Based on the titular bestseller by Stephen J. Dubner and Steven D. Levitt, Freakonomics serves up an anthology of documentary shorts that take a skewered approach to economics, relying on humor and provocation to pique the interest of viewers who would ordinarily steer clear of the subject. Seth Gordon provides narration linking segments featuring Dubner and Levitt, whose lighthearted observations and personal recollections fall flat, as does the opening piece, “A Roshanda by Any Other Name,” in which Morgan Spurlock asks whether the names parents give their children have a positive or negative impact on future success. Very different is Alex Gibney's “Pure Corruption,” an exposé of cheating in the purportedly pure sport of sumo wrestling that could be a network news magazine report were it not for the director's typically surrealistic style. Eugene Jarecki employs animation for “It's Not Always a Wonderful Life,” a droll exposition of Levitt's controversial thesis that the drop in the crime rate during the 1990s was due to Roe v. Wade, which prevented the birth of unwanted babies who might have grown up to become criminals. The last entry—“Can a Ninth Grader Be Bribed to Succeed?”—is a fairly conventional piece by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady on incentives, based on a University of Chicago study that attempts to gauge whether underperforming students can be enticed to improve their grades with promises of cash payments. Despite some interesting observations, this is an uneven adaptation, overall. An optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include two audio commentaries (the first with producers Chad Troutwine, Chris Romano, and Dan O'Meara; the second, offering an option to watch each of the film's segments with commentary by that specific director), additional interviews with authors Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner (38 min.), an HDNet production segment (5 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for an uneven documentary.] (F. Swietek)
Freakonomics
Magnolia, 93 min., PG-13, DVD: $26.99, Blu-ray: $29.99, Jan. 18 Volume 26, Issue 2
Freakonomics
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