Documentary Now! is a miracle of a TV show. I still can’t quite believe it exists, let alone that it is now on the cusp of airing a third season. Each episode of the IFC series features actors putting a comedic spin on a well-known documentary; Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers, and Rhys Thomas created it as a sort of love letter to the documentary genre.
But the lower profiles of Hader and Armisen in Season 3 give Documentary Now an opportunity to introduce new faces with terrific results. Seth Meyers’ two-part season opener “Batshit Valley,” starring Owen Wilson, is the first episode. This one is a spin on both the Netflix docuseries Wild Wild Country and the 2012 doc The Source Family, which finds Wilson playing a very chill cult leader. Michael Keaton also makes a welcome return to comedy as the FBI agent hot on his trail (or is he?).
Then there’s Oscar-winner Cate Blanchett (yes, the Oscar-winner Cate Blanchett) starring in “Waiting for the Artist,” where the actress plays an acclaimed performance artist attempting to prepare for a career retrospective. The movie Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present served as inspiration for Meyers’ script, which also stars Armisen and Blanchett in the lead roles.
But the MVPs of the season—and the series, really—are Alex Buono and Rhys Thomas, who, in addition to serving as executive producers, also directed the episodes. Not only is each episode visually distinct, but the aesthetic of each documentary is pitch perfect, to the point where I would completely believe these were all directed by different people. “Original Cast Album: Co-op” feels like footage ripped right out of the 70s; “Batshit Valley” feels like watching a VHS tape of local news recordings; and “Long Gone” evokes its Eastern European setting in gorgeous black-and-white photography.
Please keep documenting now! going for as long as humanly possible.
