Weiner is a 2016 American fly-on-the-wall political documentary film by Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg about Anthony Weiner's campaign for Mayor of New York City during the 2013 mayoral election.
Synopsis The documentary follows congressman Anthony Weiner and his wife Huma Abedin, shortly after his 2011 resignation when scandalous photos of Weiner mysteriously appeared on his Twitter account. The photos led to a tumultuous spiral as more and more pictures of the congressman in various states of undress began to leak to the public. The documentary revolves around Weiner's attempted comeback from his initial resignation during his 2013 campaign in the Democratic Party primary for Mayor of New York City. His campaign goes well at first, with many New Yorkers willing to give him a second chance as evidenced in polls putting him at or near the top of a tight mayoral race.
During the filming of the documentary, however, additional leaked photos and evidence of online sexual activity surface, including explicit text conversations with women and a teenaged child that occurred well after his 2011 resignation from Congress. The mood of the campaign switches from exuberance to pain. Intimate views are captured of Weiner, his wife and his campaign staff struggling with the new revelations and the media firestorm that ensues. Weiner's wife, an adviser to Hillary Clinton, comes under fire during the scandal. The relationship between the couple becomes strained, and in a couple of instances, the camera is asked to leave the room.. Weiner's campaign manager quits when a press conference is held in which Weiner comes clean about his sexting, and his campaign begins to take a downward spiral. Weiner comes in fifth place in the polls, garnering only 4.9% of the popular vote.
People People documented in the film include: Anthony Weiner Huma Abedin, his wife and a close aide to Hillary Clinton Sydney Leathers, one of Weiner's online sex partners, who attempts to confront him on election night Barbara Morgan, Weiner's communications director Camille Joseph, Weiner's campaign manager Amit Bagga, Weiner's senior advisor Maura Tracy, Weiner's senior staffer Andrew Noh, Weiner's campaign aide
The film also features archival footage from: Bill Clinton Stephen Colbert Hillary Clinton Bill de Blasio Jay Leno Jane Lynch Bill Maher Lawrence O'Donnell Barack Obama John Oliver Jon Stewart Donald Trump Howard Stern
Release The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2016. It was released theatrically in the United States in May 2016 and broadcast on Showtime in October 2016. Starting in June 2014, the film began releasing internationally in the UK, Netherlands, Scandinavia, Australia, and Japan, and television broadcasts in Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Israel, Belgium, and Holland. The film received an R rating from the MPAA for language and some sexual material.
Upon release, Anthony Weiner declined to endorse the film and claimed he had no intention of ever seeing the final product, saying "I already know how it ends."
After the film was released, Weiner claimed that "Kriegman had assured him verbally and in emails that he would not use Abedin in the film without her consent", and that Abedin never granted permission for Kriegman to use the footage. When asked if he will sue the filmmakers, Weiner didn't give a definitive answer. The filmmakers disputed Weiner's claim, stating that they clearly "had consent from everyone who appears in the film, including Anthony and Huma."
Reception Critical reception The film received near universal acclaim by critics. On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 84 out of 100, based on 33 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
Wendy Ide of The Observer gave it four out of five stars, writing: "Edited to perfection, this is like watching the slow-motion footage of a building collapsing. Weiner’s long-suffering wife, Huma Abedin … is a key sympathetic presence in the film. But it is Weiner himself, a likable narcissist with an Olympic capacity for vanity and self-delusion, who is every documentary-maker's dream subject."
Brian Lowry of CNN wrote: What Weiner makes painfully clear is the collateral damage of Weiner's actions, not merely on his wife but those who believed in and devoted their energy to his campaign. To that extent, it's possible to share his politics and still see him as a fatally flawed vessel for them.
Box office The film performed decently, earning a worldwide box office total of $1,751,120 on an unknown budget. Of that $1,751,120, the film made $1,675,196 domestically and $75,924 internationally. On a per-theater average, the film made about $16,835 per screen.
Best of lists BuzzFeed 11 Best Movies of 2016 Esquire Top 10 Documentaries of 2016 The Hollywood Reporter - Critics' Picks: The 10 Best Documentaries of the year The Huffington Post 21 Best Movies of 2016 IndieWire Best Movies of 2016 GQ Best Movies of 2016 Newsweek 21 Best Movies of 2016 Thrillist Best Documentaries of 2016 DC Outlook Top 10 Movies of 2016 (#1)
Accolades AwardCategoryRecipients and nomineesOutcomeAlliance of Women Film Journalists AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerAmerican Cinema Editors Eddie AwardsBest Edited Documentary FeatureEli B. DespresAustin Film Critics AssociationBest DocumentaryWeiner Australian Film Critics Association Best Documentary Film (Local or International) Weiner Awards Circuit Community AwardsBest Documentary Feature FilmWeinerBritish Academy Film AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerCentral Ohio Film Critics AssociationBest DocumentaryWeinerChamps-Élysées Film FestivalPrix du juryWeinerChicago Film Critics Association AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerChlotrudis AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerCinema Eye Honors AwardsOutstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature FilmmakingWeinerOutstanding Achievement in EditingEli B. DespresCinema Eye Audience Choice PrizeWeinerThe UnforgettablesHuma Abedin, Anthony WeinerCritics' Choice Documentary AwardsBest First Documentary (Theatrical Feature)Josh Kriegman, Elyse SteinbergBest Documentary FeatureWeinerBest Political DocumentaryWeinerDallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerDenver Film Critics SocietyBest Documentary FilmWeinerDetroit Film Critics SocietyBest DocumentaryWeinerDirectors Guild of AmericaOutstanding Directorial Achievement in DocumentaryJosh Kriegman & Elyse SteinbergDublin Film Critics Circle AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerFlorida Film Critics Circle AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerGay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics AssociationDocumentary of the yearWeinerGeorgia Film Critics AssociationBest Documentary FilmWeinerGotham AwardsAudience AwardWeinerBest DocumentaryWeinerGrierson British Documentary AwardsBest Cinema DocumentaryWeinerHamburg Film FestivalPolitical Film AwardWeinerHouston Film Critics Society AwardsBest Documentary FeatureWeinerIndiana Film Journalists AssociationBest DocumentaryWeinerIndiewire Critics PollBest DocumentaryWeinerBest First FeatureJosh Kriegman, Elyse SteinbergInternational Documentary AssociationBest FeatureWeinerIowa Film Critics AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerJerusalem Film FestivalBest International FilmWeinerLas Vegas Film Critics Society AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerMontclair Film FestivalDavid Carr Award for Truth in Non-Fiction FilmmakingWeinerBruce Sinofsky Prize for Documentary FeatureWeinerNew Hampshire Film FestivalAudience Choice – DocumentaryWeinerNorth Carolina Film Critics AssociationBest Documentary FilmWeinerNorth Texas Film Critics AssociationBest DocumentaryWeinerOklahoma Film Critics Circle AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerOnline Film Critics Society AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerPhoenix Film Critics Society AwardsBest Documentary FilmWeinerSan Diego Film Critics Society AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerSarasota Film FestivalSpecial Jury Prize - Unprecedented Look at Politics in CrisisWeinerSeattle Film Critics AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerSt. Louis Film Critics AssociationBest Documentary FeatureWeinerSundance Film FestivalU.S. Grand Jury Prize – DocumentaryWeinerTelevision Critics AssociationOutstanding Achievement in News and InformationWeinerUtah Film Critics Association AwardsBest Documentary Feature FilmWeinerVillage Voice Film PollBest DocumentaryWeinerWashington D.C. Area Film Critics Association AwardsBest DocumentaryWeinerWomen Film Critics Circle AwardsWorst Male Images in a MovieWeinerZurich Film FestivalBest International Documentary FilmWeiner
Notes 1.Abedin and Weiner separated in 2017.
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