Freaks & Errors: A Rare Collection

I was thoroughly entertained by this documentary. I am not very familiar with the "hobby" of stamps and stamp collecting. I liked the way the film showed philately as more than a hobby- it is a sub culture and a lifestyle. Maybe even an obsession? I also liked looking at the stamps. The close ups of the stamps are really interesting. They are tiny pieces of culture, art and history. The interviews are captivating. The stamp collectors interviewed are so funny and quirky. I feel like I learned a lot about a world that I really knew nothing about. The hobby, art, culture, lifestyle, LIFE of Stamp collecting is not dying. It's is very much alive!

I am not a stamp collector so I didn't know what to expect. The title is actually what drew me in. I was pleasantly surprised with this movie. It was shot well. It was interesting and had an element of suspense to it. I would recommend this movie to anyone (not just stamp collectors).

I've always collected baseball cards so stamp collecting isn't that far off. These guys bring up interesting points about collecting in general, but getting an inside look at the stamp world was a real treat. It seems boring but it's not, especially since there's lots of money on the line. I might watch it again.

I was extremely disappointed with this video. For decades I've been an observer of the hobby of philately and longed for some way to reveal its hidden dynamism.

This video missed that mark completely - with the exception of one interview with Cheryl Gans. It seems to say that the hobby is for those who can do nothing else - who are freaks, socially deficient.

And the sound track totally detracted. The pace was abysmal. Other than the fact that many of the interview-ees are wealthy, I can't imagine how this film got any distribution.

I always find it amazing that people can see two completely different sides of a coin. I think I, like many fans of docs, watch them because we like to learn about topics we have absolutely no knowledge about. The only thing I knew about "Philately" - a word I learned from the film, is that stamp collecting was a hobby that existed. Who collected stamps or what the value of stamps could be and etc? No idea. But I came away with a fun and informative watch which in absolutely no way (IMHO) is belittling to anyone or insinuates them being socially deficient, nor did I pick up on any nasty tone whatsoever.

I wonder if being an avid member of a given subculture might make people judge any outside perspective on that subculture prematurely harshly. Giving a one star rating seems like unless the people portrayed in this doc somehow came away with superhuman powers, this film was going to be reviewed poorly.

End of the day, I enjoyed the film!