"Some of the tributes that poured into the more film-savvy corners of the internet called Wiseman, whose storied career stretched all the way from 1967's Titicut Follies to 2023's Menus-Plaisirs-Les Troisgros, the greatest living documentary filmmaker, even the greatest documentarian of all time, but those superlatives still don't go far enough. Over the course of nearly 60 years and four dozen films, he built an ever-growing portrait of American life that stands with the most monumental oeuvres in any art form."
"And, with rare exceptions, he wasn't interested in character-driven storytelling. That's not to say his movies lack memorable characters-who could forget, to cite just one of a hundred possible examples, the Philadelphia teacher earnestly guiding a class of blank-faced teenagers through the finer points of Simon & Garfunkel's lyrics in 1968's High School? But if his movies have protagonists, they're the ones listed in their titles: Belfast, Maine; Monrovia, Indiana; Central Park."
Frederick Wiseman died at 96, leaving his status as the foremost living American filmmaker unresolved. His career spanned nearly sixty years and four dozen films, from 1967's Titicut Follies to 2023's Menus-Plaisirs-Les Troisgros. He built an expansive portrait of American life centered on institutions, often approaching subjects from the bottom up. Many films ran over three hours, including Near Death, set in an intensive care unit and nearly six hours long. He rarely pursued character-driven storytelling, instead treating places and systems as protagonists while still capturing memorable individual moments, such as the teacher in 1968's High School.
Read at Slate Magazine
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