American Movie (1999)

Directed by Chris Smith

Documentary 1h 47m

The American Movie…or something like it 

By Michael Buckner

“That was wicked, man!” 

Most of us do not achieve the dream we cook up when we’re younger. Sure, there are people who became astronauts or presidents or financial adjusters. But for those of us like Mark Borchardt, the obstacles to your dream make it worth fighting for. And sometimes it’s kick-ass, dude. 

“American Movie,” which was released in 1999 and filmed from September 1995 until August 1997, follows Borchardt and his gaggle of friends and family as he tries to finish his short film “Coven.” 

Directed by Chris Smith, the documentary evokes similar herculean tasks to get a movie made like “Lost in La Mancha,” “Burden of Dreams,” and “Hearts of Darkness,” but where those films follow an auteur struggling with production woes, “American Movie” chronicles movie-making through the eyes of a nobody wanting to be somebody. 

Borchardt throughout the process works to eschew the usual trappings of growing up with not a lot of money. He dreams bigger than his wallet and even bigger than what his family thinks of him. Even if some have buried the “American Dream” years ago, Borchardt could argue to you that it’s still alive, hand you a beer or two, and convince you to dig it out of its grave to help him make more movies. 

The beauty of the documentary is its ability to show life as it is without judgment. Smith, who would go on to produce “Tiger King” and make a documentary on Vince McMahon, lets his subjects craft the narrative of their story unbeknownst to them. It’s through “American Movie” where Smith found the narrative device that would define his career. The central focus is Borchardt’s pursuit to finish a movie juxtaposed with long diatribes on the artist’s struggle and having a hell of a time with your dudes. 

This is where we meet the cast which defines the film’s cult status. You have Mike Schanck, the happy-go-lucky best bud who hides his lottery winnings and makes music for the documentary. You have Uncle Bill, who we’re unsure how lucid he is to agree to Mark’s shenanigans. And of course you have the naysayers in the family who support the endeavor but can’t understand why he doesn’t work in a factory already. 

When it first came out, some argued that the movie mocked the efforts of Borchardt and his desires to make it big. But as the movies has aged and as the fabled “American Dream” continues to disappear on the horizon, it is apparent this is a love letter to the children born to working class parents who wish for something bigger. 

Borchardt probably would not label himself a philosopher, but he rattles off so much unintentional wisdom and comedy that by the end you get why an actor would slam his head into a piece of wood that is neither thin nor scored enough to make movie magic. 

And the devotion of his cohorts is even more understood when you get brief glimpses of Borchardt’s movies. They are shot haphazardly at times, but the imagery and editing is as good as any indie horror film you’ve seen if not at times better. 

There are frames from “Coven” and other scrapped projects where you take a step back and marvel at what a couple of friends in middle-of-nowhere Wisconsin could make when one person has a vision. 

Mark Borchardt is not an auteur, but he shares something with them. He’s a romantic for the process of film and that’s why “American Movie” will endure the test of time.