Laura Poitras’s “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed” is the Centerpiece Selection of the New York Film Festival.
“Beauty” chronicles the path of famed photographer Nan Goldin, the partner of controversial photographer Bruce Weber, in her investigation of the opioid manufacturing Sackler family. They’re the wealthy villains also of “Dopesick,” the book and TV show.
Poitras won an Oscar for “Citizen Four,” about whistleblower Edward Snowden. But she lost of steam with a film about Wikileaks and Julian Assange, called “Risk,” when it was revealed she’d been sleeping with one of Assange’s followers while making the movie. It was eventually dumped onto Showtime.
“Beauty” is an odd choice for Centerpiece Film for the Festival. It’s made by Participant Films but has no distributor or announced streaming deal. Unlike the opening night film, “White Noise,” from Netflix, it’s not really a marquee title. It has no actors to walk a red carpet, and little PR sizzle. But Goldin has the art connection in New York, and the Sacklers are notorious for having their infamous names removed from art galleries at famous museums.
It will be interesting to see what the NY Film Festival will choose for their closing night film.
