What it’s about
After his grandmother Allis passed away, filmmaker Morgan Dews discovered hours of audio recordings, journals, film reels and photographs in a box. These tapes and home movies revealed a shockingly dark tale of a dysfunctional family struggling with adultery, mental illness, death and the pressures of living the American Dream. “Must Read” is one grandson's artful, painful attempt to reconcile his own experience of his beloved grandmother with the turbulent life she actually lived.
Why we love it
First-time filmmaker Morgan Dews did full justice to the gold mine of material he found in his grandmother’s house by letting it speak entirely for itself. He assembles his film from the recordings themselves, never once injecting his own story into Allis’ tortured narrative. The result is a searing and starkly powerful experience, and by no means easy to watch, even at a safe remove. Still, few documentaries are this honest, lacerating and ultimately cathartic. If you can handle the intensity, “Must Read” is a must-see.