Marwencol

Marwencol is an excellent documentary which tells the story of Mark Hogancamp, who was assaulted by five men outside of a bar and left severely brain damaged after nine days in a coma. He had no memory of his former life.

As a form of therapy, Mark slowly builds a 1/6 scale Belgian World War II era town he names after real people; Mark, Wendy and Colleen. He uses dolls to represent himself and his friends and gives them story lines. He eventually photographs his work and after publication in a magazine, his work is discovered by a New York art gallery; this is a simply amazing story.

Mark has somehow survived against all odds and Marwencol will almost restore your faith in humanity.

thefilmsmith.com

Fictions play a foundational role in our society. We encounter many of these fictions as images that feel bigger than we are, juggernauts projected onto the world we inhabit: social constructions of monetary value or race, or images on television considered synonymous with reality. In Marwencol we see the process from the other end as we follow a man who chooses and controls his fictions, projecting his real-life traumas onto a 1/6 scale world as alternative therapy.

On April 8, 2000 Mark Hogancamp had his memories literally beaten out of his head by five guys outside a New York bar; the film follows his life in the aftermath of the attack. After being kicked out of the hospital (he can't afford to stay), Mark seeks out an artistic outlet to continue his therapy. The nerve damage from the attack makes his hands too shaky to continue drawing, so the local hobby shop turns him to miniatures. Mark quickly becomes absorbed in his new hobby and creates a whole town called Marwencol, populated by World War II figurines. Painting minute details helps steady his hands, and the scenarios he creates between the dolls exorcise vengeful thoughts and allay loneliness. When Mark's photographs of Marwencol catches the eye of an art publication, an upcoming gallery exhibition of these photos becomes his newest challenge.

Mark's confessions about himself and his uses of Marwencol make the film uncomfortably intimate, but with touches of disarming charm. You'll wince as he hugs a doll based on a girl he has a crush on, and be horrified at the violence his characters enact upon the SS soldiers who torture his personal wax avatar (a stand-in for the attack he experienced). Mark blithely confesses to enjoying the power of manipulation in Marwencol, but he's so childlike in his earnestness that it's hard to feel truly threatened. Contextualized by the physical and mental trauma of his attack (PTSD is quite evident), the film allows you to sympathize with Mark, not treat him like a sideshow freak.

Which is a strong credit to director Jeff Malmberg. For someone so shy, Mark opens up without reserve to the audience; this seems evidence of his trust in the filmmaker, who spent four years shooting the documentary. It's obvious that Malmberg didn't shoot the film on 35mm, as Marwencol doesn't display the visual slickness of major studio films, but the DVCam look fits with the film's personal narrative and allows Mark's quality photographs to truly pop.

And let us not forget about Mark's world. Marwencol is amazingly detailed, to the point that at times I didn't know if I was seeing a shot of a bar in real life or the one in Marwencol – "Hogancamp's Ruined Stocking Catfight Club " (don't worry, all the catfights are staged). Given Mark's attention to detail and his skills as a photographer, it's no wonder art galleries come calling. Though Mark verbally details dealing with the beating, it's through his images of Marwencol that we get a visual understanding of his loneliness and anger.

The film does seem to throw a curve ball in the last half hour to drag out its runtime, but the film is enthralling, if for nothing else the continuous discovery of Marwencol and its story lines. Despite Mark's position as a strange, but nice guy almost beaten to death in 2000, he's not a victim – and that might the film's greatest triumph.

Fascinating, captivating, funny, you've got to see this.

-Remington Smith PS This American Life (the TV show) did a segment a while back that featured Mark and Marwencol. Since Marwencol is in limited release, you can check out that episode of This American Life on Netflix instant streaming (Season 2, Episode 3, "Going Down in History").

As with all the very best documentaries, it's what is implied rather than what is said outright. This brilliantly restrained piece chooses to give subtle information at all the right times, perfectly conveying the emotion attached to its subject matter.

Previous alcoholic, bitter and angry, Mark Hogancamp was left in a coma after he received a savage beating outside a bar by five men. The resulting damage meant that he had also lost a lot of memory from the attack, losing details in his life (including his need for alcohol). Having lost his identity, Mark dealt with his traumas by constructing the titular miniature town of Marwencol, often reenacting scenes from flashes of memory, with toy dolls closely representing people in his life.

Brilliantly paced, we learn of Mark's life, anxieties, and fears, and learn of a lonely, highly intelligent individual, who just does not want any further pain in his life. Thus, retracting from life and society, to live through his doll-town stories.

If the first half is a little labouring in providing information to the viewer, the second half justifies this approach no end, as we compassionately learn of Mark's personality, what makes him comfortable, and the few real loves throughout his life. As well as the reason for the attack that so affected his life.

The film is never judgmental, never dwells on its issues more than others. Scenes of Mark walking a toy jeep 160 miles on his trips to the local stores in order to wear the wheels in and appear authentic, prove to be highly endearing rather than seem odd or snigger-inducing. When Mark's constructions are later discovered as works of art, he struggles with his preparation for a New York exhibition of his constructions and photography. Yet clearly his honesty and integrity have a strong effect on the people he encounters there. What we are left with in the end is an honest portrait of a man overcoming his life's traumas. Therapy through art, in the most dignified and humble of ways.

Suffering from brain damage and permanent memory loss , Mark Hogancamp spent nine days in a coma after a severe beating which almost killed him. When he awoke Mark went through therapy to try and regain all the skills that he lost. After leaving the hospital Mark began his own therapy in the form of Marwencol, a 1/6th scale World War II era town he built and is inhabited by dolls. Using some of the dolls as representations for people he knows, Mark creates numerous stories within Marwencol, some of which relate to the time he was assaulted.

When his photographs are seen by magazine publisher an art show is set up in Greenwich village, New York. Conflicted by whether or not to go ahead with the show Mark must decide if he wants to keep his therapy to himself or share it with the outside world, which he doesn't have much interaction with and doesn't feel safe in.

An interesting documentary, this film gives a view into the world of a man who has created a unique way to deal with the trauma of having nothing from a life he had prior to an assault outside a bar. The viewer gets to see the before and after sides to Mark's personality, some which seem a little creepy and others which show him as a simple man trying to get his life back. More importantly it shows how Mark didn't just become a victim who gave up because of what happened to him. Although the film tends to lag a little near the end and leaves a few questions unanswered this is worth viewing.

Marwencol is a documentary about Mark Hogancamp, who is a man in his late 30's and one night at a bar he was ganged up on and brutally beaten by a group of people. Mark survived, but was brain damaged and had to learn his motor skills, speech and everything else that he once knew, all over again. Instead of going to expensive therapy sessions, or psychiatry to get over the incident, Mark creates his own therapy and uses his creative outlet by building a model town circa World War 2 in his backyard with old scrap pieces and dolls and other material he buys at the local hobby shop. The film explores Mark's past and what he can remember about it before the accident and also shows how much this miniature town means to him and that this is probably the healthiest and best way for him to cope and get over the traumatic events that he experienced. I really enjoy when a documentary filmmaker does a film about everyday issues such as politics, the environment, or social causes that need light to be shed upon them to make a difference in the world. I also really appreciate when a documentary filmmaker makes a film like Marwencol, and instead of being really high tech, or using a lot of jargonised language and statistics, it instead invites us into the world of it's subject and in a sense, lets us the viewer get up close and personal with them. Marwencol, does not look like it was an expensive film to make and it does not have the fancy camera tricks, or stunts as say a Michael Moore documentary, but it is just as fascinating and affective as any other documentary on the market. The thing about this film is how we really start to like and care about Mark, as an individual and we also really respect and are fascinated by his World War 2 model town. Seeing him taking pictures of it, building onto it and all the precise and accurate measures he goes to, to make it all perfect is fascinating to watch and also at the same time warms our hearts because we see how much this means to him and how important it is for his creative outlet as well as his way of letting go of all his anger and fears that were brought on because of the attack. We see Mark, as he tries to interact with others and naturally he is very cautious and a little afraid to do so now for obvious reasons, but the way he connects with these people and incorporates them into his model village is really special. He may have some trouble interacting with the real version of the doll's inspirations, but when he talks to the dolls resembled after his friends and co-workers, he has a bond with them and he respects them and even in a way loves them in the same way as human beings we would love each other. The artistic aspect of Mark's town is also here. Everything is so detailed and well done that this film is interesting to look at in an artistic way as well. Also to look at Mark's imagination and how he sets up the characters in the town and involves them in story lines and plots that he will remember for weeks, or months after they happen, is nothing short of phenomenal. In a sense we do feel bad for Mark because of the accident and what he had to go through, but in another way we also see how the accident may have saved his life from the destructive behaviour and alcohol dependency he was so relying on before and through this village he has created, it has helped him in so many ways to reach out in a sense to others and himself. It was almost like he was given a second chance at life and I think he feels that way himself and he is going to make the most of it. Marwencol is so fascinating because we like Mark, care and want the best for him as do we for his town as well. Seeing him interact with it and how by doing this he is really helping himself and at the same time opening up a whole new world of opportunities for him. In a sense this is a feel good film because we see the progress that he is making and it would be interesting to see a follow up film several years down the road to further see what he is up to because I know he is going to get better and stronger with time and his art is going to be more and more appreciated. This film works because it is so human and believable and really concerns you and makes you want to cheer for what you have just seen.