"Wiseman has somehow gained permission to film various deputies at work in the main government building of the state and that's exactly what we get to see."

Idaho wasnt the first choice for Mr. Wiseman, but that state granted him permission to apply its legislative process for his work. Prior to commencing, Wiseman, who holds a law degree, entered a legal contract with the institution, which is a norm for him. 

"But what was realy new to me, was to see such an active involvement in democratic culture and values, something one might only dream about here in Germany."

Could you expand on this a bit?

"The virtue of Wiseman's direction lies in his ability to show us the conflicts and discrepancies inherent in the system and its people without compromising anyone or anything and especially not his art."

Wiseman's isn't what you would call an "expos" filmmaker. He's certainly not Michael Moore. He feels no need to manipulate his art in order to access the moviegoing audience. "I think [Moore is] an entertainer. I dont think hes interested in complexity," Wiseman has said. "I dont see any particular filmmaking skills, and I think his point of view is extremely simplistic and self-serving." Wiseman, on the other hand, likes to expose the grey areas, the ambiguities that exist within an individual or the institution he's part of.

"Personally I found it to be completely engaging and could have immediately taken another four hours."

Me, too. And that's because the 217 minutes felt more like 117. The only other new film I could say the same about is Lady Chatterley.

"On funny moment comes when you find yourself listening to a lengthy discussion, at the end of which you still don't really know what it was actually about. My guess was same sex marriage, but my fellow viewers had different interpretations to offer."

I don't recall that particular discussion. But one which was significant since it's also been dealt with in New York recently had to do with granting a special driver's licence to undocumented workers. They are certainly out there on the roads, and the state could've benefitted from making such a committment, but the governor changed his tune once his approval ratings started to sink and the opposition started to get nasty. 

"First of all I had the feeling of seeing a master at work, a director who knows exatly what he is doing. Out of this there developed a feeling that you were really with the director and his subject all of the time, and the intimacy created between the spectator and the procedure gave me the feeling I had participated in the events on screen."

While Wiseman is considered a master of cinma vrit, and rightfully so, he prefers the term "reality fiction." He's well-aware of his own process which conjures up an allegorical narrative about the subject and its condition.

"[Wiseman] is for modern US cinema what John Ford was for the classical era: the most ceaseless chronicler of the way society works, never neglecting the human efforts made to keep it running, yet ever so acutely aware of the weariness and contradictions that inevitably arise along the way" (Olaf Mller).