Best in Show

     Documentaries are a type of film that have been around since the early 20th century and are continued to be made today, but "mockumentaries" put a spin on the genre to create a more comedic effect. Renowned director Christopher Guest has created and starred in several mockumentaries including This Is Spinal Tap, A Mighty Wind, and Best in Show. I recently watched Best in Show, Guest's film from 2000 that follows the lives of several different dog owners as they prepare for a national dog show. This film's star studded cast consists of Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Jennifer Coolidge, Jane Lynch, Parker Posey, John Michael Higgins, and of course Christopher Guest. Best in Show utilizes everything that works well in a documentary and in my opinion, makes it better by adding a comedic tone.
     Throughout the entire film, the use of popular documentary elements makes the film more interesting by adding things most audiences aren't used to in a comedy film. One of the things I believe works best in this film, is cut aways. In order to add interesting backstories behind he characters, their is cut aways which is basically a one on one interview with just the dog owner(s) and the cameraman. This allows the audience to hear some personal information from the characters that you wouldn't normally hear in a regular scene, and that further allows the audience to create a stronger bond and connect with the character more. One of the other intriguing elements in this film is how all of the characters are constantly very close to each other, without actually meeting until later on in the film. The audience gets to see jump cuts from one character to another, and although they're not physically together, the editing allows us to see everyone in rapid succession so it never feels like a certain character is isolated. In the third act, when all of the characters finally meet and compete against each other in the big show, it is very rewarding for the audience to see everything finally come together. Although it isn't the most mainstream popular comedy, it is a truly smart and comedic film that puts a twist on normal comedies that not only makes it more enticing but smarter as well. Best in Show is a great film that adds a lot to several genres and does what it attempts very well.