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Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Critic Consensus: No consensus yet.
All Critics (66) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (61) | Rotten (5)
The documentary would have been that much better with a more explicit focus on why the average filmgoer should care.
Keanu Reeves is a game frontman of this fact-filled, slightly chaotic doc about the rise of digital technology in film.
It's this simple: If you like movies, you need to see "Side by Side."
Actors such as Robert Downey Jr. complain that because digital cameras can be reloaded in seconds, there is no time for performers to hang out in their trailers between takes (in protest, he urinated in jars, which he hid all over the sets of Zodiac).
There is great flux in this world, as Side by Side so entertainingly demonstrates, and where it's all headed is both discomforting and exhilarating. Stay tuned.
Side By Side works as well as it does by celebrating the filmmaking practice as a distinctive art form no matter what process it uses to make images into motion.
Directors, cinematographers, editors and other film professionals weigh in on the question of celluloid vs. digital film in this densely packed documentary.
... a stunningly fascinating documentary...
...could have used more movie-specific discussions of the aesthetic implications of celluloid versus digital.
Side By Side is a riveting, under-the-hood distillation of 100 years of Hollywood experimentation, innovation and expensive bravery.
Keanu Reeves proves a surprisingly engaging host for this documentary inquiry into the ongoing transition from celluloid to digital filmmaking.
Essential viewing for understanding different sides of one of the most vital current debates in cinema.
Side by Side explores the question of film's worth in an increasingly digital future. It all boils down to the simple fact that even if the format changes, the medium is only as good as the artist's ability to manipulate it to tell a story. Some filmmakers swear by film. Others by digital. But ultimately, it's the quality of the work that matters. A great documentary.
Super Reviewer
Insightful all the way through, "Side By Side" is a great documentary, filled with tons of well-known celebrities as they talk about their thoughts on the conversion from digital filmmaking and the future of the industry. There are times, although they are different opinions, that the same thing is repeated, because there is only so much you can have an opinion on about this. Let's face it, old-fashioned filmmaking, and things of the like, will inevitably die out within the next decade, and probably sooner. Most directors believe this to be the end of cinema, but I believe we are in a rut that will take a while to get out of, because we are having trouble finding the absolute best talent out there, or just settling for middle of the road. This was very interesting to watch, due to the classic directors speaking their minds on the matter, but truthfully, once they are gone, film will be dumber and dumber. So yes I am scared for the industry, because film has such a huge impact on society, but the world goes how it goes, and sometimes it is not controllable. To me, that is what this film's message really was. I really loved watching "Side By Side," and I highly recommend fans of any genre of film to watch this.
Keanu Reeves brings together a boatload of Hollywood's finest to discuss the physical and ideological issues facing cinema. It may try to force too much information into too little time if you don't know about the history and technology of film, but this documentary romanticizes the art with such passion and finesse that it stands as a reaffirmation of the power of movies and the importance of understanding their history and possible future.
An insightful, thought-provoking and unbiased documentary on the debate between digital vs. film.
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