re: Best political documentary

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Best of Enemies

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nytimes.com
JANET MASLIN
Published: October 7, 1992

"Feed," a compendium of candid glimpses at this year's Presidential candidates, is as cruel a film as you may ever see. The contenders are caught unawares, some during seemingly private moments just before their televised satellite feeds are scheduled to begin. This is the time for throat-clearing, for smile-practicing, for working on the handclasps or upbeat gazes or other reassuring touches that make up a public demeanor. "Feed" observes these studied politicians both before and after they become their familiar selves.

The result is a revealing look at these specific candidates and the political process itself, at least as it manifests itself on television. This film, like C-Span's "Road to the White House" series, presents the Andy Warhol version of campaign posturing. Some minor but fascinating aspect of a candidate's nature is inevitably exposed when that candidate is shown glad-handing strangers or struggling to understand the quirks of high-tech equipment that doesn't work (Senator Bob Kerrey trying to answer questions posed by an interviewer he cannot hear). Jerry Brown, viewers of "Feed" learn, is a guy who can pick a fight over whether his necktie looks straight.

This film's spy tactics are at their most merciless in using the warm-up material that precedes live broadcasts. President Bush is seen sitting looking vacant for a very long time; Gov. Bill Clinton coughs badly and curses himself for getting teary-eyed; Ross Perot tells what he thinks is a corker of a racy story. Anyone, it might be argued, could be made to look foolish in such a context, and the glimpses seen here appear deliberately unkind. They are riveting in spite of that, and so are the film's campaign sequences, which are fairer since most of them take place in public. One quality worth studying is how a candidate responds to endless petty ambushes along the campaign trail.

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