Weiner

At first glance, the film seems to be about how a promising congressman from New York destroyed his political career because of inappropriate postings on the internet. It is to some extent, but it is also about how the media can build up someone in one moment and tear that same person down the next. The film won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival.

"Weiner" begins with archival footage of Anthony Weiner as the liberal firebrand on the floor of the House. Having not known much about Rep. Weiner before the scandal, this was eye-opening to me. Here you really see what he could have become had the scandal not occurred.

From that point on, the film follows the subject from the initial scandal up until the aftermath of his New York mayoral run. As expected, the film shows numerous clips about Weiner during this critical time in his career and the media circus that ensued. However, what really makes the film compelling is the behind-the-scenes footage between Weiner, his campaign staff and his family. You really feel like a "fly on the wall" eavesdropping on some very personal discussions. The film was co-directed and shot by Josh Kriegman, who once served as Weiner's chief-of-staff. Kriegman and his co- director Elyse Steinberg, were given unprecedented access. What does go is so personal and intense that at one point in the film, Kriegman even asks Weiner why he is even allowing them to continue shooting.

"Weiner," while infuriating sometimes to watch, is a wild ride of a character-study filled with contradictions. On the one hand, Anthony Weiner seems to be fully aware of the damage he has inflicted to his career and his family, but at other times appears quite delusional. Seeing "Weiner" is like watching a slow moving train wreck. You know what is going to happen, but you watch it anyway to see how it happens.

This film definitely falls into the category of "truth is stranger than fiction." It's hard to imagine another personality in recent history that is so unfiltered and self-absorbed in his quest for higher office, with the exception of a fellow named, Donald Trump.

This is not just a film about Anthony Weiner, but a critique at how the mainstream media values style and sensationalism over substance. This is evidenced in a sequence that occurs toward the end of the film that must be seen to be believed. In short, "Weiner" is a fascinating character-study and must be considered an early awards favorite.

As a New Yorker who voted in the mayoral election that is depicted in this film.....ahhh, if I had only known better.

Weiner is a politician who had a sex/porn/internet problem and it didn't disappear the minute he was publicly disgraced. Yet, he was an excellent politician, without a doubt a better candidate than the one I voted for. And yet, the story that was most in the news at the time (and shown in this film) was his poor judgement about his personal life, and negligible press about his competency as a champion for the middle class. Furthermore, the timeline of the Sydney Leathers relationship was hardly prominent. I hadn't realized it was over a year earlier. (Albeit better if it had been five years earlier though.)

History is replete with great leaders who had amoral sex lives, not the least Harding who had an illegitimate child shortly before his election as our 29th president. We won't even discuss what happened in JFK's life, and yet the public forgives him.

In no way do I think Weiner should be condoned for acting so inappropriately while being a public servant, but it would also be great if we could focus on POLITICAL competency instead of extramarital sexual blunders. As I see it, when Donald Trump is the GOP nominee with all his sexual improprieties, obviously it's all about the media. And to me, that is the true essence of this documentary. IT IS ALL ABOUT THE MEDIA.

My takeaway, although cliché, is that it's the media's storyline, which panders to the readers' lowest common interest -- bringing serious consequences to our politics today.

"Weiner" (2016 release; 96 min.) is a documentary about disgraced new York politician Anthony Weiner (pronounced: "wiener", not "whiner"). As the movie opens, we have Weiner in an interview chair, talking to the documentary makers. We then go back to 2011, when we get a thumbnail overview of how a sexting scandal led to his resignation from US Congress. We then shift to "May 13, 2013, two years after his resignation". Weiner is about to enter the race for New York Mayor, and along the way decided to give unlimited access to these documentary makers during his campaign. By then you are already nailed to your seat as you watch what is unfolding.

Couple of comments: this is the first full-length documentary for co-writer and directors Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg. While the comeback attempt in and of itself would've made for riveting viewing, can you imagine how they felt when smack in the middle of the unfolding campaign, another controversy explodes? It doesn't get any better than this for documentaries (on the same level as "The Armstrong Lie" about Lance Armstrong and "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" about Wilco). There are so many fine moments in this documentary, and I certainly don't want to spoil your viewing experience, but allow me to just point out two scenes: there is a very clever montage of Weiner's campaign taking a foothold and gaining track (to the point of leading the polls), set to the "Theme of S.W.A.T.", and it works beautifully. Even better is the scene between Weiner and his wife Huma Abedin when the second controversy explodes. Ah yes, the wife. Normal people like you and me immediately think: why on earth does she decide to stick by her man, time and again, humiliation upon humiliation? Then it dawns on me: these are not 'normal' people like you and me. Huma stays with Weiner the same reason Hillary stayed with Bill: it's all about the power! These career politicians know one thing, and one thing only: get the power, and stay in power, whatever means necessary, whatever personal sacrifice is needed along the way. When the final curtain comes down (Weiner obviously did not win the mayoral election), one of the directors asks Weiner "why did you let me film all this?". You'll just have to see for yourself how Weiner responds to this... Bottom line: if you like documentaries, you will absolutely love this riveting look at a disgraced politician whose narcissistic personality disorder is fully exposed here.

"Weiner" made a splash when it debuted at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, and I couldn't wait to see it. It finally opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. The Saturday matinée screening where I saw this at was attended poorly, to my surprise. Maybe strong word-of-mouth (which this movie surely generates) will lead to wider exposure down the road through VOD or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray. Meanwhile, "Weiner" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

"I did a lot of things. But I did a lot of other things, too." Anthony Weiner

The tragicomic story of seven-term congressman from New York, Anthony Weiner, is almost too absurd to be true. After resigning from Congress over sexting, while waging a vigorous 2013 campaign for mayor of NYC, Weiner is disclosed to have texted again visions of his maleness to other women than his wife, Huma Abedin. The tragedy is that this aide to then Senator Hillary Clinton is an accomplished woman, totally undeserving the abject humiliation her husband's sexting has caused her.

Filmmakers Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg in this fascinating doc called Weiner gained permission from him to film his most intimate moments of the campaign, especially with his wife while his tech-straying disgrace is made public. While for us commoners, such peccadilloes amount to little in a public forum (but much, of course, in the personal arena), these moments are heart-rending to see: This accomplished wife forces herself, with barely a smile, to support her husband.

The ancient Greeks knew well the flaws and foibles of celebrities gone wild. In this revelation of hubris, an overweening pride that comes before the fall, even the tragedians might not have dared to show the Congressman sexting even after his initial exposure (so to speak). Yes, he sends photos of his masculinity to a 22 year old woman, who will complete his ignominy by revealing them to a press overjoyed at a second round.

The despair is that he had seemingly come back into the good graces of the public, only to be outed again and lose that support and the mayoral primary to Bill DeBlasio. The documentary is there for the grand moments of revelation and shame, none more poignant than privately with his wife, who seems almost shell-shocked by the new revelation.

Unfortunately, the quotes at the beginning of this review are the most insight we ever get, despite the filmmakers' intimacy, to help us understand why such a gifted populist should so carelessly toss away his position and reputation. Perhaps his wife's mute incredulity stands for our own.

In the end we must conclude with a saying never more appropriate than here: "Who knows the secrets of the human heart?"

I really like the documentary because it does not editorialize. There is not one voice over in the whole thing. It is just Anthony Weiner ramping up his attempt to win the Democratic Mayoral primary, which in New York, is tantamount to winning the mayor's race since the city is overwhelmingly Democratic. Weiner had been the seven term liberal firebrand of a Democratic congressman from Brooklyn until a case of him sexting a woman along with pictures of his private parts came to light and caused him to resign in disgrace in 2011.

His campaign starts out with hope in the spring of 2013, but soon with his rise in the polls, more sexting by Weiner rises to the surface because he is in the limelight again. He tries to paper over it, and the documentary lets you see him trying to paper over it, by saying that he had already said he had problems in his marriage and that he had never said exactly when the sexting problem began and ended. This sounded too much like "it depends on what your definition of is is" from the Clinton years and he crashed and burned politically, winding up in the single digits on primary day.

This is no fluff piece. You see Weiner lose his temper, get involved in shouting matches with a guy in a Deli, and with Lawrence O'Donnell on liberal friendly MSNBC. Weiner thinks it makes him look like a fighter, instead it comes across as a refusal to face his problems. And as for his wife Huma Abadin, I just felt so sorry for her. Weiner must be surely suffering from an addiction if he is chasing after random women on the internet with such a smart sexy lady as his wife. After the more recent sexting comes to light, Huma never really says anything, but you can tell by her posture and look of indifference that she is likely mad as hell under that calm cool exterior. Worse, she is probably profoundly disappointed in someone who had regained her trust.

One particular scene said it all for me as to Weiner's self centeredness. When the additional sexting comes to light he tells Huma he wants her with him all day. Not because he is worried about her mental state or needs her emotional support, but because he is "afraid someone (the press) will get to her".

It's too bad that such a narcissist and sex addict was also rolled into the personality of somebody who seemed to genuinely care about average people, had an average upbringing so he knew where other people were coming from, and was willing to fight for what he thought was right. What a waste.