Coming to theatres today, Wednesday, February 25: FAREWELL TO HOLLYWOOD
Henry Corra and Regina Nicholson’s collaborative chronicle of death and the love of film debuted at IDFA in 2013. Screenings followed at Planete+ Doc, Thessaloniki Doc, Biografilm, Documentary Edge, and Dokufest Kosovo, among others.
After Corra, an established documentarian, meets Nicholson, an aspiring teenage filmmaker who has been diagnosed with bone cancer, the pair agree to work together to realize the latter’s dream of making a documentary feature about her life with cancer. While her parents are initially encouraging, they eventually grow uncomfortable with the rapport that develops between the cross-generational partners, even intimating that there’s an untoward sexual relationship between them. As Nicholson rebels, asserting her desire for independence and freedom as a young adult facing a ticking clock, Corra allows himself to be drawn into the family drama even as he continues to document his filmmaking partner as she grows sicker by the day. Never disguising the reality of Nicholson’s impending mortality, the film is a tough watch on an emotional level – as brash, and even bratty, as she can be, the viewer can’t help but form an attachment to the young protagonist, even if it’s not really evident that she has any particularly impressive filmmaking talent to justify Corra’s belief in her ability or his commitment to her aspirations. Corra himself is a much more difficult subject to reconcile. While he denies any improper relationship took place, their connection remains unsettling on multiple levels which have engendered controversy since the film’s debut – ethical concerns about the filmmaker/subject connection, about filming this very vulnerable young woman during an emotionally and physically fragile period, and placing himself in the middle of a nasty family argument that goes to very ugly places. Ultimately, the film can’t bear the weight of these unresolved and uncomfortable aspects, making it unsatisfying as a whole.
what (not) to doc 