The Way I See It

Directed by Dawn Porter, The Way I See It explores the life and times of the Obama administration’s Chief Official White House Photographer, Pete Souza, with the movie also covering Souza’s early days as a shutterbug and his post-Obama exploits on the internet. Filmmaker Porter delivers a blisteringly-paced documentary that is, virtually from start to finish, nothing short of fascinating, as The Way I See It does a superb job of delving into the behind-the-scenes comings and goings of its subject – with Souza’s admittedly captivating career paving the way for a movie rife with interesting stories and anecdotes. There’s little doubt, certainly, that the picture is at its best when focused on Souza’s time in the White House, as Porter effectively peeks behind the curtain at the major events that came to define Barack Obama’s presidency – with, for example, the segment devoted to the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting packing a far more pronounced emotional impact than one might’ve anticipated. (And likewise, the exploration of that famous photo taken during Osama bin Laden’s assassination is downright spellbinding.) The film’s closing stretch, which shoehorns in references to 2020 events like COVID-19 and police protests, isn’t quite as compelling as everything preceding it, unfortunately, and yet this can’t quite diminish what is, for the most part, a stellar documentary about a thoroughly fascinating individual.

***1/2 out of ****