Why all the negativity for Where In the World . . . ? I enjoyed it. Granted, it’s not the deep, probing documentary that many of us might prefer, but I found it entertaining and well-suited for those individuals (and there are plenty of them) who don’t follow politics (or film) that closely. I don’t feel that the subplot involving Spurlock’s wife and her pregnancy is unnecessary or superfluous. It’s there to demonstrate the relevance of world affairs to Americans who don’t relate to much (besides NFL football) that occurs more than 25 miles beyond their travel route between home, work and the inlaws.

Because I feel Spurlock has talent as well as popular appeal, I’d like to see him do something more in-depth, but in the meantime this latest effort ultimately clocks in on the plus side — even though it may not carry the strongest appeal to the more sophisticated filmgoers and politicos who visit this site.

Still, it was entertaining and interesting.

Sam I’ll probably finally be watching Salo. I’ve never seen it, but it’s one of those movies that probably needs to be seen once.

I’m surprised Nick that SoR didn’t play in SA. It opened in England before it opened in the USA

I deliberately avoided OSAMA BIN LADEN based on the terrible reviews across the board (glad LIC has corroborated this) and thought the Lunch was worthwhile, as Craig contends. By the way I agree with Alexander on INLAND EMPIRE, which I ranked in the top-half-dozen films of 2006.

This is the week of the Criterion two-disc SALO release. I bought it on Friday night at Kim’s while seeing MAOMMA’S MAN at the Angelika. Some purists are outraged that there is a 25 second scene (which contains a brief literary reference) is missing. That brief snippet, purportedly, will be included in the upcoming BFI Region 2 release, but it probably be overkill to re-invest.
The package is astonishing. There are three documentaries: the first, “Salo: Yesterday and Today, a 33 minute documentary featuring interviews with director Pier Paolo Pasolini, actor-filmaker Jean-Claude Biette, and Pasolini friend Ninetto Davoli; second, “Fade to Black,” a 23 minute documentary featuring directors Bernardo Bertolucci, Catharine Breillat (who directed one of the years best films, THE LAST MISTRESS), and John Maybury, as well as scholar David Forgacs. And then there’s “The End of Salo,” a 40 minute documentary about the film’s production.

Transfer-wise, the film hasn’t looked as good since it played in theatres in 1976.

I agree with Matthew not only about Lynch being a favorite director, but also Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?, which was awful.

I really enjoyed SON OF RAMBOW, it’s a sweet little charmer.

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS OSAMA BIN LADEN, on the other hand, is one of the worst documentaries I’ve ever seen. You hit the nail on the head by saying he’s all the worst traits of Michael Moore. It’s a totally unilluminating doc that is more about Spurlock than his actual subject. The whole thing is built around a totally unnecessary subplot about his wife’s pregnancy.