Reflection on Three Documentary Films

The three documentary films present ideas about marginalized groups (transgender and gender nonconforming people, people of color, and women) in different ways. They all go into detail about the lives of the respective groups: what they go through, their difficulties, and how they are discriminated against.

Gendernauts is a more personal documentary showing some examples of what it is like to live as a transgender or gender-nonconforming individual. The people featured in the documentary have their lives shown to the viewer, allowing a deep understanding of the different facets of a transgender or gender nonconforming person’s everyday life. Some of the shots of the people being interviewed depict them in a relatable context (e.g. pictures from when they were younger, pictures of specific experiences, shots of them driving, etc.), which allow the viewer to better relate to them. The archival images (like the aforementioned pictures) make the viewer see the humanity in the individuals depicted and thus normalize transgender and gender-nonconforming lives in the eyes of viewers. Music is used very sparingly in Gendernauts, which is probably done on purpose. It makes the shots and interviews seem more realistic and lifelike, allowing the viewer to better understand that the people depicted live normal lives just like anyone else.

White Like Me is, in my opinion, the best of the three documentaries. It demonstrates the lasting scourge of white privilege better than any video or article I’ve seen before. It uses pieces of media (especially points that people have made on news broadcasts) and contradicts misinformed points about racism. It goes over a wide array of different claims about racism and gives concise arguments against post-racial ideas that people have expressed. It uses statistics and examples in order to back up its arguments. Wise uses interviews with both common people (for their experiences of institutional racism) and a few experts in order to give different trustworthy perspectives. Most of the video that is shown is taken from interviews and news clips (in order to quote people’s perspectives on racism, both in a positive and negative light), but there are also some statistics shown on screen and still images that explain what is being discussed. Archival footage is one of the backbones of the film. The footage allows the film to show the backwards ideas about racism that people have voiced at times. Some of the footage also shows actual effects of racism and white privilege that have been seen in the past. Sometimes music is used to convey a feeling (like upbeat music when showing footage of Obama’s election being announced), but only at certain points in the movie.

White Like Me conveys its claims often through a series of point-counterpoint arguments (using archival footage) meant to show backwards perceptions about the nonexistence of racism and white privilege and why those perceptions are wrong. It utilizes the expertise of experts (including the narrator) and the experiences of a few young people talking about the effects of racial biases on their lives. This is a good mix of evidence that is convincing for the viewer.

Miss Representation, like White Like Me, extensively uses media examples to back up its points. However, Miss Representation relies more heavily upon expert interviews than the other two movies. It does a good job at giving reasons behind its points about media representation of women through examples, quotes, and facts. It goes through the different effects that media representations have on individuals and society at large. In the interviews, the interviewees are largely allowed to speak for themselves at length and demonstrate their own opinions about the matter. Other than the shots of interviewees and some words on screen, the film relies upon pictures and examples of women’s representation in media. Archived footage and pictures of visual media are important to the film’s exploration of the media’s relationship with gender. The film uses a score through much of its runtime that highlights the feeling of each moment. That is distinct from the other two movies, which use music more sparingly.

-Zach