Salinger” is a documentary film about J.D. Salinger, a great American author who spent most of his life avoiding the public eye. Going into the film, I expected to learn more about the elusive man behind the lauded “Catcher in the Rye.”
What I got instead seemed to be more of a propaganda film than anything else. Most of it was filled with speculation and “what if” scenarios depicting and reenacting what supposedly happened in Salinger’s life.
Because there are very few letters or other documents from Salinger, and the only pictures of him were taken by rabid fans hiding in bushes while he went to the post office or backed out of his driveway, no attempt to verify the supposed facts was made.
Yet another disappointment was the soundtrack. Typically a film’s soundtrack is supposed to aid in bringing the audience to some sort of catharsis.
“Salinger’s” soundtrack did the complete opposite. I had to figure out how the loud, exhilarating music fit with the story of a quiet man in rural northeastern America. It was just way too much.
In addition to the calamity that was the soundtrack, the reenactments of some of the events in Salinger’s life were horrendous. The production value of these vignettes was so appalling that they bordered on parody, which, had this been a comedy, would not have been so bad.
The interviews were the only thing that saved “Salinger” from completely bombing. Quite a few different celebrities and non-celebrities made heart-felt testimonials about how “The Catcher in the Rye” inspired and shaped their lives.
When all was said and done, I was extremely frustrated with this film. J.D. Salinger’s memory would have been best served if “Salinger” had never been made.
