The Glamorisation of the Documentary 

Since the turn of the century, documentaries have evolved beyond an easy escape for substitute teachers to cultural phenomenon. Shows like Unsolved Mysteries, Abducted in Plain Sight and lockdown staple, The Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness have attracted global attention on social media. But has this come at a cost? Are documentaries still, by definition, documenting reality for the purposes of education and recording history?

Media, Mistrust and Misunderstanding

“A dangerous tool for manipulation”

It’s no coincidence that documentaries are growing in popularity as mistrust of leaders, corporations and the media festers and expands.  Some of the most popular documentaries in recent years seek to expose large political or commercial organisations. They pull audiences in by promising the real truth. Given this era of mistrust, it is understandable that people may find more authenticity in emotional points of view presented in a documentary. However, this output can be a dangerous tool for manipulation.

The Filmic Infection

Some recent fictional films’, mostly in the horror genre, have adopted certain stylistic choices in order to resemble a documentary. Methods like shaky handheld cameras, seen in films such as The Blair Witch Project, have become a mainstay in modern filming technique. Documentaries, taking their influence from fictional films, have begun to build their work around narratives in order to engage their audience in a more familiar (and often entertaining) style of storytelling. In many cases, the priority is to focus on the cinematic moments in real life events. David Attenborough takes this approach with Planet Earth II, which famously knocked X Factor off the ratings leaderboard. Blackfish, a documentary about Seaworld’s captive orcas, similarly shares their story as if it were an action thriller. But while this works in favour of infecting some topics with excitement, it causes significant problems with other examples.

Romanticising the Problematic Public

We are currently living in a culture of exhibitionism. This has been exploited in documentaries such as The Tiger King and Oxyana. In these works, animal collectors and drug addicts are more than happy to share their darkest moments and motivations on camera. Sean Dunne, Creator of Oxyana, shared his thoughts on this phenomena saying, “I think that this country has just become a constant ongoing audition for a reality show.” Documentaries relish in the unbelievable, outlandish stories which people share for their five minutes of fame. These stories capture an audience with gasps of *I can’t believe this really happened*. 

“Documentaries relish in the unbelievable, outlandish stories which people share for their five minutes of fame.”

Thanks to the influence of film, documentary creators often romanticise tragedies and criminal behaviour for the sake of generating Hollywood-style plot development. A recent example of this can be seen in yet another romanticised portrayal of notorious serial killer Ted Bundy in Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes. Meanwhile, the anti-heroic portrayal of Joe Exotic attracted the attention of celebrities like Kim Kardashian-West and Cardi-B. This, in turn, put a spotlight on the #FreeJoeExotic campaign. These programmes have created fundamentally problematic perceptions of questionable characters.

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Wow the amount of texts I’ve gotten about Tiger King since I tweeted about it all have mentioned their belief that Carol killed her husband! What are your thoughts? Do you think Carol killed him?

— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) March 23, 2020

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Bout to start a gofundme account for Joe .He shall be free.

— iamcardib (@iamcardib) March 28, 2020

Objectivity

 “A lot of people think a documentary is truth but I think there’s a difference between truth and objectivity.” – David Pogue

Documentaries are similar to journalism. Both share new information with large audiences. But, while journalists aim share facts quickly and efficiently, documentary filmmakers can enjoy the luxury of delving into more details and building to moments of dramatic realisation. It is crucial to note, however, that documentaries always tell a story from a particular perspective, and with a particular goal in mind. Writer David Pogue explained, “A lot of people think a documentary is truth but I think there’s a difference between truth and objectivity.”

SeaWorld labelled Blackfish as “propaganda” because it neglected to include any indication of the situation from SeaWorld’s perspective. The film, therefore, is not objectively sharing the entire story. Film studies professor, Wheeler Winston Dixon describes this as “an advocacy piece where people come on camera and say, ‘This is terrible’ and the other side doesn’t want to comment because it will demolish them. I don’t think you can call that a documentary because a documentary presents the whole picture.”

“The minute you start to pick and choose facts, you’re making fiction.” – Professor Wheeler Winston Dixon

Netflix’s Making a Murderer, which sparked a lot of debate over the innocence of Steven Avery, was criticised for omitting some crucial facts. Dixon criticised this as ‘exploitation entertainment’, stating “the minute you start to pick and choose facts, you’re making fiction.” But, beyond the story, something as simple as the choice of soundtrack can be the most effective way to manipulate an audience’s perception. The emotional trajectory of music infects the subconscious perception, making it even more difficult to remain aware and objective.

So, maybe next time you stream a documentary you’ll be more aware of the Hollywood influences which have permeated the genre. Stay wary of the toxicity which comes with the romanticisation of evidently toxic people. And most importantly, stay objective.

Amy Murray

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