Totally Under Control
| Totally Under Control | |
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 Official promotional poster | |
| Directed by |
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| Written by | Alex Gibney |
| Produced by |
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| Narrated by | Alex Gibney |
| Cinematography | Ben Bloodwell |
| Edited by |
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| Music by |
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Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Neon |
Release date |
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Running time | 123 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Totally Under Control is a 2020 American documentary film directed and produced by Alex Gibney, Ophelia Harutyunyan and Suzanne Hillinger, from a screenplay by Gibney. It follows the Trump administration's response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, often comparing the American response to that of South Korea.[2] It was released on October 13, 2020, by Neon.
Production
Alex Gibney initially pitched the idea of making a documentary about the COVID-19 pandemic and rushing it for release prior to the presidential election to the head of Neon, Tom Quinn, who liked the idea. Gibney knew by working on a tight deadline he could not complete the film himself bringing on co-directors Ophelia Harutyunyan and Suzanne Hillinger.[3] Gibney decided to make the film in April after a friend of his had died from COVID-19 and another friend was on a ventilator, feeling as though the United States government failed to contain and control the virus.[4]
Due to the pandemic making it difficult to film, cinematographer Ben Bloodwell came up with a kit called "COVID-cam"[5] that was sent to subjects in the film, which they would pick up and begin recording themselves.[6] The kit, consisting of a DSLR camera and microphone, once connected to the Internet, would allow Bloodwell to see the image and control and adjust the camera settings.[5] With some subjects, the crew would rent out an Airbnb and isolate a portion of the room for the crew using a plastic shower curtain, while the interviewee would sit on the other side.[5]
Release
In September 2020, Neon acquired distribution rights to the film.[7] It was released on October 13, 2020.[8]
Reception
On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, Totally Under Control holds an approval rating of 99%, based on 101 reviews, with a weighted average of 7.70/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Totally Under Control does a commendable job of distilling current events into a clear-eyed overview that's as engaging as it is enraging."[9] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 80 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[10]
References
- ^ "Totally Under Control". Neon. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
- ^ Bramesco, Charles (October 7, 2020). "Totally Under Control review – shocking film on Trump's failure to handle Covid-19". The Guardian. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Thompson, Anne (October 14, 2020). "'Totally Under Control' Documentary: COVID Is Not, and Alex Gibney Found Out Why". IndieWire. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
- ^ Boone, John (October 29, 2020). "'Totally Under Control' Directors Talk White House Corruption and Trump's COVID Diagnosis (Exclusive)". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
- ^ a b c Thompson, Anne (October 14, 2020). "'Totally Under Control' Documentary: COVID Is Not, and Alex Gibney Found Out Why".
- ^ Aquillina, Tyler (October 15, 2020). "How Totally Under Control pulled off a secret, explosive COVID-19 documentary". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
- ^ Day-Ramos, Dino (September 10, 2020). "'Totally Under Control': Neon To Release Alex Gibney Docu About White House's Failed Response To Pandemic". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
- ^ Nolfi, Joey (October 2, 2020). "Scientists expose Trump's pandemic response in Alex Gibney's COVID-19 doc trailer". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
- ^ "Totally Under Control (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
- ^ "Totally Under Control Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved January 1, 2021.