I watched a documentary the other day where the access was so good and the story so engaging that I had to check the thing was not a scripted drama; with The Imposter I had a similar feeling and had only just finished it when I took to the internet to verify that the whole story was not made up. I confirmed that this was not the case and in fairness if you tried to write this story as fiction, nobody would buy it as too much of it would be laughed out of the room as absurd or so unlikely as to be impossible. I shan't say too much but essentially this is the story of a Frenchman in his early 20's who is in Spain and claims to be a boy who went missing a few years earlier as a 13 or 14 year old in San Antonio, Texas. Despite being older, having a French accent, not having the same color eyes or hair, his claim sees the missing boy's sister coming across to Europe, greeting him with open arms and returning him to his home in the US. And it should tell you a lot that this is where the story really starts.
As a story it is hard to believe and on this level it is engaging because it is so fantastical that you cannot stop following it but it still needs to be delivered well – just because you have a good story doesn't make you a good story-teller. In this case though the film does a great job from start to finish. Interviews, reconstructions and archive footage are all used very well to slowly build the story and follow it to the conclusion. It is filmed in a very cinematic way, with effects of thrillers and a sinister air to it that I thought might be a bit forced but actually worked very well indeed – the cinematography of the reconstructions and the clever editing of the interviews into the film really worked to the film's benefit. The contributors are mostly engaging and quite open – in particular "The Imposter" himself is a real presence in the film, we may not really understand him (or any of them really) but his contributions really helps us get inside the story.
That the Imposter is a great story is one thing, but this film tells it very well indeed. It has weaknesses when it comes to understanding the characters but the thriller-approach works and drives the story forward in a manner that is satisfying and engaging. Excellent documentary.
