| First, let it be said that it was great fun to see the rock stars of the Connecticut blogosphere make lovable fools of themselves. Much fun was had by the 60 or so folks who showed up for the event. And the donated spread of beer, wine, and bad-for-you munchies was nothing to shake a stick at either.
The film itself, alas, left a lot to be desired. In trying to place what happened in Connecticut, mostly during the primary and entirely on the left of the political spectrum, in the larger context of political blogging as a national cultural phenomenon and by trying to give right wing bloggers their place in the sun, "Blog Wars" becomes so broad and diffuse (not to mention "fair and balanced") that it winds up saying nothing much.
Maybe it's just because I'd heard it all before, but most of the film seemed to be an exercise in the screamingly obvious. And I wasn't the only one who wondered what the hell Michelle Malkin and Christopher Hitchens were doing in the film.
The best moment for my money was the reprise of this priceless moment featuring Spazeboy and Jane Hamsher. And no one does a better job of savoring the fun of video blogging than Connecticut Bob.
There is also a "business as usual" kind of approach to the piece that leads the filmmakers to mimic the style of network television news magazines. For example, they make a big deal over the infamous Jane Hamsher "black face" incident. I confess that I felt a little put out by Hamsher's presence during the campaign. I always maintained that given enough time and a little encouragement, us local bloggers could have f**ked up just as badly on our own.
In any event, it would have been nice if the filmmakers could have found a visual and narrative style that played off the giddily anarchic tone of the blogs themselves.
Keith Crane, who features prominently and hilariously in the film, said that he felt they left a much better film on the cutting room floor and I tend to agree with him.
Still it was great fun for the local fans to see their heroes and be reminded of what was a truly exhilarating time. The filmmakers do have an eye for local color and a fondness for showing their British audience that at least some Americans retain a smattering of Anglo-Saxon.
The more refined, erudite, well-dressed, and exquisitely coiffed Connecticut bloggers, such as yours truly and CTBlogger, are barely visible in the film. We were apparently neither bald enough, fat enough, blonde enough, or potty mouthed enough to merit inclusion.
Thank God! |
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