Unknown White Male | DVD Review

Imagine waking up on a New York Subway car without the faintest memory of how you got there. You stare out at the apartment blocks that line Coney Island and then you realize that you don’t even know your name or what city you’re in. No need to imagine, this is the true-life story of Doug Bruce, a successful British businessman who one day lost the entire memory of his life. Unknown White Male is a fascinating look at how Doug has dealt with the difficulty of amnesia and learned to re-explore life.

This documentary is directed and shot by Rupert Murray, a long time friend of Doug’s who was granted all access. The film is a mix of Doug’s personal videotape, footage shot by Rupert, and plenty of doctor interviews. As an old friend, Rupert is directly implicated in the unfolding events, and as the film progresses it acquires a personal documentary feel. Although the extensive doctor interviews lead to no fruition and take up too much screen time, the film is saved by its unique exploration of memory and identity. Watching Doug learn to deal with the realities of his new life blows every preconceived notion of amnesia out of the water. Rather than mourning his loss, he chooses to continue life and explore every event with a childlike freshness. Although more questions are left unanswered at the end of the film, it still feels like a satisfying, real life exploration into the mind of lost man.

On an interesting side note, Unknown White Male has come under intense scrutiny by many prominent filmmakers who have questioned the legitimacy of Bruce’s claims. While amnesia is common in certain cases, Bruce’s case trumped every doctor because there was no discernable cause. Furthermore, the nature of his amnesia – a complete wiping of all long and short-term memory – is extremely rare even in the most severe head trauma cases. Such peculiarities led Michel Gondry to suggest that perhaps Bruce had simply fashioned a story out of the ideas presented in his, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. I for one am a believer. There is a touching moment when Bruce was filmed in hospital before his true identity was discovered. From the look in his eyes and the sheer pain in his voice, his distress is absolutely undeniable. Even the best actor could never achieve such an authenticity. Perhaps we will never know what happened to Bruce and why it happened, but at least this film is a fascinating exploration into human nature, identity, and memory.

The dvd features on this disk are plentiful, including a making of featurette, a follow-up, a director Q&A, and extended scenes. And while all are definitely interesting, it feels as if most are simply redundant. This is a documentary, so a making of featurette simply does not have the same appeal as a narrative film. Furthermore, the extended scenes, interviews, and follow-up stuff feel like they are outtakes that simply didn’t make the film’s final cut. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the filmmaker’s effort to indulge the audience. The extras certainly don’t harm the disk and will be of interest to those who felt the film could have lasted a little longer.

Unknown White Male is a unique and fascinating look at the reality of amnesia. It pushes us to question our own minds and the nature of the whole world around us. It is certainly worth a watch.

Movie rating – 3.5

Disc Rating – 2.5