Exit Through the Gift Shop is a documentary style film directed by Banksy and co-directed by Shepard Fairey, 2 well-respected street artists, the documentary heavily features on Thierry Guetta, a french man, who I would say is a filmmaker but he inevitably wasn’t, Guetta owned a clothing store in France where he sold off clothes that were not able to be bought in France, he said he would buy bags of clothes from the US for around $50 but make a profit of around $5000, the film is practically all of Guetta’s ‘own footage.’ The reason for the quotation marks will be clear by the end.
The opening sequence is showing how many street artists on how they make their work, from printing on walls or just using spray cans to make designs. I like the concept of Banksy being interviewed but not revealing his identity from it, Guetta explains that he regularly filmed to the point where it was common to see him with a camera rather than not having one on him, this transitions very well into the street art side of the film, where his ‘cousin’ is Invader, an artist who goes around and uses tile arts in the form of characters from Pac-man and Space Invaders, Guetta follows him around the city where he is putting up work, this then leads to Shepard Fairey, most famous for his Andre the Giant pieces and the Obama ‘HOPE’ poster. Guetta helped Fairey out with many projects and filmed it all, even showcasing times the police got involved, or when a police officer is shown and Fairley runs away. There is a point I really enjoy when Fairey was putting a piece up on a roof and Guetta didn’t film from the sidelines, but climbed the building along with Fairey to be right in the action and help out. Guetta tells Fairey he’s making a documentary on street art to stay with him but he isn’t, he just keeps filming, the documentary then takes an empathetic approach with Guetta saying he films being of the loss of his mother, who died without letting him know she had health issues, it is explained Guetta films because if he loses someone the memories are all on camera, to the point where it became a regular point of his routine, this point is very touchy for me and connects on a nar-personal level, so if it was real it was portrayed very well.
Guetta then mentions he’s filmed everyone but Banksy, and wants to find a way to find and film him, it then explains the work that got Banksy famous, most specifically the Palestine wall pieces, where he risked his life to graffiti of them, conveniently, Banksy’s accomplice gets held back in customs and Fairey gets in touch with Guetta, this is where the film really kicks off, as the Banksy section of the film is kicking off. It is explained that Guetta broke the law just to get to Banksy and when he did he offered practically everything to work alongside him. Banksy agrees to let Guetta film but he gets to check the tapes of what’s filmed, which then reveals that Guetta has never watched a single one of his tapes through. The phone box piece is then revealed on how it was made which was a interesting moment to see as you can see up close the design process on how the piece was made and how it got to where it was. Guetta then stands around the piece, acting like he doesn’t have a clue who it was and why it was there, showing it generated lots of public attraction.
The films then includes a section where Guetta wants to do a piece of his own, he get an illustrator to draw him with a camera and claims he spent from 10pm to 8am on a piece, all his filming of how the artist did their work leads to him, it’s a brilliant segway from cameraman to being an artist himself, after printing the piece in many locations, he decides to work with Banksy again, who again is wanting tobe controversial by doing a piece of Guantanamo Bay in Disneyland where an inflatable slave is on a fence next to a ride. Action picks up from this scene when the ride is stopped which again I enjoy because the movie keeps changing tones, Guetta says he’s taken into questioning with the tapes hidden in his socks so it shows he ain’t an accomplice to Banksy, he calls and fakes it’s his wife which was Banksy’s cue to get out of the park. Banksy then holds a show and says to Guetta it’s the perfect time to produce a film, in the peak of street art.
6 months passes and the film is done, and as Banksy says ‘it was fucking shit’ and didn’t convey street art, Banksy’s view on Guetta changed and then Guetta’s art brand begins as Mister Brainwash.
Guetta produces a business for his work with many staff with different talents and inevitably decides to hold a show, at this point of the film, I wondered if it was all real since with every other artist I saw a piece being made but not one by Guetta, yet he has enough for a whole show. When putting up a sign, he falls and breaks his leg, which then leads to Banksy helping out, which again made me think if it’s all real. Guetta took control and staff got very annoyed as hype was building because Guetta wasn’t doing anything. The show opens and it’s a massive success , 4000 people in the first day and $1 million in art sold, the show opened for 2 months more than it should’ve.
Overall I really enjoyed the film but I’m starting to believe the story ain’t real, and I have reasons, firstly, Banksy directed and Fairey co-directed, surely it would be by Guetta but it wasn’t, also as stated before, Guetta is not seen producing one piece of work, and when he fell off the ladder, there is pictures but no video, which is strange since everything was filmed, I believe Mr. Brainwash is another project by Banksy and he is ‘brainwashing’ people into believing it’s a new artist but it’s just his and Fairey. With a very wide plotted out plan with Guetta playing along.
Regardless of that I really enjoyed the film and would give it a 7.5/10 spray cans. The changes of styles are what got me interested so I did not get bored whilst watching and if it isn’t real, this film is an amazing art form by Banksy, changing the world with someone who is not even an artist.
Jac Cannon Creative Media 