 
Many people first learned of Errol Morris with the release of The Fog Of War – his 2003 documentary / interview with former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. Part of what was so striking, was the format – McNamara starting directly into the camera and telling his story, occasionally punctuated by a question from Morris. What people don’t realize, is that this was a technique that Morris began developing years ago using the “Interrotron” – a camera he invented that allowed him to maintain direct eye contact with the interviewee. In 2000, the cable channel Bravo, gave Morris his own show, called First Person. In the space of 24 minutes, audiences were introduced to a wildly diverse range of individuals from all walks of life, with one thing in common: they each had a fascinating story to tell: a woman who wrote about serial killers and fell in love with one; a postmaster in Michigan whose career was unjustly destroyed when a former employee shot five co-workers to death; a highly functional autistic woman who changed the way the cattle industry slaughters animals to a method that’s more humane; a man with the highest IQ in recorded history who chooses to work as a bouncer in a bar. Where does he find these people? Every interview employs that intimate ‘first person’ perspective, but each has its own unique touch: archival and/or re-enacted footage, soaring musical orchestration (or not), odd camera angles and close-ups, 8mm film juxtaposed with tape and the occasional question shouted from behind the camera by Morris himself. My girlfriend and I sat down to watch one episode and it was so good, we watched another..and another….and another, until we had finished all eight episodes on the first disc. This is powerful, compelling stuff equaled only by the second set that has just hit the stores - The Errol Morris Collection, consisting of his first three full-length features: Gates Of Heaven, The Thin Blue Line and Vernon, Florida. All are very highly recommended. - David Bassin
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Errol Morris’ First Person