Leaving Home, Coming Home: A Portrait of Robert Frank

I am one of the happy few to have seen this documentary on the great photographer Robert Frank. The director Mr. Fox paints a very intimate portrait of his subject, mostly through the use of interviews and archival footage. It turns out that unfortunately, Mr. Frank now feels that he got a little TOO personal, and is allowing the film to be shown only 3 times a year. The irony is, the same thing happened to Robert Frank himself, when he did a documentary on the Rolling Stones in the 70s, called 'Cocksucker Blues'. It subsequently got banned by the Stones, to the great dismay of Mr. Frank. So please, Robert, let this film be widely released. It gives great insight into how one of history's most distinguished photographers thinks. Since this only of interest to admirers of his work, I think it would do no damage to him if it was seen by many - it is definitely worth it. Especially since for all his grumpiness, Mr.Frank exhibits a very charming sense of humor.

The film starts as a conventional, if rambling, portrait of photographer Robert Frank but soon turns into a study of how the single-minded pursuit of the artist can affect the people around them. In Robert Frank's case, the loss of his two and only children feels like a consequence of an artist who turned himself into a camera, one that was empathetic but also dispassionate. It's also a study of a master growing old and being haunted by his own past. I would highly recommend this film but it wasn't easy for me to watch. As many people have said, it's often better to experience the art than to meet the actual artist.