By Jake Coyle, AP Film Writer
An image is "captured." A flash "fires." A camera "shoots."
Weaponry is baked into the language of filmmaking, as Theo Anthony's illuminating documentary "All Light, Everywhere," details. An exploratory essay about surveillance, policing and the nature of video technology, the film probably deserves the oft-used phrase "eye-opening" more than most movies for the way it probes and meditates on perspective, bias and the lenses through which so much of life is increasingly framed.
"All Light, Everywhere," which opens in theaters Friday, is ostensibly about a hot-button issue: body cameras worn by police officers. The spine of Anthony's investigation is a lengthy visit at the headquarters of Axon Enterprise, manufacturer of the Taser and the dominant supplier of body cams to police departments. That the same company could be making both piqued Anthony's curiosity. Interspersing a guided tour of Axon with historical and contemporary digressions, "All Light, Everywhere" examines how cameras have, from their 19th century beginnings, always been a tool of data mining, an instrument of measurement, a framer of a separate, pixelated world.
It's an exploration that touches not just on policing and justice, but astronomy, politics, phrenology and race. Anthony's previous feature "Rat Film" delved into the history and politics of Baltimore's rodent infestation. His "30 for 30" short "Subject to Review" analyzed video review in tennis. He specializes in the gulf between images and reality. He resides in blind spots.
Body cams make a particularly compelling case because they aren't designed at Axon to capture an objective perspective, but an officer's viewpoint. Their cameras aren't infrared since people can't see in the dark, for example. The thinking goes that officers shouldn't be accountable for anything beyond what they can see. Several recent fatal police shootings of Black men have highlighted how body cams can often fall short of full transparency.
In the film, this is a jumping off point to survey how cameras and photography have always played a role in classifying criminality and in conveying political power. One lengthy, probing scene captures a community meeting of Black Baltimoreans skeptically debating the use of "God's eye view" surveillance from the sky to help police their neighborhoods.
"All Light, Everywhere" was, of course, made with similar technology but toward much different ends. Anthony treats his documentary like a collage, using a variety of narrators and occasional footage of himself — along with a late explanation about why one part of the film (months spent with Baltimore teens learning moviemaking) was largely left out — to suggest that any truth can ultimately only come from multiple perspectives.
"All Light Everywhere," a Super LTD release, isn't rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. Running time: 109 minutes. Three stars out of four.
“Heretic” and “Maria” Set As Red Carpet Premieres At AFI Fest
The American Film Institute (AFI) has announced that Heretic, the psychological thriller starring Hugh Grant, and Maria, based on the life of opera singer Maria Callas starring Angelina Jolie, will round out the Red Carpet Premieres section at this year’s AFI Fest. The Heretic Gala Screening will take place on Thursday, October 24, and the Maria Gala Screening will be held on Saturday, October 26. The complete Red Carpet Premieres section includes the world premieres of Music By John Williams, Robert Zemeckis’ Here, Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl and Clint Eastwood’s Juror #2. All Red Carpet Premieres will take place at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre. The full lineup for AFI Fest 2024 will be unveiled on October 1.
“At the heart of AFI Fest is an unwavering dedication to celebrating the best in global cinema--together,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI president and CEO. “We look forward to uniting artists and audiences once again to be inspired by the art form in a powerful sense of community.”
Heretic follows two young missionaries (Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East) who are forced to prove their faith when they knock on the wrong door and are greeted by a diabolical Mr. Reed (portrayed by Grant), becoming ensnared in his deadly game of cat-and-mouse. The film is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods and produced by Stacey Sher, Beck, Woods, Julia Glausi and Jeanette Volturno. The film will be released nationwide by A24 on November 8.
Directed by Pablo Larraín, Maria presents a tumultuous and beautiful depiction of one of the world’s most renowned artists and reimagines the legendary soprano in her final days in Paris, as Callas (Jolie)... Read More