New Ed Burtynsky Documentary

If you've heard photographer Ed Burtynsky speak, you've probably heard his explanation for why he hasn't gotten involved in the politics of environmentalism -- even though his large-format prints of humanity's effects on the landscape could easily serve as its posters.

And in a new documentary about Burtynsky's work, named Manufactured Landscapes after his best-known series, we again hear this rationale from the photographer's lips. By refusing to tell viewers what they should see in or conclude about his work, "that may allow them to look at something they've never looked at before," he explains. The film from director Jennifer Baichwal follows that lead -- or at least it tries to.

The documentary Manufactured Landscapes, which I screened this morning at New York's Film Forum where it runs from June 20 to July 3, is slow and measured just like Burtynsky's photography methods, with beautiful long pans and careful attention to composition, often integrating Burtynsky's photos with live footage in inventive and illuminating ways. It follows the photographer while he works, especially on his trips to China documenting the extreme urbanization and industrialization there that is radically impacting the landscape and environment.

But the filmmakers seem unable to stay their hands, to leave the audience to its own conclusions about the beautiful yet disturbing scenes captured by Burtynsky's camera. Over shots of towns being disassembled by hand to make way for the Three Gorges Damn project or workers picking through mountains of scrap metal, there inevitably comes the swelling of forebodingly scored music. By the end it was impossible to ignore (though I honestly tried) and entirely distracting.

I'm familiar with Burtynsky, so it was interesting to see how he works and what was going on around him when he made his enthralling pictures. And for someone who does not already know Burtynsky's images, the documentary would probably be downright fascinating -- and unsettling. With his vast photos he has uncovered the disturbing breadth of our greed and ambition.

But I don't see how this film has moved much past that basic, albeit brilliant, idea. It is not a documentary about Burtynsky himself, there is no narration other than his own words, it is not really even about his project in China or the environment. So what is it about? All the doom-and-gloom music suggests the filmmakers may have intended to sway us more than Burtynsky's diplomatic apolitical nature allows, but it's hard to tell. And far from swaying me, the overbearing soundtrack often made me wish I was looking at nice, silent photos instead.

~Miki Johnson

(Photo: © Edward Burtynsky)