Friedkin Uncut

William Friedkin opens the film explaining he believes Jesus and Adolf Hitler are the most interesting people in world history as they represent two extremes of good and evil. The film then presents a series of interviews, including Ellen Burstyn, Francis Ford Coppola, Wes Anderson, and Quentin Tarantino, discussing the production and cultural impact of The Exorcist (1973).

Friedkin discusses his childhood in Chicago, Illinois and his foray into working in television. As a young man, he watched Citizen Kane (1941) and decides to become a filmmaker. For his first film project, Friedkin directs the documentary The People vs. Paul Crump (1962), which contributed to Crump's death sentence being commuted. The film transitions to The French Connection (1971). Friedkin used a cinéma vérité approach and followed actual New York police officers for research into the narcotics trade.

The film jumps to Friedkin's work on Killer Joe (2011), in which Matthew McConaughey and Gina Gershon discuss their performances and Friedkin's approach with actors. Friedkin discusses his preference for one-takes and his selection of actors, including one story in Stacy Keach was initially cast as Father Karras in The Exorcist before Friedkin hired Jason Miller. It next transitions to Sorcerer (1977) and its financial failure at the box office.

Friedkin discusses his cinematic influences, most notably Buster Keaton. He reflects on interviewing Fritz Lang for the 1975 documentary Conversation with Fritz Lang. By 1980, the New Hollywood era was waning; that same year, the controversial film Cruising was released and met with criticism for its portrayal of the gay community. In 1985, Friedkin returns to the crime thriller genre with To Live and Die in L.A.

After multiple decades of directing films, Friedkin turns to directing stage productions, helming several operas including Wozzeck and Aida. At the 74th Venice International Film Festival, Friedkin screens his then-latest film The Devil and Father Amorth (2017), his return to supernatural horror. He concludes the film heavily criticizing film award competitions, calling them a "dirty joke".

{{Cast listing|

• William Friedkin
• Wes Anderson
• Dario Argento
• Samuel Blumenfeld
• Ellen Burstyn
• Damien Chazelle
• Francis Ford Coppola
• Willem Dafoe
• Caleb Deschanel
• Gina Gershon
• Walon Green
• Walter Hill
• Randy Jurgensen
• Philip Kaufman
• Matthew McConaughey
• Zubin Mehta
• Antonio Monda
• Gianandrea Noseda
• William Petersen
• Michael Shannon
• Quentin Tarantino
• Juno Temple
• Edgar Wright

}}

The film had its world premiere at the 75th Venice International Film Festival on 31 August 2018. It was released in Italy on 5 November 2018. In the United States, it was released in limited theaters on 23 August 2019.{{cite web|url=https://theplaylist.net/friedkin-uncut-trailer-william-friedkin-20190818/|title='Friedkin Uncut' Trailer: New Doc Dives Into The Life Of 'Exorcist, 'French Connection' Filmmaker William Friedkin|website=The Playlist|first=Rodrigo|last=Perez|date=18 August 2019|accessdate=14 September 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://www.slashfilm.com/friedkin-uncut-trailer/|title='Friedkin Uncut' Trailer: William Friedkin's Career Comes Into Focus In this New Documentary|website=/Film|first=Chris|last=Evangelista|date=19 August 2019|accessdate=14 September 2019}}

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of {{RT data|score}} based on {{RT data|count}} reviews, with an average rating of {{RT data|average}}.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/friedkin_uncut|title=Friedkin Uncut|website=Rotten Tomatoes|publisher=Fandango|access-date={{RT data|access date|df=dmy}}}} On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 68 out of 100, based on 6 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/friedkin-uncut|title=Friedkin Uncut|website=Metacritic|publisher=CBS Interactive|accessdate=13 September 2019}}

Michael Nordine of IndieWire gave the film a grade of B, commenting that "There's nothing particularly new or inspired about Zippel's decision to simply train a camera on Friedkin and let him riff, but the man is such a captivating speaker that it ultimately doesn't matter much."{{cite web|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2018/09/friedkin-uncut-review-william-friedkin-documentary-venice-1201999402/|title='Friedkin Uncut' Review: The Oscar-Winning Filmmaker Exorcises His Demons in Intimate Documentary — Venice|website=IndieWire|first=Michael|last=Nordine|date=1 September 2018|accessdate=13 September 2019}} Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, writing, "Even viewers of a certain age who grew up on Friedkin's movies and watched the major ones over and over will come away from this movie feeling as if they understand him in a new, deeper way."{{cite web|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/friedkin-uncut-movie-review-2019|title=Friedkin Uncut|website=RogerEbert.com|first=Matt Zoller|last=Seitz|date=23 August 2019|accessdate=13 September 2019}} Deborah Young of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "this enjoyable doc records a Hollywood master looking back at his career with lucid hindsight and irony."{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/friedkin-uncut-film-venice-2018-1139278|title='Friedkin Uncut': Film Review {{!}} Venice 2018|website=The Hollywood Reporter|first=Deborah|last=Young|date=2 September 2018|accessdate=13 September 2019}}

The film won the 2019 Nastro d'Argento award for Best Documentary About Cinema.{{cite web|url=https://cineuropa.org/en/newsdetail/368714/|title=The SNGCI chooses the best documentaries for the Nastri d'Argento Doc Awards|website=Cineuropa|first=Vittoria|last=Scarpa|date=28 February 2019|accessdate=13 September 2019}} It was nominated for the 2019 David di Donatello award for Best Documentary.{{cite web|url=https://cineuropa.org/en/newsdetail/368356/|title=Dogman leads the nominations for the 2019 David di Donatello Awards|website=Cineuropa|first=Vittoria|last=Scarpa|date=19 February 2019|accessdate=13 September 2019}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{IMDb title|8749074|Friedkin Uncut}}
• {{TCMDb title|id=2171219}}

Category:2018 films

Category:2018 documentary films

Category:Italian documentary films

Category:Documentary films about film directors and producers

Category:2010s English-language films

Category:English-language documentary films