One of the worst documentaries I've ever seen.

I take that back. In recent memory, this documentary is THE worst I have seen. The name: Another Glorious Day (2009) by Karin Kaper and Dirk Szuszies.
It might have been a hint that only a mere 4 people outside of the Harry Ransom Center decided to show up to the screening. Luckily, there was a guest. Kenneth Brown wrote a play entitled The Brig some 47 years ago after enduring two experiences in the Marine prison camps after the Korean War. In 2008, the play was produced in Berlin and it is this of which the documentary is built around. When I say built around, I really mean that the documentary was in essence the 2008 production of The Brig in Berlin. Really. So below I attempt to explain what I truly do believe to be as the worst documentary I've ever seen.
First and foremost, this is arguably not a documentary despite what the misleading synopsis provided on the HRC website says. I would argue that this film is essentially a 95 minute "making-of" film with way too many cuts to the production itself. When I say way too many cuts, I mean that the film was over 90% of the play itself. The filmmakers decided they would try their hands at filming a narrative (theatrical narrative at that) take place. So, the documentary as a whole fell into this weird type of limbo where it was a documentary trying to capture as much narrative action as possible while attmepting not to alienate itself as a documentary. Nevertheless, I was caught in the middle of all of this screaming silently in my head for the whole 95 minutes trying to figure out which angle they were going to take it.
After the film finished and few other points of discussion had been covered about the play itself, the playwright Kenneth Brown had asked us how we (the four of us) thought about the documentary. Pure silence. I kept my mouthe shut. More importantly though, he decided he would answer his own question by saying that the filmmakers' goal was to show how the Living Theatre Company, who first produced The Brig back in the '60s, grew into the great company it is today because of the key production of The Brig and that he thought they did a good job in achieving that goal. In no justifiable way, did the documentary 'achieve' that. If that was their primarily goal, they failed miserably. Their goal to me seemed more like: let's reproduce the play on screen off of a stage (as cheap as possible) and add in a few tid-bits about the production in Berlin with even fewer tid-bits about the importance of The Brig in shaping the Living Theatre Co.
I began to ask myself, well Brett, 'what really constitutes a documentary?' And without missing a beat, I replied to myself with 'not this.' There was simply too much of the production without enough commentary or narrative arc. The play itself lacks a strong arc as well.
The documentary however has some redeeming qualities. For example, the play was broken into three or so Acts and between them were 'behind-the-scenes' footage of the actors and Brown himself. These short sequences were literally the life of the documentary. Through these I could see what went into producing the play in Berlin as well as some of the significance it had on the Living Theater (although sparse). Without these sequences though, the documentary would unequivocally have been NOT a documentary.
And finally, I asked myself: 'if it was so bad, how am I watching it at a distinguished museum like the Harry Ransom Center?' And, I realized something. This screening was not about the film, it was about the play and its significance. Kenneth Brown is quite a distinguished playwright and his play The Brig had its importance bringing to light the harshness of the Marine prison camps post WWII and also significance its propelling the Living Theater into the icon it is today. The film certainly reproduces the play and just that.