Started out like Super Size Me, where Fogel is a guinea pig in the spirit of documentary research. But it quickly changes course to a much larger story about Rodchenkov. This is the real meat of the film. In the end, the guinea pig segment is just a distraction that contributes nothing to the larger story and should have been snipped.
It’s amazing how unaffected Rodchenkov seemed with a camera in his face. His behavior is always very natural and genuine. It’s obvious that Rodchenkov really trusted Fogel. But why? His reputation and life and family were at stake. And why did Rodchenkov think that now was the right time blow the whistle? There’s not a scene of even a line of dialogue which explores this. Perhaps the documentary’s greatest hole.
Other than that, it’s interesting and well-edited. Lots of news footage, car ride scenes, video captures, and quality animations are successfully cobbled together into something coherent. Fogel also includes fun footage of dogs and parties. I like it. It helps to humanize the characters. How the heck was Fogel able to get lawyers to consent to recordings of their conversations?
The whole Orwell thing felt a little forced.
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