Alex Gibney’s documentary “Musk” opens on Friday, October 9, in New York and Los Angeles, with a wider release to follow, TheWrap reported. It runs 225 minutes, including a 10-minute intermission. Musk did not take part. The film uses a computer-generated Musk avatar built from his past public quotes.
What critics say
Early scores are strong. Rotten Tomatoes lists 29 critic reviews, all positive, and Metacritic shows 76 from 18 reviews. Those numbers will move, and a positive score means critics liked the film, not that it flatters Musk. NPR’s review says the film’s thesis is that Musk is “a confidence man who will deceive, gaslight and fabricate to get what he wants.” NPR also calls it comprehensive but light on new information. Little White Lies, in a Venice review, calls it “brash and damning even with a flimsy central gimmick.” Time Out gave it four stars out of five. Metacritic’s listing shows IGN scored it 60 out of 100.
What Musk said
After the Venice premiere, Musk called the film a hit piece that “makes the fatal sin of being boring for 4 hours,” Variety reported, which said it is unclear whether he has seen it. His lawyer, Alex Spiro, wrote to the film’s producer that “This project did not begin as an inquiry. It began with a conclusion,” according to TheWrap. The letter says Musk’s team asked several times to give his side and was refused. The film says it was denied a direct interview.
Our take: in the reviews we read, the main complaints are that little is new and that some stylistic choices distract. NPR makes the novelty point, and Metacritic’s listing shows IGN says the controversies are largely known. Musk calls the film boring, yet Little White Lies credits the editing with making nearly four hours move. His lawyer disputes the film’s fact-checking, per NPR. Scores will change as more reviews arrive and the film expands. Our earlier report covers one of the people the film features.
