2010 Sundance Film Festival

A refreshingly creative approach to the doc genre, Exit through the Giftshop is not so much about Bansky as it is about the French-American character, Thierry Guetta and his personal journey to capture the worldwide street art scene. Theirry’s footage is fantastic–and the film opens with heart-pounding excitement as clips from one street artist after another, show them scaling buildings, running from the law and painting in the dead of night. The viewer quickly understands just how dangerous this artform can be and what extreme physical risks these street artists take for their work. Street art heavyweights Shephard Fairey, Invader, Buff Monster, Swoon, Neck Face and others are all featured making art in the film—shedding new light on the process behind this underground lifestyle. Towards the end of Exit through the Giftshop, Bansky fans finally get to glimpse rare footage from some of his most prolific pranks, the renegade Guantanamo installation at Disneyland, Bansky hanging his own paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and every street artist’s wet dream of viewing the inside of Bansky’s actual working studio. Filled with wit, unseen footage and an unprecedented ending, Theirry’s personal journey through the street art scene is one not to be missed. —Angela H. Brown http://www.slugmag.com/festival-coverage/627/Exit-through-the-Giftshop-Review.html