Monrovia, Indiana

I DVR'ed this show on a whim and then found myself captivated by this snapshot of Middle America. It gives an accurate representation of the 'Flyover Country" of the United States, on almost every level of life, from the farmer, high school, church, barber shop, etc. There is something compelling about the photography and story presented, and yet there is no narration.

Here's an inside look at the workings of a town in the U. S. heartland. We see the people of Monrovia at their feedlots, corn fields, municipal hearings, schools and places of worship - a great panorama of life in this good place. Some Midwestern stereotypes are knocked down here, not on purpose but as revealed by the responsible way these people act. As a viewer I thank the people of Monrovia - and it's an impressive cross-section of people - for granting access to so much of what matters in this community. There is a bit of self-deprecation, people of Monrovia acknowledging they live in a small town. But in fact it's a big place, in civic spirit and caring for others.

The documentary was cute and artsy but continues on for so long without much direction. Were it to delve more into some specifics of personal life in much less time, it may be more interesting, but the amount of time where absolutely nothing consequential is going on in the movie is mind numbing.

Although Monrovia is a boring small town in mid west I'm sure some people there have interesting things to say or have deep inner lives but Wiseman didn't reach this and so this was the most boring film I've seen in ages.

For the record, I arrived 5-10 minutes late.

This documentary provides a well seamed collection of examples of everyday life in a place I've never heard about. History of their sports teams, debates over investing in new residential housing vs new businesses (the newest neighborhood is where the majority of their volunteer firefighters and people who returned to Monrovia reside), freemasons ceremony, WTH is up with the newest neighborhood's fire hydrants, barbershop, hair salon, fitness class, a funeral, etc. Monrovia, Indiana does well at what it intends. This would be an interesting documentary to discuss academically.

Side Note: I did lose my interest at times, but that's a matter of personal taste. Some topics just didn't interest me. The director did a pretty decent job with editing. I give that a B.