Here's Looking at You!

Here's Looking at You! takes a refreshingly open-minded look at various forms of "body art," but while there's plenty to like in its celebration of human diversity and freedom of personal expression, the film only manages to scratch the surface of its fascinating subject. The general idea here is to show, through a variety of personal stories, how people embrace their uniqueness through hair styles, makeup, tattoos, piercings, jewelry, fingernails, scarification, cosmetic surgery, cutting, and even using red-hot branding tools on their skin! Not surprisingly, New York City is the locale for many of the stories related here, and the film's multiethnic characters are lively and colorful (though seeing how the techniques are applied may cause some queasiness in viewers). Unfortunately, what's lacking here is any deeper sociological or historical context behind the various modes of body-art expression. It's as if the filmmakers were so enamored of contemporary show-and-tell that they didn't bother to do any supplemental homework on the viewer's behalf. The result is a vibrant visual rainbow of humanity that leaves many questions unanswered. Optional. Aud: C, P. (J. Shannon)