Point and Shoot (2014)

hyped garbage

Great Film overall

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

This film could have easily been a docu-comedy if edited differently. But instead we are expected to take a delusional Matthew Vandyke seriously as he hits the road to battle his mild OCD, fight alongside rebel forces, get captured and imprisoned, and create a fictionalzed character for himself along the way. At first it was easy and entertaining to laugh at the observations and realizations that spew from Vandyke's mouth. But as the documentary is edited in such a way to reinforce Vandyke's idea of himself and his "adventure", I found myself becoming annoyed in the character occupying my TV who I'm suppose to be taking seriously. I think it's also worth mentioning Matthew's inflated idea self of importance, and misguided adventure would be funny if not for what he's continued to do since, and especially do to the success of Point and Shoot. The character that Vandyke created in Point he has bizarrely continued to personify long after the film ends. And again this two would also be funny except he's used his notoriety to meddle even more extensively in various other middle eastern affairs. It's unfortunate that Point and Shoot somehow has earned Vandyke credibility and a platform.

We are in a self-absorbed world. Thanks to the internet, we have Facebook, Twitter and many other sources where anyone can voice their opinion and talk about themselves...incessantly. And, we have cellphones with cameras...so people can endlessly text about themselves and send pictures of themselves. Whether any of this is worthwhile or interesting...who cares, as we are now the generation of ME! In light of this, a film like "Point and Shoot" isn't at all surprising because of its inherent narcissism...whether or not there really is anything to tell.The film consists of a bazillion bits of video footage made by an obsessive-compulsive guy, Matthew Van Dyke. He films EVERYTHING during his travels--close ups of dirty toilets, himself falling off his motorcycle (probably because he was filming himself), boo boos he gets along the way as well as...well, just about everything. Most of it is very dull and extremely narcissistic. It's only when Matthew happens to fall in the middle of the Libyan revolution does it get less tedious. But even then, instead of being a HUGE story about the Arab Spring, too often it's really just about him. The reviewer Leofwine_draca felt that during much of the film, the focus was on the wrong things...and I clearly agree with them.For me, I'd much rather see a documentary just about the Arab Spring--such as the great Oscar-nominated films "Karama Has No Walls" or "The Square"--not a film that mostly seems like an annoying vanity project. Lots of folks died for freedom and focusing on them and their cause should be THE focus of any documentary on these uprisings.

An incredible film that manages to capture mental illness, narcissism and the Arab Spring from the inside. The film starts off with an interesting concept with Matthew Vandyke who feels he's lead a sheltered life and needs to become a man. So he buys a motorbike and travels alone to the most dangerous places in the world.During this journey we see him film first hand his mental illness which at times is painful to watch. Then the film takes an unexpected turn and we are given new and colorful characters as Mathew embarks on his mission to join the fight in Libya with his new found Libyan friends.Impossible to label the director keeps the film focused and it's an unforgettable journey into a man's mental illness manifesting itself in the backdrop of the Arab uprising. Totally unique, compelling and brilliant!

Point and Shoot is remarkable footage of the Arab Spring from an American man who briefly lived it. The trouble is that the man is a textbook unreliable narrator who has an odd, narcissistic streak.Point and Shoot tells the story of Matt VanDyke, a Baltimore man in his late 20s or early 30s who is doted on by his mother and grandmother and lives at home. To prove that he is not a wimp, VanDyke decides he needs an adventure to understand "manhood." He decides to go on a motorcycle ride across the middle east and, through a variety of accidents and decisions over several years, ends up fighting with the Libyan rebels against Gaddafi. VanDyke films many of these encounters and ends up giving them to a full-time director when he returns to the U.S.The footage is very interesting, and the documentary is well-edited. But VanDyke is troubling to watch for most of the film. For example, he asks a friend to film him trying to kill another man, and repeatedly focuses on how his actions in Syria affect his "manhood." VanDyke seems to be overly fascinated with his own image and at the same time unable to understand how poorly his actions will come across on camera. The documentary director does a good job of raising subtle questions about VanDyke's mental state.