Taxidermy: The Art of Imitating Life (1998) User Reviews

A great documentary

[hitty · 10/10 · 11 July 1999]

I saw this film in Sundance and enjoyed it tremendously. It is very short, and my husband wasn't thrilled by it. But my husband is a complete idiot. If only everybody could see this documentary... It is about the shells and coverings and fronts that people construct and hide behind every day.

No, I think the film is about skinning animals and doing taxidermy!

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 27 February 2008]

I was a bit reticent to review this brief documentary because I didn't find it all that interesting. You see some taxidermists working--taking a skinned deer and eventually making a mount for the wall using a mold on top of which the skin was secured. I already had a general idea how it was all done, so there were no major surprises. The film also wasn't particularly gross nor was it all that interesting. I really think interviewing the taxidermist would have helped--instead it's practically without words--just a couple of guys going about their job. Competent but not all that enlightening or compelling.

Why I did decide to review the film was because of the review I read on IMDb when it talked about how the film is really about "...the shells and coverings and fronts that people construct and hide behind every day". No, I beg to differ. I really think the film IS about guys who stuff animals so that people can stick these dead animal trophies on the wall! No hidden or deep meaning--just some guys doing a dirty but artistic job and I doubt if the taxidermists themselves would ascribe any deeper symbolism or meaning.