Review: ‘Weiner’ is an intimate portrait of a man who defies privacy (Includes first-hand account)

There are certain jobs that inherently put people in the public eye. However, this can be a double-edged sword as both their virtues and mistakes are widely scrutinized by the world at large. The latter deeds are obviously the more troublesome as what would often be a private matter is splashed across the front page. For the inconveniently named former congressman Anthony Weiner, his poor judgement would repeatedly impact his personal and professional life. The aptly titled documentary, Weiner, chronicles how the crisis was managed behind the scenes.

A career politician, Wiener was New York’s congressional representative for 12 years before the sexting scandal, branded “Weinergate,” would force him to resign in 2011. While having an online conversation with one of several women, the congressman accidentally published a photo of his erection to his public Twitter profile. After several days of denying he participated in the exchange, Weiner eventually admitted his involvement and later stepped down after more evidence was revealed. Two years later, he attempted to re-enter politics as a New York mayoral candidate. Unfortunately the relatively solid campaign was thwarted by further scandal and Weiner would finish last with less than five per cent of the vote.

Film team Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg are granted unprecedented access to Weiner during these incidents. Their camera always seems to be present as the former congressman and mayoral candidate audibly contemplates his next move; as he and his team wordsmith his apologies and speeches; as he talks around his betrayal; and as he nonchalantly treats each day like another one in the trenches. His attitude toward his behaviour, and the effects it imposes on his family and career reveal some of the most shocking moments as he appears to let most of it roll off his back in favour of a public mask that exudes confidence and ignorance.

However the other surprising aspect of this film is its account of Weiner’s wife, Huma Abedin‘s, feelings regarding her husband’s actions. Pregnant with their first child, one cannot imagine her emotional state upon learning of his online activities. Nonetheless, spending two years out of the spotlight appeared to have been enough time to mend their relationship. Next to his side on the campaign trail, Abedin proves to be a smart, competent woman who believes in her husband and is willing to support him in any way possible. And then the second story breaks and she is never again seen with a genuine smile on her face. The contrast between Weiner’s casual acceptance of events and Abedin’s obvious heartbreak really alters the mood of the film. In addition, the one-on-one interview with Weiner as he reflects on these affairs is not necessarily what audiences may want or expect as it appears little has changed in the years following the scandal — a detail also confirmed in his recent response to @willrahn who tweeted, “Tbh we should all delete our accounts.”

Too late for some of us. June 9, 2016

As the saying goes, “You can’t make this stuff up,” and this was surely one story many wish had been fiction.

Directors: Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg

Similar Posts

  • Review: ‘Only Yesterday’ gets new audience with English-dub (Includes first-hand account)

    For several decades, the animated films of Studio Ghibli have been some of the most acclaimed and revered. Following his Oscar win in 2003, most of the recognition has been given to director Hayao Miyazaki. Admirers began to scour his filmography, consuming all that he produced before and creating a Western demand for everything that came after; Disney has since taken up the charge of releasing English dubs of his movies for North American audiences. But Miyazaki is not the studio’s only director and since his retirement, attention has spread to other filmmakers at Ghibli. Now, Isao Takahata’s Only Yesterday is receiving a North American theatrical release to celebrate its 25th anniversary.

  • Review: ‘Furious 7’ gives fans everything they want and then some (Includes first-hand account)

    When the first film premiered in 2001, there was a lot of uncertainty whether The Fast and the Furious would launch a successful franchise — a theory the second film did not do much to refute as it focused on only one-half of the dynamic duo that propelled the original. Though none of the early characters appear in the third film, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift breathed new life into the franchise. The fourth film‘s reunion unleashed a can of NOS and it hasn’t slowed down since. In Furious 7, the story is looping in on itself and doing everything required of a successful series.

  • Review: ‘Red Sparrow’ won’t be soaring on its laurels (Includes first-hand account)

    The Cold War was widely thought to have ended in the early ‘90s, but as recent events have shown the rivalry between the United States and Russia is still very much alive. Thus, a story about Soviet spies, espionage training camps and double agents is not as irrelevant as it may seem. Moreover, audiences’ attraction to spy pictures has not waned as evidenced by the continued success of the James Bond franchise and the more recent arrival, Atomic Blonde. But how does a slow-burning, female-led mystery fit into this landscape? Red Sparrow is about to find out.