In Jackson Heights


In Jackson Heights is a 2015 documentary film about the community of Jackson Heights, Queens, New York City, directed by Frederick Wiseman. The film received widespread critical acclaim. In 2017, the film was considered the thirteenth "Best Film of the 21st Century So Far" by The New York Times.

Synopsis

The film documents events in Jackson Heights, including "a Muslim school, a Jewish center, a meeting of gay and transgender people, a City Council office and the local headquarters of Make [the Road New York], an activist organization dedicated to Latino Americans|Latino] and working-class people."

Release

Critical response

In Jackson Heights has received positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 95%, based on 39 reviews, with an average rating of 8.3/10. On Metacritic, the film has a score of 81 out of 100, based on 12 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
In a review for the Los Angeles Times, Michael Phillips wrote, "True to Wiseman's form, In Jackson Heights contains no on-screen identification of camera subjects, no voice-over narration and little in the way of overt polemics. By the end, you arrive at the essential paradox found in every Wiseman portrait: a clear sense of just how cloudy our world and our environments have become." For The New York Times, Manohla Dargis wrote, "Wiseman’s latest documentary is a movingly principled, political look at a dynamic neighborhood in which older waves of pioneers make room for new, amid creeping gentrification."
In Peter Bradshaw's review for The Guardian, he called it "an engaging portrait—film-making which works from the ground up."

Accolades

AwardSubjectNomineeResult
Chicago International Film FestivalBest DocumentaryFrederick WisemanNominated
Cinema Eye HonorsOutstanding Achievement in DirectionFrederick WisemanNominated
Indiewire Critics' PollBest Documentary3rd Place
International Cinephile Society AwardsBest Documentary2nd Place
International Online Cinema AwardsBest DocumentaryFrederick Wiseman3rd Place
BFI London Film FestivalDocumentary FilmFrederick WisemanNominated
2015 [National Society of Film Critics Awards|National Society of Film Critics Awards]Best Non-Fiction Film2nd Place
2015 [New York Film Critics Circle Awards|New York Film Critics Circle Awards]Best Non-Fiction FilmWon
Venice International Film FestivalQueer LionNominated
Village Voice Film PollBest Documentary4th Place

Box office

As of 4 November 2016, the film has grossed $121,094 at the box office.