Chicago filmmaker Darryl Roberts returns to the subject of body image in “America The Beautiful 2: The Thin Commandments,” taking on the American fear of full-figured bodies, taking snapshots of weight-loss industries from diets to surgeries and anecdotes. What the press kit refers to as “grassroots” filmmaking, let’s call “micro-budget.” The writer-producer-director puts himself center frame, a la “Super Size Me” to discover. The cutting and style of on-screen graphics is superannuated television rather than the more variegated style of montage Michael Moore employs in his investigative polemics; a variety of music tells the tale quicker than any of the images. With Roberts, Deepak Chopra, Christian Lander, Kathleen Sebelius, Timothy Dolan, Beverly Johnson. 100m. (Ray Pride)
“America the Beautiful 2: The Thin Commandments” opens Friday at the Music Box.
Ray Pride is Newcity’s film critic and a contributing editor to Filmmaker magazine.
His history of Chicago “Ghost Signs” in words and images will be published in Spring 2022.
Previews of that project on Twitter (twitter.com/chighostsigns) as well as photography on Instagram: instagram.com/raypride.
Twitter: twitter.com/RayPride
