Errol Morris’ documentary entitled “Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control” is just that. It seems to move at lightening fast speed with no real sense of direction. As a first time viewer, I was completely baffled at what was happening on the screen in front of me. It was not until about 3/4 of the way through the film that I began to pick up on the larger themes of the film. As embarrassed as I am to admit that, I feel as though that was the way Morris intended his film to be perceived. I feel as though Morris had wanted the audience to feel a little unsure, and nervous about the possible way the film could go. However, about half way through the film, the craziness seems to make sense. Maybe you’ve been successfully sucked into the world of Morris, or maybe the insanity is actually not insane at all but rather a meticulously planned overlap of subjects. I was so confused, intrigued, and overall excited at the end of the film that I actually had to see it a second time to see if I could pick up on things I had not seen the first time.

I really enjoyed the way 4 seemingly unrelated subjects and fields of study are woven together in ways one would never imagine. One would never guess that robotics, a lion tamer, a topiary gardener, and a man seemingly obsessed with mole rats could be related, but Morris strings them together in what can only be described as editing and documentary genius.