I Don't Hate Las Vegas Anymore

I saw this film in my documentary cinema class about two weeks ago. It strikes me as incredibly idiosyncratic, funny, touching at times, and somewhat of a cinematic journal. What do I make of this film? That is, what sort of frame of mind do I leave the theater with? I don't know. I like Zahedi's commentary, the sort of bookends that begin and end the film-these are hilarious in how candid and improvised they are, not to mention very telling of the film's protagonist. But the sincere and improvised qualities of these portions of the film seem to be undermined by the Las Vegas hotel room sequence. Suffice it to say, the film seems driven by Zahedi's proposition and what he asks of his father and half-brother. Without giving away too much, I wonder if the filmmaker had this in mind all the while, if the film isn't meant to be a diary. Regardless, I ultimately think that this is a wonderful film about family and familial...experimentation. And the road sequences are some of the best and funniest I've ever seen. Highly recommended.