Directed by Nathan Price

There is this piece of art by David Shrigley I have always appreciated. Shrigley depicts a childishly drawn lemon and inscribes in a juvenile hand, the words ‘when life gives you a lemon, you must eat the lemon, all of it including the skin’.

This pretty much sums up the ethos of Mark Manson, whose writing is refreshingly simple, irreverent and full of humour. After selling more than 15 million copies of his debut book, ‘The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck’, Manson has kindly preserved his work in film, for all of us too lazy to read.

I had no idea what to expect, I wasn’t sure how this book would translate to film. But it quickly became apparent that I had ordered a cocktail of memes, viral videos (queue Disappointment Panda) and synchronise swimming. For a New Zealand film, made at the height of the pandemic, Nathan Price managed to bring the bang. The film was slickly edited but somehow retained a 90s pastiche, like something you would have seen on MTV…back in the day.

Manson made for an engaging interview subject, full of humour and ‘no frills’ attitude, which is fortunate as the film centres solely on him.  I did wonder if having supporting interview subjects may have reduced the light-hearted lecturing on ‘how we need to stop giving sh*ts about sh*t that doesn’t matter’ (oh, there’s a lot of swearing, so if that’s not for you – maybe give this one a miss).

Clearly timed to coincide with those pesky New Years’ resolutions, go check it out if you’re looking to give less #@%!s!

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a #@%! is available on digital from January 11th, 2023.

Moviedoc thanks Universal Pictures Content Group and Nixco for providing a screener link to watch and review this film.

Review by Jemma for Moviedoc

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