By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3 cats
Director: Amy C. Elliott
Country: united_states
Year: 2019
Running time: 57
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9741984/reference
Diane says: “Yes, your town’s dump may have a swap area, but to find an “open dump” SALVAGE’s director had to go outside North America. This doc explores thrift, sustainability, consumerism, and gleaning (Agnes Varda!).
“Six hundred gleaners regularly visit the dump in Yellowknife (pop. 20,000) in Canada’s Northwest Territory. In this remote mining town, it makes more sense to salvage than to pay shipping costs for new items. And the transient population means that there’s a constant source of new trash. In the exultant opening sequence, a woman arises from the top of a dump pile holding a wedding gown against her chest, and declares, “I do!” (A salvaged beer keg Halloween costume—“My son is going to love this!”—jarringly also showed up in MASS HYSTERIA.)
“Director Amy Elliott took ten years to make the film, finally hiring an editor to make the difficult choices in what material to use. All those years later, city officials are now questioning the feasibility of open access. Having people traipse on top of piles of medical waste, hardware, carcasses, etc. brings a certain risk.
“(IFFBoston)”