By Katie Volk
Staff Writer
“Bob Ross: Happy Accidents, Betrayal, and Greed” successfully alludes to the unknown battle over Bob Ross’s business and name, but not without a deliverance of confusion and typical documentary style elements.
Despite the fact that the film was informative and explained the history of Ross’s entire career, the movie’s storytelling made it way more complicated than the documentary had to be.
The documentary explores Ross’s backstory and origins with painting. The film depicts Ross’s kind heart and his passion for painting. But his interest in sharing his talent and art with the masses is overshadowed by the capitalist greed of business.
This Netflix documentary unveils the cynical motives of Bob Ross’s closest trustees. The film was able to pay homage to the 20th century’s most beloved painters by dramatizing his experiences and accomplishments. At some times, the romanticized dialogue from the interviewees would make the movie seem scripted and disingenuous. The responses pertaining to Ross’s talents and personality would glorify him to extreme limits and make him seem almost unreal.
Although informative, the documentary fails to paint a clear picture of what the conflict was between Ross’s business partners, the Kowalski’s and Ross’s closest friends and family. The film would often feature overlapping conflicts and create confusion for its audience, there would be scene after scene with no transitions, discussing unrelated topics.
The storytelling was convoluted and transitions from telling the events of Ross’s life were very turbulent. The documentary caused confusion and was ineffective in conveying a clear narrative in what Ross was truly battling, even with amazing sources and top of the line archived footage.
This movie was victorious in making its audience feel all types of emotions. The story projected grief, rage, admiration, and empathic pain. The film made the viewers have a deeper appreciation for Ross and his effect on the world and hatred for those who have corrupted others with capitalist motives.
The documentary demonstrates aesthetically pleasing scenes of landscapes and features clips of actual animated paintings to display a moment in Ross’s life. These aspects made the film seem more dedicated to Ross’s artistic imprint on the world and not just the purpose of making a “good-looking” documentary.
“Bob Ross: Happy Accidents, Betrayal, and Greed” was an interesting story. The documentary had spectacular sources and had the potential to be a fascinating documentary, but the execution of the storytelling and failure of the narrative blew those chances of being a captivating film.
“Bob Ross: Happy Accidents, Betrayal, and Greed” is rated PG-13 and was released on Netflix on August 25, 2021 and can be streamed on this platform.
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