Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Exit Through the Gift Shop Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 6, 2011

Nominated for Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, "Exit Through the Gift Shop" (2010) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Revolver Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include deleted scenes; Thierry Guetta's short film "Life Remote Control"; and two short documentary features. The disc also arrives with a pair of unique 2D glasses, as well as an exclusive DIY sticker set. In English, without optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

The Ghost - Banksy

Frenchman Thierry Guetta immigrated to the United States in the early 80s. He settled down in Los Angeles and used his savings to open up a vintage clothing shop. For awhile, he made a good living selling imported discounted clothing as designer clothing to the local hipsters.

Somehow a small video camera appeared in Thierry’s home and he started filming everything that was in front of him. It did not matter what it was or who it was. Thierry simply became addicted to having the camera in his hands and feeling the tiny tape in it rolling. When he wasn’t filming, he felt sick.

In the late 90s, Thierry’s life took an unusual turn. While visiting his native France, he filmed his cousin, nicknamed Invader, who introduced him to the ins and outs of street art. Thierry began following Invader with his camera and quickly fell in love with his work.

Eventually, Thierry returned to Los Angeles with a duffel bag full of video tapes. What he had witnessed in France had made him want to get to know other street artists from his home city and film them, but he did not know anyone that could introduce him to the right people. For a while, Thierry was seriously frustrated.

Then, a couple of months later, Invader arrived in Los Angeles. After a few quick stunts, he arranged to meet with Shepard Fairey, a well known local street artist whose work he knew well. Followed closely by Thierry, Fairey showed him the city.

When Invader left, Thierry became Fairey’s shadow - he literally followed him everywhere. Through Fairey, Thierry met other street artists who allowed him to film them. He started spending so much time on the streets that eventually his wife, Deborah, had to remind him that he had a family to take care of.

But Thierry just could not stop filming. Not now, not after he had realized that he had landed right in the middle of a giant underground movement, which only a few people knew about.

Then, one day someone asked the inevitable question: What was Thierry filming for? At first, Thierry did not know how to answer. He filmed because filming made him feel good, but this did not seem like a very rational answer to him. After all, what sane man would spend hundreds of thousands of hours away from his family filming people who were constantly being chased by the police? Then it suddenly dawned on him – he could tell everyone that he was filming a documentary about street art. And when he did, bingo, people finally started taking him seriously.

But to legitimize his project, Thierry needed to film the one man everyone on the streets agreed was the undisputed master - Banksy, the legendary British graffiti artist. Thierry and his camera were ready, but there was a small problem. Actually, it was a very big problem, because no one really knew who Banksy was, what he looked like, or where to find him. He was a living ghost who had managed to keep his identity secret from...well, everyone, including his fellow street artists. Loaded with patience, Thierry started looking for Banksy.

This film does not need to be deconstructed. It is best that one experiences it without being told how to interpret it. But I’d say this: It explains what modern art is and what it has become to us better than any other study has during this decade. Superb.

Note: Exit Through the Gift Shop is nominated for Oscar for Best Documentary Feature.

Exit Through the Gift Shop Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Banksy's Exit Through the Gift Shop arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Revolver Entertainment.

The overwhelming amount of the footage used in Exit Through the Gift Shop comes from the large number of tapes Thierry Guetta amassed while following the street artists. Naturally, there are various inherited limitations - detail, clarity, and contrast levels fluctuate a lot. Colors are also unstable. There is judder and a few frame skips as well. But, as noted above, this is the type of documentary film Exit Through the Gift Shop is, so there is hardly anything here to be critical about. With other words, I have to assume that the high-definition transfer replicates accurately what was stored on the master Revolver Entertainment were offered to work with. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Exit Through the Gift Shop Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. For the record, Revolver Entertainment, have not provided optional English subtitles for the main feature. (There are only a few lines of French where partial imposed English subtitles appear).

A standard English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track would have been more than appropriate for the Blu-ray release of Exit Through the Gift Shop, but Revolver Entertainment are to be commended for supplying the English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. The documentary is primarily dialog-driven, and Rhys Ifans' narration sounds great. The dynamic amplitude is extremely limited. Aside from a few inherited sound fluctuations, I did not detect any problematic audio dropouts to report in this review. Optional English subtitles, however, should have been offered, as some of Bansky's remarks a bit difficult to understand.

Exit Through the Gift Shop Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• More Brainwashing - a collection of deleted scenes. In English, not subtitled. (6 min, PAL).

• Life Remote Control (Lawyer's Edit) - Thierry's first film. With a cameo appearance by Spanish director Pedro Almodovar. In English, not subtitled. (16 min, PAL).

• B Movie. A Film by Banksy - a look at the life and legacy of the legendary artist, Banksy. In English, not subtitled. (14 min, PAL).

• A Star is Born (MBW at Cans Festival) - in May, 2008, Banksy invited 40 street artists from around the world to paint an abandoned tunnel underneath a train station in central London. Thierry filmed their work. In English, not subtitled. (8 min, PAL).

• Glasses - Revolver Entertainment have included a pair of 2D viewing glasses.

Exit Through the Gift Shop Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Is Exit Through the Gift Shop fake or real? I don't know, and I am sure those who nominated it for Oscar for Best Documentary Feature do not either. What I do know is that the crew behind it is good. Very good. And now that I think about it, extremely brave as well. Superb film. See it. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.