Amateur filmmaker Thierry Guetta’s attempts to film a movie about street artists is derailed when a camera shy British stencil artist known only as Bansky turns the tables on him and redirects the camera towards the filmmaker realizing he’s a more fitting subject for the documentary.

CRITIQUE

Exit Through the Gift Shop is a documentary unlike any other documentary I’ve seen in quite some time. It is a movie where subject and filmmaker switch places, giving an insight into the world of underground art the likes of which is totally surreal. In short, the film is a perplexing yet highly entertaining piece of pop entertainment that defies easy description, going places so unusually unique calling them one-of-a-kind might actually be too much of a simplification.

Things start on a relatively familiar terrain. With narrator Rhys Ifans leading the way, the film shows how Thierry goes from being a shopkeeper to filmmaker, discovering the world of street art through a friend known simply as Space Invader (he recreates the aliens from the video game and then clandestinely plops them on the sides of building, bus benches and other public spaces). He begins to shoot reel after reel of film about him and other artists, documenting the creations before they’re called graffiti and painted over or washed away never to be seen again.

Soon these artists begin to trust and consider him one of their own, leading him to the mysteriously faceless Bansky, an artist of extreme fame even though no one knows what he looks or sounds like. Soon he’s trusting Thierry as well, letting him document his process and giving him access like he’s never done before. But as things progress he soon comes to the realization that his filmmaker friend isn’t what he seems, understanding he’s using him and the other artists to become something of an artist himself.

This is where things get interesting. Bansky turns the tables and begins filming Thierry, watching as his former documentarian renames himself “Mr. Brainwash” and starts trying to make a career of being a street artist. The line continues to blur more and more, the new man with the camera suddenly finding himself filming a movie about art, creation and vandalism that he didn’t even know he wanted to make.

The film is incredible, the whole thing a fascinating piece of truth-is-stranger-than-fiction that had me completely mesmerized. Both smart and hilarious, the whole thing moves at a lightening quick pace and is full of bravado and moxie. It is both poignant and absurd, showing what happens when money meets vandalism and the art – some of it of merit, other portions of it probably not – given birth when those two collide.

There are moments when some of this does feel a little like put-on, almost as if Bansky and Thierry are pulling a fast one on the viewer. But in the end what is depicted here rang true for me, and the longer the movie went on the more I found I was being pulled deeply within it. Exit Through the Gift Shop isn’t just a documentary, it’s an event, and for my part it’s one I can’t wait to experience again.

THE VIDEO

Exit Through the Gift Shop is presented in 1.78:1 Widescreen and it is a solid standard definition transfer that fits the gritty nature of the film itself actually rather beautifully.

THE AUDIO

Exit Through the Gift Shop comes with an English Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track along with optional English subtitles.

THE EXTRAS

Extras here include:

• B-Movie – A great little film about Bansky and his art. For people wanting a little more insight (and I do mean little) this is a fine extra viewers will find extremely interesting.
• Life Remote Control – The “finished” film Thierry Guetta had set out to make, sort of. It’s called the “Lawyer’s Edit,” and it feels frustratingly unfinished in many respects. In the end, it’s easy to see why Bansky saw through this guy’s act because, as a filmmaker at least, his attention to detail and ability to focus are definitely in question. Arguably this DVD’s best, and most frustrating, extra.
• Deleted Scenes
• Souvenir Sticker Pack
• 2D Viewing Glasses 

The main attractions here are definitely the two extra films, although the deleted scenes have plenty of merit in and of themselves as well. As for the sticker pack and the 2D glasses, they’re cute if unnecessary, although I’m sure die-hard fans of the film are going to find them priceless additions they’ll treasure far into the foreseeable future.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Exit Through the Gift Shop is one of the most exciting and original documentaries of 2010. It’s also amongst the year’s best movies.