Fail State (2018)

Fail State is a documentary film about higher education in the United States. Here is some basic information about this film which premiered in 2018:

** Director: Alexander Shebanow

** Writers: Alexander Shebanow, Nicholas Adams, and Regina Sobel

** Producers: Julia Glausi and others

** Executive producer: Dan Rather

** Consultant: Stephen Burd

** Run time: 93 minutes

Many persons are interviewed in the film. I am not going to mention all names, because the complete list is too long. Here are some of the names (in alphabetical order):

** F. King Alexander (born 1963) – since 2013 president of Louisiana State University

** Laura Brozek – a former ITT Tech recruiter

** Tom Harkin (born 1939) – a politician, Democrat – Congressman from Iowa 1975-1985 – US Senator from Iowa 1985-2015

** Gail Mellow (born 1952) – since 2000 president of LaGuardia Community College (New York)

** Maxine Waters (born 1938) – a politician, Democrat – member of the California State Assembly 1976-1990 – Congresswoman from California since 1991

Archive footage is used between the interviews. This footage is used to show us background information and to present clips from old interviews with public figures.

What do reviewers say about this film? Here are the results of three review aggregators:

** 68 per cent = Meta

** 75 per cent = IMDb

** 75 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)

** 82 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)

On the US version of Amazon there are more than ten reviews of this product. The average rating is 4.2 stars.

As you can see, the reviews are good, but not great. If you ask me, the first rating (Meta) is too low, but the other ratings (IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes) are quite appropriate. Why?

This film offers important information, but there are some flaws as well. Let me explain:

# 1. With regard to colleges and universities in the US, there are three categories:

** Government or public

** Private

** For-profit

This film focuses on the third category (for profit). Colleges and universities in this category are presented as the villains in the history of higher education in the US.

Is this really fair? Can colleges and universities in the other two categories be described as institutions where there are no problems? Hardly.

# 2. With regard to politics in the US, there are two major political parties:

** The Democrats

** The Republicans

This film focuses on the second party (the Republicans). Members of this party are presented as the villains in the history of higher education in the US.

Is this really fair? Can the Democrats get the credit for everything good? Is it right to blame the Republicans for everything bad? Hardly.

I like this film and I want to give it a good rating, but as you can see, there some flaws which cannot be ignored. I have to remove one star because of them. Therefore I think it deserves a rating of four stars.

PS # 1. You can find reviews with positive words about the film in the following publications: Los Angeles Times, L. A. Weekly, San Francisco Chronicle, and The Hollywood Reporter (in the US) and The Guardian (in the UK).

PS # 2. The Ivory Tower is a documentary film which premiered in 2014. The topic is higher education in the US.

*****

The Ivory Tower (2014)

Ivory Tower is a documentary film about higher education in the United States. Here is some basic information about this film which premiered in 2014:

** Written and directed by Andrew Rossi

** Original music composed by Ian Hultquist

** Run time: 90 minutes

What do reviewers say about this film? Here are the results of three review aggregators:

** 65 per cent = Meta

** 70 per cent = IMDb

** 78 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)

** 82 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)

According to the professional critics and the general audience, this film is good, but not great. The average ratings correspond to something like three or four stars on Amazon.

On the US version of Amazon there are more than 100 reviews of this product. The average rating is 4.4 stars. If you ask me, this average rating is quite appropriate. Why? Because there are positive and negative elements in this film.

On the positive side:

(1) There is useful information about the past (the history of higher education in the US).

(2) There is useful information about the present (the current situation of higher education in the US).

On the negative side:

(1) There is a lack of focus: the film jumps from one place to another; and from one aspect of the topic to another.

(2) There is nothing about the future. There are no suggestions about how to solve the current crisis in higher education. No answer to the question: “What are we going to do now?”

In my opinion, the positive elements are stronger than the negative, but the negative elements cannot be ignored; cannot be overlooked. Therefore I think this film deserves a rating of four stars.

PS. Fail State is a documentary film which premiered in 2018. The topic is higher education in the US.

*****