Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project
Zeitgeist Films | Release Date: November 15, 2019 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
75
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 15 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
0
Negative:
0
Watch Now
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
RogerEbert.comSheila O'MalleyNov 15, 2019
Is the human brain built to absorb so much of "the world"? How do we filter anything? Matt Wolf's new documentary, Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project, is an interesting meditation on these ideas, as well as a character study of a fascinating news-junkie with a mission. Read full review
83
The PlaylistJonathan ChristianMay 4, 2019
Thankfully, ‘Recorder’ salvages its lack of narrative control with enough emotional weight to earn its memorability. Read full review
83
IndieWireKate ErblandApr 26, 2019
The results are fascinating, weird, and often quite moving. Read full review
80
The GuardianPeter BradshawNov 10, 2020
Having watched this documentary, I now think the project could also be seen as a gigantic adventure in conceptual art, and this is not to denigrate it in any way. Read full review
80
The Observer (UK)Simran HansNov 10, 2020
Stokes is a fascinating, elusive protagonist – she was a recluse who enjoyed daily martinis and felt a kinship with Steve Jobs. Yet Wolf treats her archive with reverence, rather than writing her off as an eccentric. Read full review
80
CineVueChristopher MachellNov 10, 2020
In a way, Michael is an audience surrogate, informing our own understanding of her; his – and the film’s – refusal to pin Stokes down as either a genius or crank (as if they are binary) speaks to her own project’s attempt to capture the totality of a thing and the noble futility in such an endeavour. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleDec 2, 2019
Wolf’s strange, sad and finally exhilarating portrait is one of radical consumerism turned into a searchable legacy — the viewer as activist. Read full review
80
Film ThreatMatthew RoeMay 2, 2019
Wolf’s directorial command when selecting material to showcase and contextualize the anecdotes spun throughout the film further affirms his mission to paint the most compendious picture possible, and he succeeds quite admirably. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckApr 26, 2019
[A] fascinatingly oddball story. Read full review
70
Little White LiesRogan GrahamFeb 14, 2022
There is always an issue of sensitivity with documentary filmmaking, but the final film is wanting. Wanting more Marion, and wanting more interrogation of the role public news plays in American life. But that doesn’t mean this documentary isn’t worth your time, Marion was an actionable inspiration and contradictory genius. Read full review
70
TheWrapElizabeth WeitzmanNov 14, 2019
Stokes recorded every story she possibly could, from 1977 to 2012. By then, it had become a lot easier to chronicle both the minutiae and the magnitude of life in the 21st century. But has that been an improvement? Wolf leaves it to his audience to decide, after gently pushing us past any instinctual answers. Read full review
70
The New York TimesGlenn KennyNov 14, 2019
“Recorder” doesn’t explore the extent to which Marion’s original project of analysis was subsumed by the compulsion to tape everything. But her taping of everything created an irreproducible archive that is enlightening and the stuff of madness. Read full review
70
Screen DailyStephen Whitty May 1, 2019
This is a small, carefully crafted film that tries hard to pierce the protective armor of a recluse known to be difficult and domineering. In the end, Stokes still remains slightly unknowable, as she’d undoubtedly prefer. Yet the documentary’s deep dive into her extraordinary archives, and the grainy video treasures it unearths, make for fascinating viewing. Read full review
70
VarietyOwen GleibermanApr 26, 2019
Matt Wolf directs “Recorder” with a lot of lively skill. He presents the eccentricity of Marion Stokes’ personality with supreme sympathetic understanding, or maybe you could say a bit more romanticism than it deserves. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyDec 4, 2019
Wolf relies on the videos far too much. That over-reliance makes Recorder feel padded, as does his frequent use of reenactments. Read full review
More From This Movie

75 Critic Reviews

tbd User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 71 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL