Paris is Burning

What makes for a good documentary? Does Paris is Burning meet your criteria? Why or why not?

A good documentary needs to open the eyes of the viewer to a new perspective. The documentary needs to bring something fresh to the table. People should be able to learn from it. If the viewer is familiar with everything seen on the documentary, then it won't likely be too interesting to that person. I knew about homosexuals, drag queens, and the homosexual stigma, but there were still a lot new things for me to learn about from this documentary. When watching Paris is Burning, I heard a bunch of new vocabulary words and concepts, such as mopping and voguing. What surprised me the most was that these things had been around since the 80’s and I hadn’t heard of it before.

An ideal documentary interviews people who actually experienced the topic in question. In Paris is Burning, I learned about the life of a drag queen from a drag queen’s point of view. I already knew it was a hard life from listening to other people talk about it, but to hear it from someone who actually lived it is something very different. These men were thrown out of their homes by their own families, and the clothes that made them feel special were destroyed. These people weight their words with more emotions and memories than anyone else can. They have strong opinions and more often than not have extremely pertinent reasons for them.

To keep a viewer involved, a documentary must paint a very vivid image-visually or emotionally. If it’s not interesting enough for people to watch, then the documentary isn’t considered much of a success. Paris is Burning has both of those characteristics. In Paris is Burning, they showed drag queens in drag, what drag queens consider their truest forms. What stood out to me the most was not only the image of a man dressing so peculiarly, but how badly they were treated just for being who they are. Drag queens are caught between two accepted parties where you must be one or the other, and being in the middle is looked down upon by both males and females.

Every documentary must have a clear message. I thought the main idea that Jennie Livingston was trying to convey was one of acceptance. Despite the difference between "real" men, "real" women and drag queens, the underlying message is that everyone wants to be accepted for who they are. It's just harder for some people to get that acceptance.