The tweaky world of typography is not perhaps as much at the heart of how we live as these designers would have us believe, but it's enjoyable to watch them rhapsodise sans serifs and spacing.
Comment
10/13/07
Helvetica (2007)
88 %
Reviews Counted: 16 Fresh: 14 Rotten:2 Average Rating: 7.1/10
Runtime: 2 hrs 56 mins
Synopsis: From the New York subways to print ads, the Helvetica typeface has made a sans-serif assault on the world since its creation in 1957. This documentary focuses on the ubiquitous font, exploring its impact on graphic design, communications, and even psychology.... [More]
Genre: Education/General Interest
Reviews
1 - 16 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Top Critic
Helvetica is one of those rare films in which the exploration of a specific topic leads to expanding horizons of perception.
03/07/08
Director Gary Hustwit opens our eyes to the visual culture of typography in much the same way as Andy Warhol once freed us from the tyranny of advertising, by inviting reflection upon that which is intended as a subliminal encounter.
03/07/08
A little like a study of the American Civil War that discusses the Confederacy without mentioning the Union.
09/25/07
Even viewers who've never given a serif a second thought are in for an exclamation point of joy from such a well-designed doc.
09/19/07
Though their interest sometime borders on obsessive, [director] Hustwit's stellar roster of experts parse Helvetica's origins and implications with engaging passion and striking articulateness.
09/14/07
Helvetica spins its wheels for a good part of its rather short running time, making the same points over and again, with diminishing effect each time.
09/13/07
Overlong but fascinating, Gary Hustwit's documentary posits Helvetica, a sans-serif typeface developed in 1957.
09/12/07
Top Critic
Helvetica keenly distills the eternal aesthetic battle between the classical and the baroque and explores what happens when a revolution goes mainstream.
09/11/07
Helvetica makes a game attempt to understand how typefaces have been applied to contemporary modes of information and how battle lines have been drawn about their usage.
09/06/07
Hustwit’s talking heads, an endearingly geeky bunch, weigh in on the pros and cons of such ubiquity. Cage match! Not that kind of film.
06/23/07
Funny to think that the font movie would have the potential to restore one's faith in art and its myriad meanings, but it does.
06/20/07
The computer revolution may have democratized graphic design, letting anyone decorate his own desktop or MySpace page, but a certain amount of conformity is necessary for society to function.
06/16/07
Appropriately, once the final credits roll, you’re likely to sit through them with an enhanced understanding of the typeface they’re in.
06/16/07
A splendid documentary about one typeface, designed in 1957 in Switzerland.
06/15/07
Top Critic
By rounding up a great group of eloquent obsessives eager to explain their feelings about a font, Hustwit has come up with 80 unexpectedly blissful minutes.
06/14/07
1 - 16 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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