I agree with Roger Ebert’s assessment of Errol Morris’ Gates of Heaven as “bottomless,” with the disclaimer that it’s as much a function of the movie’s open-ended nature as its depth. The filmmaker’s debut has no clearly articulated subject or thesis, and it’s so wide-ranging, with so little guidance from Morris, that its effect and meaning will depend a lot on who watches it and where they are in life.
Errol Morris and Werner Herzog sat together in the back of the auditorium, watching Morris’ first movie, Gates of Heaven, with 1,600 other people. Al Pacino joined us by phone, the day before his 64th birthday. American Movie’s lovably clueless protagonists, Mark Borchardt and Mike Schank, were introduced just minutes before Herzog. This was our April 24 immersion in the sixth annual Ebertfest, also known as Roger Ebert’s Overlooked Film Festival.
Culture Snob and the missus will in 10 days be traveling to Chambana, Illinois — the site of the Snob’s college days as well as a later stint of employment — for a day of Roger Ebert’s Overlooked Film Festival. We’ll be seeing Errol Morris’ Gates of Heaven, Daniel Algrant’s People I Know, and Werner Herzog’s Invincible.
All three directors will be present, and with any luck we’ll hear stories about the famous shoe-eating episode related to Herzog’s pronouncement when Morris was a student.
Perspective and the Past