TIFF 2020: City Hall
tiff 2020Where most documentaries will take a focused approach looking at a single subject matter with a direct intention, Frederick Wiseman's City Hall is yet another epic love letter from the documentary filmmaker, providing a comprehensive 272-minute look at Boston's city government finding a commentary on various larger ideas along the way.
If there is one thing to appreciate for the entirety of City Hall, it is the filmmaking behind the project. Taking a fly-on-the-wall approach, the film does very little to edit or explore its subject matter further than the natural events themselves which, on paper, limits the filmmaking potential. However, the cinematography remains inspired, not only capturing the main subject of the events, but also the environment of where they take place in a truly transportive sense. From grand press conferences to intimate meetings, it is clear that City Hall is not only aware, but is purposeful in its visuals in a really incredible sense, especially for a project of its runtime.
The film's narrative also shines in multiple areas. Where the sheer size of the project makes it impossible to pinpoint any singular social discussion, City Hall is a film that isn't afraid to push back at the subjects it is highlighting. It allows the community to speak for itself with issues such as racial inequality and trying to control a city with a polarising voice like Donald Trump in office; the film has plenty of larger discussions that are given the time to find a genuine nuance but, equally, it thrives in its intimacy. Time is allocated to small stories that showcase some of the unique and important voices within the Boston community. An example of this includes a young veteran who describes a project he has found power in where he interviews World War II veterans in order to gain advice and perspectives. He then shares this with other veterans, regarding how to live a long and happy life after facing the horrors of war.
Because of its grand runtime, this is a natural advantage for the film. yet the actual effect that this size has is complicated and mixed. Although it allows for nuance, not causing the director to be super picky with regards to what should be focused on, it also makes the majority of the worthwhile content inaccessible. Way past the simple practicality of general audiences sitting down for a nearly 5-hour film, the viewing experience can often be taxing and flat out boring. For every engaging story is a drawn-out presentation or meeting that sucks the life out of plenty of the film. With a clear lack of editing, chances are, if the film wants to show a single line from a presentation, the audience will end up watching at least a 10-minute segment of the presentation which is simply unneeded. Where the goal of showcasing the sheer size of the services is met and is one that requires a longer runtime, there are undeniably better ways to go about telling this kind of story that would be more engaging and clean.
City Hall is a strange viewing experience to summarise. There is plenty of legitimately great discussion and important voices present within the film, but there are also plenty of unneeded and drawn-out scenes that make it hard to recommend overall. It works against itself and, had the film been edited to a more digestible and focused runtime, it could have been one of the best documentaries of the year. Sadly, it bites off more than it could chew off and ultimately holds itself back from reaching this potential.
