Helvetica (2007)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Gary Hustwit

Release Date:

12 September 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

A documentary about typography, graphic design, and global visual culture. |

Plot Keywords:

Typography | Design | Graphic Design | Art | Designer

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Michael Bierut	...	Himself
Neville Brody	...	Himself
Dimitri Bruni
David Carson	...	Himself
Matthew Carter	...	Himself
Wim Crouwel	...	Himself
Tobias Frere-Jones	...	Himself
Otmar Hoefer	...	Himself
Jonathan Hoefler	...	Himself
Alfred Hoffmann	...	Himself
Manuel Krebs	...	Himself
Lars Müller	...	Himself
Mike Parker	...	Himself
Michael C. Place	...	Himself
Rick Poynor	...	Himself
Stefan Sagmeister	...	Himself
Leslie Savan	...	Herself
Paula Scher	...	Herself
Erik Spiekermann	...	Himself
Bruno Steinert	...	Himself
Danny van den Dungen	...	Himself
Massimo Vignelli	...	Himself
Hermann Zapf	...	Himself

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Company:

Veer

Quotes:

[first lines]
Rick Poynor: Type is saying things to us all the time. Typefaces express a mood, an atmosphere. They give words a certain coloring.
Michael Bierut: Everywhere you look you see typefaces. But there's one you probably see more than any other one, and that's Helvetica. You know, there it is, and it seems to come from no where. You know, it seems like air? It seems like gravity?
Jonathan Hoefler: And it's hard to evaluate it. It's like being asked what you think about off-white paint. It's just... it's just there. And it's hard to get your head around, it's that big.
[...]

Soundtrack:

My Only Swerving

Interesting stuff

Don't be put off if you think a documentary about a font is bound be boring - this is an engaging movie that not only delves into the origin, history and surprisingly ubiquitous use of Helvetica (you might be surprised by how many times a day you see it) but also the subliminal power of typefaces, advertising and corporate branding. The movie's strength is its interviewees, who talk about the subject with intelligence and charm; star of the show is amusingly spiky font designer Erik Spiekermann, who I could have listened to all day. Him aside, the film never quite becomes as fascinating as it keeps threatening to be, but it's certainly worth a look.