The Order of Myths (2008)

Director:

Margaret Brown

Writer:

Margaret Brown (writer)

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

In 2007 Mobile, Alabama, Mardi Gras is celebrated... and complicated. Following a cast of characters, parades, and parties across an enduring color line, we see that beneath the surface of pageantry lies something else altogether.

Awards:

3 wins & 2 nominations

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Mobile, Alabama, USA

Company:

Folly River Films

A beautiful moment of Mobile's long history brought to life.

From a daughter of this most interesting city, a love letter as only someone who knows the place could give it to us. An interesting lesson in the evolution of cultural mores and standards over time. Lots of Mardi Gras fun! The inside view of a most interesting event. History, alcohol, well-dressed ladies and gentlemen, incidents of the past remembered and others happening in front of you. Well worth the time of anyone who wishes to understand people better. The picture follows a season of celebration in a community steeped in tradition. Interwoven (mostly quite smoothly) is some context of these traditions told of as they would be to a youngster or trusted stranger, and implied by countless actions observed on the screen. Toward the end it becomes clear that things do change, however slowly. Segregation, for instance, even as ritual, will come to an end. If there is a lesson implied it may be to preserve what you love while remembering everything you can.