anatomy.<\/p>\n

Indeed, \u201cWeiner\u2019s\u201d strongest asset is the way it examines the way that the culture couldn\u2019t resist making immature jokes about the scandal. During one moment, the directors run social media and late-night television commentary across the bottom of the screen while following Weiner around; it\u2019s amazing just how crazy the country went for stories about a mayoral candidate\u2019s private parts. Few things are more damning of our culture than the fact that we knew more about a political candidate\u2019s sexting scandal and underwear pictures than about the issues he supported. And the film holds special contempt for Sydney Leathers, the young woman Weiner texted with who turned the scandal into a porn career and even attempted to ambush Weiner on election night as part of a stunt for Howard Stern. She\u2019s portrayed, possibly rightly so, as opportunistic and parasitic, willing to keep the story going if she can get something out of it.<\/p>\n

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Mixed up in all the media shenanigans and political maneuvering is the marriage between Weiner and Abedin. Huma appeared by her husband\u2019s side throughout the scandal, particularly as it broke, even standing by him as Clinton reportedly advised her to leave. For the most part, Huma is mum around the documentary crew, \u00a0save for claiming in one candid moment that it feels like she\u2019s living in a nightmare. And while she appears in public with a smile on her face, the film catches the moments of stress, exhaustion and exasperation that wear her down. There are several moments of awkward silence between her and Anthony, and a few where she seems unable to believe just how deep the hole he dug himself goes. Weiner, for his part, can\u2019t seem to understand why his wife might hesitate to appear in a campaign ad with him or accompany him to vote on election day. There\u2019s almost a feeling of entitlement, that he expects her to be by his side. Near the end of the film, as the couple prepares to head to a party and give a concession speech, word arrives that Leathers is waiting at the location. In that moment, Weiner seems to gain a sense of self awareness about the toll the scandal has taken on his marriage, and he tells her to go on home. It\u2019s his most human moment in the film.<\/p>\n

\u201cWeiner\u201d is a fascinating movie, putting us right in the thick of the scandal. Yet, as I said, the figure at the center remains aloof. Sure, he put out an image of candidness during the campaign; the film captures a particularly tense encounter at City Island. But there\u2019s never a moment were he lets his guard down for the cameras or attempts to set the record straight. He doesn\u2019t seem to understand why people were upset about the scandal; at heart, it\u2019s not that people were upset that he was caught sexting. It\u2019s that he betrayed a trust. And the documentary provides him a chance to tell his side of the story, or to tell people why they should trust him again. Instead, in the talking head interviews that appear throughout the film, he bumbles about \u201cblind spots\u201d and authenticity, but never seems to address his own personal shortcomings or flaws that head on. On the one hand, it frustrates me that the film doesn\u2019t press harder; on the other, I wonder if that would have done any good. By the end of the campaign, Weiner\u2019s been through the ringer, and at one point he curses the luck of having this unfold while a documentary crew is following him.<\/p>\n

Despite its frustrations, \u201cWeiner\u201d is a vital documentary, both for the access the filmmakers had and for the way it portrays Americans\u2019 puerile fascination with sex scandals and our crazy political climate. It transcends being an easy joke and becomes a surreal, fascinating glimpse at our very weird culture.<\/p>\n

\n
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Chris Williams<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At one point in the new documentary \u201cWeiner,\u201d when disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner is asked a question by the crew filming his failed mayoral bid, he snaps that the point of a fly-on-the-wall documentary is that the fly doesn\u2019t talk. That moment sums up the success and limitations of \u201cWeiner.\u201d The filmmakers have unprecedented […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2598,"featured_media":778,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33,1],"tags":[386,389,17,73,75,154,74,387,388,385],"class_list":["post-774","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews-2","category-uncategorized","tag-anthony-weiner","tag-carlos-danger","tag-culture-2","tag-documentary","tag-movie","tag-politics","tag-review","tag-scandal","tag-sexting","tag-weiner"],"yoast_head":"\nReview: "Weiner" is fascinating, frustrating look at scandal<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"At one point in the new documentary "Weiner," when disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner is asked a question by the crew filming his failed mayoral\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, 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