Documentaries have an interesting way of touching souls. They are particularly effective because they're based on reality, and when they're well made, one appreciate the art behind the camera, and the full impact of the qualities of the subject matter. Last year we had "Blackfish", and I can recall others that were so effective that led to changes in the way we see and do things.
"Vivian" certainly raises a lot of questions because of the way it is structured. There are surprises and revelations, and they all ring true, not fabricated or biased, as it is the case of so many documentaries and Hollywood films which are produced by people who believe the subject matter is enough to have something special. "Vivian" introduces us to a unquestionable talent, one shaped by mysterious forces and incidents we might never really know or understand but presented in such a way that we might never forget who or what we have seen.
A photographer finds an incredible amount of photos, films (developed and undeveloped), and the trigger is that the artwork is unquestionably beautiful, haunting, special, and begs the audience to inquire how and why it was made. Through some careful detective work, we soon find the identity of the artist. The initial discovery raises more questions because of the quality of the work and the profession of the woman who took the pictures. She is revealed to be a nanny and a caretaker.
As layers are removed and more information is provided, we see a complex and mysterious individual who had the obsessive need to document what she saw, and with the help of a very good camera, an excellent eye for visual composition, and some interesting emotional baggage, we put together most of the puzzle.
The documentary takes you through interviews of some of the children she took care, the impressions she made along the way. How she was an imposing and puzzling character, creating an aura of distance, but not being able to remain neutral. Her personality was too strong and her emotions so powerful, they were hard to ignore. Interviewees show their affection, the way she made a difference in their lives by exposing them to a truly complex nature, a woman so different from what most expected. She dragged children through remote parts of town, driven by an impulse to study the darker side of society. Vivian was attracted by forces many would rather disregard. She look for frowns, flaws, pain, darkness and with the help of her camera, made them beautiful, alluring, attractive, and powerful.
The last third of the film shows her personal background, and though we know more than we did one hour before, we still are left with holes in the stories. They are meant to remain that way because in Vivian's eyes, the work and ideas were important enough to reflect her thoughts and questions, but she wasn't ready to share them with the world, much the way she kept her personal distance, she might have believed the world was not ready for her contributions, or she lacked the confidence to offer them to us.
What is obvious by the end of the documentary is that she is now making a mark in the world, and people can recognize that her soul is in her work, a soul that appreciated, feelings and emotions other fail to recognize or are bound by their own limits. She had no audience expectations and crossed barriers. There is the sadness and joys of a child's eyes, the weight of the world in those denizens she captured at a special time. The most intriguing subjects are those who know they are being photographed and are under her spell, willing to let souls connect for a few seconds. Just like her subjects, which remain a mystery to us, like Da Vinci's "Mona Lisa", Vivian also manages to remain somehow enigmatic, yet fully human and quite a special artist and human being.
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