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- IFC
- Oct 19, 2022
- IFC
- Oct 19, 2022
Summary Fred Armisen and Bill Hader put a comedic spin to documentaries in this six-episodes series created with Seth Meyers.
Created By: Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers, Rhys Thomas
- IFC
- Oct 19, 2022
- IFC
- Oct 19, 2022
Documentary Now!
Season 4
Season Premiere: Oct 19, 2022
82
User Score
Available after 4 ratings
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Where to Watch
Summary Fred Armisen and Bill Hader put a comedic spin to documentaries in this six-episodes series created with Seth Meyers.
Created By: Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers, Rhys Thomas
Where to Watch
Season Episodes
View All Seasons
Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 10 Critic Reviews
82
100% Positive
10 Reviews
10 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 10 Critic Reviews
82
100% Positive
10 Reviews
10 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
The show’s as sharp as ever in “Soldier of Illusion,” the two-parter that opens Season 4. As pure entertainment, it adroitly combines a high concept with lowbrow humor, including Alexander Skarsgård in a role that might take you back to his orange mocha frappuccino days. And like so many of the best Documentary Now! episodes, it shines because it’s remarkably ambitious. ... Documentary Now! has pretty much perfected that formula [satirizing something both highly specific and kind of obscure can yield incredible results].
Sure, one who has seen My Best Fiend and Burden of Dreams might be able to unlock more of the double-episode season premiere, “Soldier of Illusion.” Anyone who enjoys series like Reboot or The Comeback, however, will still have a laugh at Skarsgård’s character directing episodes of faux sitcom The Bachelor Nanny. ... This season saves the very best for last, though, with a stunning ode to Agnès Varda’s one-of-a-kind filmmaking.
Overall, this season of “Documentary Now!” is not only a loving, yet playful tribute to the documentaries of yore, it also reminded me why I love documentary cinema so much. The format of interrogating life through probing questions, through sifted memory, and through real-time recording is enthralling and can make the most ordinary subjects extraordinary. It can also be emotionally manipulative trash, which this season also reminds its viewers.
You can appreciate the attention to getting it even better than the real thing and if not, you’ll likely crack up at a batshit German actor shrieking at popping-and-locking dancer before a live studio audience of shepherds. The rest of the season’s episodes stick to this notion of spot-on parody plus one incongruous element or unlikely environment. ... [“Trouver Frisson”] is their love letter to fellow movie lovers. It knows that there are a handful of us laughing through tears.
As with any season of “Documentary Now!,” some episodes are funnier than others, but all six are worth your time.
Like the best of the season—and the series in general—“Soldier Of Illusion” is rich with detail big and small. ... Another high point of the season is “How They Threw Rocks.” ... The season’s other three episodes are a little more mixed in their execution, and their effectiveness will depend on the viewer’s familiarity with the films that inspired them. ... Even a Documentary Now! episode that doesn’t quite hit on all levels is a feast for the eyes; and at barely 23 minutes each, these episodes are extraordinarily intricate pieces of miniature art.
“Soldier of Illusion” — with Alexander Skarsgard as Herzog and August Diehl as his excitable leading man, Klaus Kinski — is overthought and diffuse, and not very funny. “Documentary Now!” is better when it burrows into a single mood or character or idea. ... [“Two Hairdressers in Bagglyport” is] a pleasant, prickly trifle, and Meyers’s script offers nuggets for the terrific cast.
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