What Is Democracy?

What Is Democracy?
Directed byAstra Taylor
Written byAstra Taylor
Produced by
  • Isaac Linares
  • Lea Marin
CinematographyMaya Bankovic
Edited byRobert Kennedy
Music byHeather McIntosh
Production
company
National Film Board of Canada
Distributed by
Release date
  • June 9, 2018 (2018-06-09) (SIDF)
Running time
107 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

What Is Democracy? is a 2018 documentary film written and directed by Astra Taylor. The documentary blends everyday experience and political theory to address questions viewed as central to democracy.[1] Interview subjects include academics, activists, politicians, refugees, trauma surgeons, students, and a barber.[1][2][3] While attempting to address the primary question, the documentary also looks at pressing issues of contemporary times, including the Greek debt crisis.[4] In the documentary, Taylor suggests that the current form of democracy is bad and people should seek a more direct democracy.[5] Reviewers noted that the documentary never directly answers the title question.[6]

  1. ^ a b Thomason, John (2019-01-15). "From Athens to North Carolina, Filmmaker Astra Taylor Asks: "What Is Democracy?"". The Intercept. Archived from the original on 2019-05-03. Retrieved 2019-05-03.
  2. ^ Goldstein, Gary (21 February 2019). "Review: Documentary asks 'What Is Democracy?'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2019-05-03. Retrieved 2019-05-03.
  3. ^ Gessen, Masha (2019-01-18). "A New Film Offers a Multitude of Answers to the Question "What Is Democracy?"". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Archived from the original on 2019-02-03. Retrieved 2019-05-03.
  4. ^ DeFore, John (2019-01-16). "'What Is Democracy?': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2019-05-03. Retrieved 2019-05-03.
  5. ^ Phillips, Charlie (2018-06-11). "What Is Democracy? review – searing analysis of who's really in control". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2019-04-22. Retrieved 2019-05-03.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).