Trials Of Ms Americana: [work]

Some will call this "bold ambiguity." I call it a cop-out. After putting these women through the emotional wringer, Velez refuses to show us whether their rebellion (or compliance) changed anything. The film is so afraid of offering a neat moral that it forgets to offer a conclusion.

Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

Velez’s greatest weapon is the static, unblinking close-up. During the “talent” portion, while Chloe performs a monologue about abstinence, the camera stays on Destiny’s face in the wings—not judging, just watching the calculation, the exhaustion, the suppressed laugh. trials of ms americana

It is not a documentary about winners. It is a documentary about the audition. And that, perhaps, is the truest trial of all. Some will call this "bold ambiguity