Weiner (film)

The documentary follows congressman Anthony Weiner and his wife{{ref|a}} Huma Abedin, shortly after his 2011 resignation when scandalous photos of Weiner mysteriously appeared on his Twitter account.{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/05/30/weiner.photo/index.html|title = Congressman: A hacker placed lewd photo on Twitter account | website = CNN | date = 31 May 2011}} The photos led to a tumultuous spiral as more and more pictures of the congressman in various states of undress began to leak to the public.{{Cite web|url=http://www.tmz.com/2011/06/12/anthony-weiner-representative-congress-house-of-representatives-gym-locker-room-photos-pictures|title = Rep. Weiner Used Congressional Gym as Backdrop | website = TMZ | date = 13 June 2011}} The documentary revolves around Weiner's attempted comeback from his initial resignation during his 2013 campaign in the Democratic Party primary for Mayor of New York City. His campaign goes well at first, with many New Yorkers willing to give him a second chance as evidenced in polls putting him at or near the top of a tight mayoral race.{{Cite web|url=http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2013/06/anthony-weiner-leading-race-poll.html|title=Anthony Weiner is Now Leading the Mayoral Race | last = Amira | first = Dan | website = Intelligencer | publisher = New York Magazine | date = 25 June 2013}}

During the filming of the documentary, however, additional leaked photos and evidence of online sexual activity surface, including explicit text conversations with women and a teenaged child that occurred well after his 2011 resignation from Congress. The mood of the campaign switches from exuberance to pain. Intimate views are captured of Weiner, his wife and his campaign staff struggling with the new revelations and the media firestorm that ensues. Weiner's wife, an adviser to Hillary Clinton, comes under fire during the scandal.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2013/07/23/politics/huma-abedin-profile/index.html|title=Hillary Clinton adviser Huma Abedin, Anthony Weiner's wife, now in spotlight | website = CNN Politics|date=July 24, 2013 | last1 = Gray | first1 = Melissa | last2 = Duke | first2 = Alan}} The relationship between the couple becomes strained, and in a couple of instances, the camera is asked to leave the room.{{cite web|url=http://www.indiewire.com/2016/01/sundance-review-weiner-is-the-best-documentary-about-a-political-campaign-ever-made-32414/ |title=Sundance Review: 'Weiner' is the Best Documentary About a Political Campaign Ever Made|first=Eric|last=Kohn|work=IndieWire|publisher=Penske Business Media|date=January 24, 2016|accessdate=August 22, 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jan/24/anthony-weiner-review-huma-abedin-documentary |title=Weiner review: an unsparing portrait of politics|first=Lanre |last=Bakare|work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media|date=January 24, 2016|accessdate=August 20, 2018}}. Weiner's campaign manager quits when a press conference is held in which Weiner comes clean about his sexting, and his campaign begins to take a downward spiral. Weiner comes in fifth place in the polls, garnering only 4.9% of the popular vote.{{Cite web|url=http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/2013/nyc-primary-results|title = New York City 2013 Primaries (LIVE RESULTS)|date = September 9, 2013 | website = Huffington Post}}

People documented in the film include:

• Anthony Weiner
• Huma Abedin, his wife{{ref|a}} and a close aide to Hillary Clinton
• Sydney Leathers, one of Weiner's online sex partners, who attempts to confront him on election night
• Barbara Morgan, Weiner's communications director
• Camille Joseph, Weiner's campaign manager
• Amit Bagga, Weiner's senior advisor
• Maura Tracy, Weiner's senior staffer
• Andrew Noh, Weiner's campaign aide

The film also features archival footage from:

• Bill Clinton
• Stephen Colbert
• Hillary Clinton
• Bill de Blasio
• Jay Leno
• Jane Lynch
• Bill Maher
• Lawrence O'Donnell
• Barack Obama
• Jon Stewart
• Donald Trump
• Howard Stern

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2016. It was released theatrically in the United States in May 2016 and broadcast on Showtime in October 2016. Starting in June 2014, the film began releasing internationally in the UK, Netherlands, Scandinavia, Australia, and Japan, and television broadcasts in Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Israel, Belgium, and Holland.{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} The film received an R rating from the MPAA for language and some sexual material.

Upon release, Anthony Weiner declined to endorse the film and claimed he had no intention of ever seeing the final product, saying "I already know how it ends."

After the film was released, Weiner claimed that "Kriegman had assured him verbally and in emails that he would not use Abedin in the film without her consent", and that Abedin never granted permission for Kriegman to use the footage. When asked if he will sue the filmmakers, Weiner didn't give a definitive answer. The filmmakers disputed Weiner's claim, stating that they clearly "had consent from everyone who appears in the film, including Anthony and Huma."{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/18/magazine/anthony-weiner-says-his-wife-never-agreed-to-that-documentary.html|title=Anthony Weiner Says His Wife Never Agreed to That Documentary|date=August 18, 2016|work=The New York Times|accessdate=August 20, 2018|first=Mark|last=Leibovich}}

The film received near universal acclaim by critics. {{Rotten Tomatoes prose|97|8.2|{{RT data|count}}|Weiner uses sharp insight and untrammeled access to offer a portrait of a political and personal collapse that's as queasy as it is undeniably compelling.|ref=yes|access-date={{RT data|access date}}}} On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 84 out of 100, based on 33 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/weiner |title=Weiner Reviews |publisher=CBS Interactive |work=Metacritic |access-date=February 14, 2018}}

Wendy Ide of The Observer gave it four out of five stars, writing: "Edited to perfection, this is like watching the slow-motion footage of a building collapsing. Weiner’s long-suffering wife, Huma Abedin … is a key sympathetic presence in the film. But it is Weiner himself, a likable narcissist with an Olympic capacity for vanity and self-delusion, who is every documentary-maker's dream subject."{{Cite web |last=Ide |first=Wendy |date=2016-07-10 |title=Weiner review – a political scandal in slow motion |url=http://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jul/10/weiner-documentary-review-anthony-weiner-sexting-scandal |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=The Observer |language=en}}

Brian Lowry of CNN wrote: What Weiner makes painfully clear is the collateral damage of Weiner's actions, not merely on his wife but those who believed in and devoted their energy to his campaign. To that extent, it's possible to share his politics and still see him as a fatally flawed vessel for them.{{Cite web |last=Lowry |first=Brian |date=October 21, 2016 |title='Weiner' captures candidate's political fall |url=https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/21/entertainment/weiner-review/index.html |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=CNN}}

The film performed decently, earning a worldwide box office total of $1,751,120 on an unknown budget. Of that $1,751,120, the film made $1,675,196 domestically and $75,924 internationally. On a per-theater average, the film made about $16,835 per screen.{{Cite web |title=Weiner (2016) - Financial Information |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Weiner |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=The Numbers}}

• BuzzFeed 11 Best Movies of 2016{{Cite news|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/alisonwillmore/the-best-movies-of-2016|first=Alison|last=Willmore|date=December 9, 2016|title=Here Are The 11 Best Movies Of 2016|newspaper=BuzzFeed|access-date=February 15, 2017}}
• Esquire Top 10 Documentaries of 2016{{Cite news|url=http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/a51676/best-documentaries-2016/|first=Nick|last=Schager|publisher=Hearst Communications|title=The 10 Best Documentaries of 2016 That Are Trying to Change the World|date=December 20, 2016|newspaper=Esquire|access-date=February 15, 2017}}
• The Hollywood Reporter - Critics' Picks: The 10 Best Documentaries of the year{{Cite news|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/critics-picks-10-best-documentaries-year-956803/|author=THR Staff|title=Critics' Picks: The 10 Best Documentaries of the Year|newspaper=The Hollywood Reporter|publisher=Prometheus Global Media|access-date=February 15, 2017}}
• The Huffington Post 21 Best Movies of 2016{{Cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/best-movies-of-2016_us_5851722be4b0e411bfd4b926|title=The 21 Best Movies Of 2016|last=Jacobs|first=Matthew|date=December 15, 2016|website=HuffPost|publisher=Oath|access-date=February 15, 2017}}
• IndieWire Best Movies of 2016{{Cite web|url=http://www.indiewire.com/2016/12/best-movies-of-2016-1201752291/|title=16 Best Movies of 2016|last=Kohn|first=Eric|website=IndieWire|publisher=Penske Business Media|access-date=February 15, 2017|date=December 5, 2016}}
• GQ Best Movies of 2016{{Cite news|url=https://www.gq.com/story/best-movies-2016|title=The Best Movies of 2016|author=((The Editors of GQ))|date=December 19, 2016|newspaper=GQ|publisher=Condé Nast|access-date=February 15, 2017}}
• Newsweek 21 Best Movies of 2016{{Cite news|url=http://www.newsweek.com/best-movies-2016-moonlight-jackie-532128|title=The 21 best movies of 2016|date=December 15, 2016|newspaper=Newsweek|access-date=February 15, 2017|first1=Zach |last1=Schonfeld |first2=Jessica |last2=Firger |first3=Leah Mcgrath |last3=Goodman |first4=Paul |last4=Raeburn |first5=Lucy |last5=Westcott |first6=Margarita |last6=Noriega |first7=Claire |last7=Toureille |first8=Alexander |last8=Nazaryan |first9=Jordan |last9=Saville |first10=Nina |last10=Burleigh |first11=Bob |last11=Roe |first12=John |last12=Walters}}
• Thrillist Best Documentaries of 2016{{Cite news|url=https://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/nation/best-documentaries-2016|title=The Best Documentaries of 2016, Ranked|last=Campbell|first=Christopher|date=January 8, 2017|newspaper=Thrillist|publisher=Group Nine Media|access-date=February 15, 2017}}
• DC Outlook Top 10 Movies of 2016 (#1){{cite web|url=http://www.dcoutlook.com/2016/12/dc-outlooks-top-10-movies-of-2016.html|title=DC Outlook's Top 10 Movies of 2016|website=DC Outlook|accessdate=August 20, 2018|date=December 31, 2016|first=Peter|last=Freeman}}

:1.{{note|a}}Abedin and Weiner separated in 2017.{{Cite news|last1=Chozick|first1=Amy|last2=Healy|first2=Patrick|date=2016-08-29|title=Anthony Weiner and Huma Abedin to Separate After His Latest Sexting Scandal (Published 2016)|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/30/nyregion/anthony-weiner-sexting-huma-abedin.html|access-date=2020-10-29|issn=0362-4331}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{IMDb title|5278596|Weiner}}
• {{Box Office Mojo|weiner|Weiner}}
• {{Rotten Tomatoes|weiner|Weiner}}

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{{Sundance Grand Jury Prize Documentary}}

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Category:2016 documentary films

Category:2016 films

Category:American documentary films

Category:Documentary films about American politicians

Category:Documentary films about elections in the United States

Category:Documentary films about New York City

Category:Films shot in New York City

Category:Politics of New York City

Category:2010s English-language films

Category:Anthony Weiner

Category:2010s American films

Category:Sundance Film Festival award–winning films

Category:English-language documentary films