Beautiful Losers

This documentary follows the lives and careers of a collective group of Do-it-yourself artists and designers who inadvertently affected the art world.

I am not sure what to make of this. I like some of the art, and it is interesting to see it getting the proper respect. Other than Shep Fairey, I had no idea who any of these people were. But I am also somewhat soured by the pretentious attitudes of some of them, thinking what they do is important. It probably isn't...

So, ultimately, what to make of this? It's not as grand or as timeless as "Exit Through the Gift Shop". I suppose the real test is time. Today (2016) may not be the best distance to view 2008. But by 2018, where will these artists be? Setting trends or in the dustbin?

beautiful losers is a great documentary, amazing, awe inspiring artists and art work. because i am really interested in this field, it's nice to see behind the scene and look at how they work alone and together, constantly being inspired by each other creatively.

some of the art work shown in the documentary were brilliant, but the highlight would be the artists themselves. weird, funny, lonely, they made for a really interesting watch and kept me entertained with their little specks of life story.

it did drag on a little bit near the middle i supposed but nevertheless i still found it interesting. my advice to some people is just put it on, watch it and don't think too much about how it's pretentious or whatever because then you will miss something really great. it left me feeling inspired and creative, i put my pencil to paper straight after it ended. watch it.

Here is a wonderful little niche genre.

Movies are essentially striving to art. Few qualify. Almost no one can manage the complex juggling act that it takes. It just involves too many people, too many risks, too many dependencies on happy accidents. But the fact that film CAN BE art is what underlies all film.

What if you cannot make a film that has artistic merit?

One solution is that you make a film about artists. The problem is that even if you branch away from film in search of a broader field, you run into the market effect. Art may exist all over, but unless if finds a hook that allows it to catch some market force to sweep it to you, you will never experience it.

That means that market forces co- create art, and more particularly the many souls making decisions that are abstracted into this "force." That is a nuanced way of saying that in some respect we are at the mercy of some group we may not like.

Here we are introduced to one of those groups. They believe themselves to be artists. Some critical mass of consumers buy the argument. One of them did the requisite dying for her art. All have suffered and sacrificed, as we see documented. I saw this intermingled with documentaries that exposed the corruption in how food is produced, how the food is literally killing us and what we made as this society. This fits, I believe.

The tinkering at the edge that these small souls do could never matter to me. But being exposed does. Because it is not about what you accept, but what you choose not to that matters.

So the film works on that level. And on another. Harmony Korine is one of this group, one who speaks engagingly. This is an unexpected and effective bridge between film and the sausage machine that makes film. It was welcome. I like this kid and his work. He wonders about geekiness, loneliness and technology the same way I did and possibly would even now. So there is a predetermined familiarity, an acceptance of soul when seeing him.

Didn't like his friends though.

Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.

I loved it, I hated it. I found the stories fascinating. I loved the art. It was well done. It was great to see all the stories of artists I have admired. I didn't like the language or nudity throughout the whole film. I realize that Aaron Rose was going for the edgy raw feel to the film but I think it would have had that same feeling without all the F- Bombs and nudity. I think this could inspire a whole new generation of artists but I won't be showing this to any young aspiring artists. I like that it sends the message that an artist should just be himself/herself and not worry about what the world feels you should be. It will inspire you to make some art.

I can't recommend this film nearly as much as I could recommend Waste Land or Exit Through the Gift Shop, but Beautiful Losers does occasionally have it's moments of merit. The running story of support that each member of this wide artistic circle should be commended. Without the constant support system, this sliver of the art world would have come and gone without much notice at all.

But really, that's mostly what I enjoyed about this film. I don't really care about self aggrandizement on such a large scale, especially when the people in question are ( with the exception of one artist) still very much alive and still very, very young. Most of the artists in the film are approaching their forties.

These artists are also very lucky to be alive at this time. It appears that everyone was filming themselves, even before making their own art scene, so this documentary is rife with footage of every artist from young kids to adults dressed up as kids.

Ho-hum...there's better films about artists and their respective scenes.