Starring Frédéric Bourdin, Carey Gibson, Beverly Dollarhide, Bryan Gibson, Codey Gibson, Nancy Fisher
Directed by Bart Layton
Expectations: High. Heard many good things.
Just about every movie would be better experienced free from too much prior knowledge, but The Imposter is a very intriguing documentary that almost hinges completely on the viewer knowing next to nothing going in. If you know too much, the slow reveal of information will seem ponderous and will lack a lot of punch. It’s not a perfect film — it does drag a bit here and there — but The Imposter successfully takes a documentary narrative and weaves in slick, cinematic dramatized scenes so well that it’s almost like watching a narrative film. Incredible and hard to believe, The Imposter is the type of story that proves the phrase, “Truth is stranger than fiction.”
So if you’re intrigued to see the movie, go watch it. It’s available on Netflix Instant for those in the US, making it a pretty quick and easy watch for a good many film fans. I’d recommend only reading further after watching the film, although I can’t stop you from clicking through to the full review. Enter at your own risk!