LOOK World Cinema: American Showcase

No one is spared from the relentless, unblinking eyes of the surveillance cameras that are now hidden in every nook and cranny of day-to-day American life. The average citizen is now captured nearly 200 times a day- in department stores, gas stations, changing rooms, and even public bathrooms.

Shot entirely from the point of view of the security cameras, Adam Rifkin’s film reveals the things people do when they don’t know they’re being watched. This unblinking perspective offers a variety of perspectives on American life, presenting zany fun in some places and shocking horror in others; sometimes, these shifts occur within the same character’s journey. A high school English teacher tries his best to be a decent husband, a department store floor manager uses the warehouse for more than just storage, a mini-mart clerk dreams big , a lawyer struggles with a sexual dilemma and sociopathic brothers ruin the days of random strangers they come in contact with. Some exposed in this riveting story are benign-ever been caught picking your nose in an empty elevator?

Some are much darker. As it progresses, LOOK offers a provocative examination of the intersection between society and technology. At the same time, the promise of voyeuristic glee keeps the audience deeply invested. LOOK poses the question: Are you sure you are alone right now?