I really enjoyed reading the reviews that Buñuel wrote and his perspective on the comic genre and its place in film. Since it seems that many modern directors view the critic as an antagonist to the artist, it’s interesting to see that Buñuel, like many of his French New Wave contemporaries, valued the role of the critic in influencing the art form and pushing it into new directions. On the other hand, he calls some of them idiots for not recognizing the work of Buster Keaton as both technically impressive and on par with the dramatic films of the time. Comedy is in many ways a form of surrealism more palatable to the general audience, so his defense of Keaton’s technical mastery could also be seen as a defense of his own work. In the documentary, one thing that stood out was Buñuel’s work spanning multiple countries, those being France, Mexico, and Spain. Not only do we get a glimpse of how his style and subjects evolved through the different language barriers, but his encounters with other great artists in those parts of the world help evoke the image of a man with many inspirations. I also enjoyed the commentary from his son, which offered a very deep, first-hand account into Buñuel’s personal family life. I thought the decision to introduce many of the themes of Buñuel’s work before actually viewing his films was interesting too since usually, they’re presented in the reverse order, but both his writings and the documentary made me more excited to see his work on screen.