Something to watch tonight: Wednesday 4 February
Becoming (Hallgren, 2020)
Yesterday I mentioned all the attention that the Melania documentary got last weekend — media attention that did not result in tickets sold or box office earnt — and I linked to an article by the Southern Punk Project that summarised all of the reviews of the film so that you could feel informed without actually having to watch it yourself.
A day later, that writer followed this up by pointing out that a great many people are protesting the existence of Melania by doing a thing that is likely to enrage the first lady and her orange-hued husband more than almost anything else — watching Becoming, the 2020 documentary about former first lady Michelle Obama, thereby boosting its stats to levels they can only dream of.
As it turns out, due to lockdown I was filling in on RNZ At the Movies when Becoming came out and I featured it on the show on 13 May 2020:
In 2018, bookshops around the world had reason to be profoundly grateful for former American first lady Michelle Obama as her book, Becoming, stormed the bestseller lists for months and found its way into millions of Christmas stockings.
Now, a couple of years later, the Obama’s new movie production company – Higher Ground – has launched a documentary about the mammoth book tour for Netflix. The film is also called Becoming.
Now, full disclosure, my day job is at the NZ Booksellers Association and, in our current restrained bookselling environment, I’m sure all my members will be dabbing away a tear at the sight of hundreds of people queuing up for a signed copy and a chance to meet an author. One day we will be able to do this again, right?
Directed and shot by Nadia Hallgren, Becoming uses the big arena events that formed the spine of that tour as the structure for her film. More than 20 sold our shows across America, with different celebrity hosts in each city – including Oprah Winfrey, Stephen Colbert and Reese Witherspoon. Hallgren cleverly recognises that many of the stories told from those stages were repeated in every venue so she cuts them together in a way that make them feel like seamless raconteuring but with every sentence Ms Obama is wearing a different outfit and talking to a different host.
It’s an elegant conceit revealing the showbusiness truth behind the folksy stories.
But they are often very funny folksy stories, don’t get me wrong. Ms Obama is a very fine storyteller with a wicked sense of humour and a keen intelligence that makes clear that she was by no means a second-fiddle to the president.
Becoming is very much authorised by its subject – and the Obama’s documentary making endeavours have a very clear progressive agenda. They produced American Factory which won the Oscar for Best Documentary a few months ago. So, this is not a warts and all portrait, but I can’t imagine anyone with an eye on American politics won’t be nostalgic for the days when thoughtful and articulate people lived in the White House.
Meanwhile, spotted on BlueSky earlier today:
Also in that episode of At the Movies: Hirokazu Kore-eda’s first film made in Europe, The Truth starring Catherine Deneuve and Ethan Hawke, and the documentary Spaceship Earth. Listen to the whole thing here.
Where to watch Becoming
Worldwide: Streaming on Netflix