Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things

This documentary resonated with me and a bunch of friends around me.

It gave insight into the minimalist idea and material ways of living that lifestyle. It was also great to see Matt Da'Vella's work for myself.

However, the one thing I will say, is that it skewed too far in one direction without giving a bigger picture view. It was a great idea, and the story was probably crisp, but the execution didn't meet what I was thinking of.

But at the end of the day, maybe my opinion doesn't matter because the goal of the documentary was to do just that. Interesting documentary otherwise.

A succession of wall street types clear a fair deal of stuff out of their big, fancy, rich bro condos. It hard to empathise with people like this, especially the "homeless" guy who has access to enough money to constantly move around the world staying in hotels.

They may be able to cut 6 shirts down to 2, but they clearly can't escape the stranglehold of capitalism. Buy their new book.

I am one kind of person who live for more stuff, actually I care much about what people think, and of course what I own. When they compliment me for the success I got with those expensive stuff, I feel proud and happy but not for long. I keep buying stuff, to maintain the proudness about these. Afterall I realize people don't really care about what I got. The movie is somehow describe me, people may call they're crazy to go backward to the norm of society. Yes they do. But It's a good thing for us both in term of metal health and physical health when the environment get more burden from scare resources and pollution. And why this movie don't give any specific direction to minimalism and the purpose of it. I think it advice us to give be concentrate on each individual's important things. And that's what different between people. We can't tell exactly. We gonna find out our all ways. I feel grateful watching this. I will give myself a time to grow and become a minimalist, not because they ask me to or I admire them. But just because I'm tired of the way I used to live : Living for more.

I am in full and enthusiastic agreement with most of the ideas presented in this movie. That's why I found it so disappointing.

With the exception of Sam Harris, Juliet Schor and President Carter (clips from the bravest speech ever given by a U.S. President), the talking heads were cloyingly earnest and oh, so good!

And stop all the hugging...please!

I agree with and try to live in accordance with the central idea that this documentary is trying to get across - focus on the important things rather than on consumer objects. But this documentary was a disappointment - I didn't even get all the way through. It's light on content, repeating the same basic ideas over and over. And using the book tour as a central narrative was dull and made the documentary look like an advert for the book.

Instead, I would have loved to have seen other issues explored. How do different minimalists do it differently? Is minimalism just a way of having a nice low-stress life or do people use it as a basis for helping others? What are some practical ways of reducing costs? How do people blend it with other alternative ways of living? How have people lived minimally in history? Does it work better in a city or the countryside? etc.