This Place Rules

I said "THIS IS INSAAAANE" so many times it coulda been a drinking game. I feel so much more sane after watching this. Politics in this country makes sense to me again. American discourse makes sense to me. I didn't even realize I had forgotten what objective journalism looks like. And then along comes an ad with this doofy-looking guy named Andrew and I thought sure, why not revisit January 6th and assess the wreckage. My man, where have you been all this time. I thought this country was polarized but really my view was polarized. We're all the same. We're all unhealthy, uneducated, pumped full of different misinformation, and understandably angry and confused and trying to figure it all out.

In "This Place Rules" Andrew Callaghan doesn't spin narratives or tell you how to think - he simply documents events that led up to January 6th.

While cable news and mainstream media networks feed propaganda to the masses, it's nice to get a raw look at the insanity on both sides of the political spectrum. Not only is this documentary informative, it's also hilarious, sad, and - at times - just plain depressing. But it needs to be. All Callghan does is hold up a mirror to the audience.

If you don't like whatever message you get from this documentary then you need to take a long hard look inside yourself.

If you've enjoyed Channel 5 or All Gas No Breaks then you will most likely enjoy This Place Rules. For those that haven't watched either, Andrew Callaghan's journalism style centers around fringe views, either being portrayed in a humorous or sometimes more sinister and discomforting way.

One nice thing about this documentary is that Andrew revisits a lot of the people he interviews which adds layers of meaning based on what's already been covered by the documentary. Andrew's interviewing style is also very refreshing from other interviewers since he's mostly silent, nodding his head, and being nonjudgmental, which allows the interviewees to speak for themselves.

As evident from the beginning, not everything is directly related to the capital riots, and some interviews are more loosly related and meant to be surreal or humorous tidbits from Andrew's experience, which some people might be turned off by.

Additionally, while Andrew for the most part remains neutral, there are instances where he asks leading questions or injects his opinion between interviews, which is helpful for tying the theme of the documentary, but personally I felt it was a bit redundant since a lot of the interviews really spoke for themselves. For the most part though, I really enjoyed the documentary and felt it was very powerful, especially towards the end.

I've been a fan of Andrew's for years. And I think most fans would tell you that it was inevitable that he would go on to make a full-length documentary film.

This Place Rules documents the events that lead up to the January 6th riots. Much like most of Andrew's journalism, this documentary was funny, sad, disturbing, and incredibly eye-opening. What I always appreciated about Andrew's journalism technique is that he never tries to trap anyone into obvious "gotcha" questions. Instead, he goes out in the field and finds the action, letting anyone who talks to him go completely off the rails if they so choose to. He doesn't manipulate what people say and just lets them talk about whatever they want. This results in much of the humor that is found in Andrew's Journalism.

But don't be fooled, This Place Rules is not a joke. It highlights the very real dangers and manipulations of extreme radical thinking that is perpetuated by social media forums and news media who profit off of fear and division. Some of this can be hard to watch because you can't help but empathize with some of the people who have gone so far down the rabbit hole that they seem to be beyond redemption. This documentary should be viewed as a warning of what will happen if someone chooses to go down this path.

This Place Rules is not only entertaining, but it's also important. And even though much of this documentary focuses on some of the most horrific events that we have experienced in the last 2 years, I was left with some hope because Andrew is using this film to show people the dangers of radical beliefs and I for one believe that this film will make people re-evaluate their lives so they don't end up going down this very destructive path.

Didn't waste a second of my time its a very fun documentary even if you don't like politics , it shows all the different sides of Jan 6 riot without taking sides , my jaw was always wide open while watching this as it show the different kinda of people who participated and was affected by this also Andrew is a great interviewer as he never project his own thoughts or value into others and let them speak their opinion

from your average American struggling to make ends meet to snake oil salesman to children's in the street to grown adults who you can't believe they exist in today social media world , truly a must watch just for the entertaining factor alone 10/10 would watch again.