This Place Rules

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.

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.

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.

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.

This Place Rules is great first documentary from Callaghan. To say this is just the beginning of a incredible documentarian would be an understatement. To preface this I know Callaghan's work for a while, being at the birth of All Gas No Brakes. His way of showcasing a unbiased view of extremism and radicalism is addictive. Combined with the comedic aspect you get a golden combination of fascination, intrigue, repulsion and comedy.

If you watched the three clips released on his YouTube channel before watching this it does spoil quite a few highlights. I regret having seen those. As the impact of certain moments was lessend. So beware.

As a documentary debut this deserves praise, but there is obviously work to be done. It feels loosely connected but mostly scrapped together. The narrative en story being build up ends up kind of anti climatic. The interviews aren't followed up as strongly as they were build up. I think Callaghan is still finding his voice in regards to how loud he want's it to speak, how defined he want's it to be, this right now feels safe. Comedy, an integral part of the Callaghan's succes felt minimal. There's still absurdity but moment's are played straight for the most part. But some creative editing choices could've reinforced his comedic angle which differentiate him from other documentaries. All in all it's simple and straight, room to improve.