(Audience of One opens at Anthology Film Archives on Friday, May 8th, for a limited theatrical run. Even better than that, it’s already available on DVD through Indiepix. Buy it there, or at Amazon.)

Early 21st century America. A powerful, charismatic white man woos a population with his faith-based agenda. Pretty soon he is overseas, standing defiantly in a land he doesn’t even somewhat vaguely understand, speaking proudly about a victory that hasn’t actually occurred. And still, his followers support him. If you think this is referring to President George W. Bush and his incomprehensibly misguided “mission accomplished!” speech, you’re right. But in this case, I’m referring to the subject of Michael Jacobs’ Audience of One, Pastor Richard Gazowsky. Head of San Francisco’s Voice of Pentecost Church, Gazowsky is heaven-bent on making the most epic motion picture ever made. There’s only one slight problem. Well, two, actually: 1) he doesn’t have any money; and 2) he has no idea what he’s doing.

Audience of One is a perfect example of how certain documentaries can make the most outlandish narrative films seem utterly tame and plausible. If Hollywood, or even Indieville, got their hands on this particular story and made the most matter-of-fact, literal adaptation possible, viewers wouldn’t get very far before their suspension-of-disbelief would snap in half and they’d find it impossible to take the story even somewhat seriously. But here we are in the real world, watching real people in situations so head-spinning that the reality of it only contributes to our bafflement.

That isn’t to say that Jacobs doesn’t show a commendable measure of restraint when filming his subjects, members of Gazowsky’s church (and some readers of Craigslist) who band together to help Gazowsky realize his dream, manifested in the WYSIWYG Filmworks banner. Of course, some viewers and critics will see this portrait as condescending and insensitive, but if one really thinks about the situation at hand, the fact remains: how could Jacobs not convey a sense of hilarious absurdity? In a recent conversation, he revealed that Audience of One has become mandatory viewing for anyone wanting to join the WYSIWYG Filmworks team. Not only does this support the argument that he has made the most honest film possible, it also speaks to Gazowsky and his congregation’s supreme disconnection/delusion. Audience of One both criticizes and celebrates their bizarre folly.

Gazowsky reportedly didn’t see his first movie until he was forty years old, and it’s clear that this sparked an obsession within him. One day, God spoke to him and told him that he could best spread his word through the silver screen. Specifically, a big budget, 70mm sci-fi epic adventure called Gravity: The Shadow of Joseph, which he describes as “Star Wars meets The Ten Commandments” (but feels more like a small-town cable access production of Star Trek). With unwavering, absolute confidence, Gazowsky assures his staffers and congregation that German investors have committed millions of dollars to the cause (strangely, every time he speaks to someone new about it the amount increases by five or ten million dollars). To begin with, the production is headed to rural Italy, where Gazowsky plans to shoot the bulk of his cinema-reinventing adventure.

Hmm. Even if one has never worked in film production before, it’s hard not to think that this Italy trip doesn’t seem like the sturdiest idea. Costumes haven’t been made, sets haven’t been designed, actors haven’t learned their lines, and most of the vital crew roles—aside from a professional, and increasingly frustrated, European cinematographer—are either Gazowky’s daughters or random members of the congregation. No, this doesn’t seem like a very good idea at all.

It isn’t. A week or so later, Gazowsky and his team are back in San Francisco regrouping, without any footage to show for their efforts. But that doesn’t stop him from pressing on. Yet eventually, unpaid bills and broken promises begin to crack Gazowsky’s determined façade. With accruing force, the deceit threatens to finally catch up with him. Jacobs ends the film on a far more unsettling note; instead of wrapping things up tidily, we instead watch Gazowsky collapse in prayer with even more reckless fervor. For this man, there is no returning to reality. There is only the mercy of prayer.

What makes Audience of One so exceptional is how it can be interpreted in so many different ways. It is a haunting commentary on religious delusion, it is a piercing metaphor for the Bush/Cheney administration’s stubbornness, it is a hilarious satire of filmmaking, yet perhaps most importantly, and strangely, it is a testament to faith and determination in the face of the most insurmountable odds. Gazowsky may be an insane shyster, but he sure seems to mean it. It almost makes his journey seem admirable.

— Michael Tully

Tags: 21st Century, America, Cheney, faith-based, filmmaking, George W. Bush, Gravity: The Shadow of Joseph, Michael Jacobs, Michael Tully, Pastor Richard Gazowsky, religious fervor, San Francisco, Star Trek, Star Wars, The Ten Commandments, Voice of Pentecost Church, WYSIWYG Filmworks