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The Institute
Thousands of participants in a San Francisco-based alternate reality game end up getting more than they bargained for. Told from the players’ perspectives, the film looks over the precipice at an emergent new art form where the real world and fictional narratives merge to create unforeseen and often unsettling consequences. Examining counter-culture, new religious movements and street art, this film takes the viewer on a journey into a secret underground world teeming just beneath the surface of everyday life.
| Release : | 2013 |
| Rating : | 6.2 |
| Studio : | |
| Crew : | Cinematography, Director, |
| Cast : | |
| Genre : | Documentary |
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Reviews
Purely Joyful Movie!
Just what I expected
A brilliant film that helped define a genre
The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.
A wonderful interactive street-art project based on the philosophies originated by the Church of the SubGenius, the band DEVO, the David Cronenberg film Videodrome and the television miniseries Wild Palms is turned into a very tedious mockumentary. Unfortunately, unless you participated in the analog-geocaching-role-playing-game, watching The Institute can be a very eye-rolling experience. Much of the film is filled with poorly acted re-enactments, hokey "found footage" and phony interviews. If you make it past the sixty minute mark, it becomes very apparent that you are watching a semi-talented improv-group's re-imagining of David Fincher's The Game starring Michael Douglas. I love ingenious street-art and clever stunts and would have loved to have watched a serious documentary about how the artist(s) came up with this very well thought-out hoax, but to sit down and watch what you know is a joke, gets very tiring and very boring very quickly.
I didn't know what to expect and that helped a lot.Everyone is part of the game, I suspect even us viewers. Those moments when you are not sure what is real and what is not, happens to the viewer as well and boom... THEY GOTCHA...The idea of the art game project is wonderful and what stuck with me is the idea that the world can be a fun and interesting place, if you look at it through the right eyes, the eye of wonder and mystery.I laughed and smiled a lot while watch. That is a good sign.So if you want to see a documentary about something that happened and didn't happen and happened, this is the doc for you.
NOT !I have no idea what I just saw exactly, but I was glued to the screen the whole time. Should there be some definitive resolution to art? This was a unique viewing experience. I give it a high score. Why? No idea, but that seems like the right thing to do for some reason. Maybe somebody else will get it and then explain what in heck just happened.Meanwhile, there is plenty of stuff to wrack your brain on. Human psychology, belief, art, what kind of life are we living, would I participate in such a thing? Is modern society missing something like this? Should we ask for more? What kinds of "stone soup" have we created in the past, and is that a bad thing to do or a good thing...Too many chefs... at least bring ingredients !
I saw this movie at the Mill Valley Film Festival last year and have thought about it a lot since then. From the start, the film has incredibly compelling visuals and soundtrack, but the interviews with members (?) seem pretty straight forward. As the movie continues though, it seems as though things start twisting and the information may or may not be "real." Are these people acting? Is this even what happened? It might all be fake, or it might all be real, or a beautiful mixture of fact and fiction. Regardless, it looks like it was a lot of fun to participate, and I love the idea of having things like this going on around you without your knowledge. I recommend watching the movie (I think you can get it on iTunes) and seeing if you can tell what is real -- if anything.
