Plot
‘Gut Renovation’ charts the destruction of Williamsburg – a neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY – after the city passed a re-zoning plan in 2005 which allowed developers to build luxury condos where there were once thriving industries, working-class families, and artists. The filmmaker lived in the neighborhood for 20 years and was one of the many who were forced out by the changes that occurred.
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Film information
Genre: Documentary, History, News
Movie Reviews:
- 42The A.V. Club - by Noel Murray
Friedrich’s snide tone gets in the way, turning a study of capitalism run amok into one artist who just can’t stand all these rich squares and their “fancy dogs.” ...read more - 38Slant Magazine - by Nick McCarthy
Due to the one-minded construction of the documentary, there's little to parse beyond impassioned harrumphs. ...read more - 30Village Voice - by Diana Clarke
What a shame it is that Friedrich, so impassioned by her subject matter, couldn’t get enough objectivity to make a film that’s more than just a complaint. ...read more
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A terrific film showing the political workings behind the supposed “improvement” of a neighborhood. There always is gentrification, and artists are often part of that gentrification — they make the neighborhood nicer, and hipper, and then others want to come there, and real estate prices start going up, etc. However, complete radical transformation overnight is NOT the same kind of gentrification. One is slow, gradual, evolutionary, and driven by individuals making choices over time; the other radical, ahistorical, and is run by businesses looking to make money. So while some may point out that Friedrich is part of the gentrification of Bed Sty (which is true), your movie isn’t really about “gentrification”. It’s about development. Rampant development.