Tabloid

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Tabloid

R,

2011,

1h 28m,

Documentary

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Watchlist

91%

117 Reviews

Tomatometer

72%

10,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

91%

Tomatometer

117 Reviews

72%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

One of America's top documentary filmmakers, Errol Morris, turns his attention to the outrageous and nearly unbelievable story of Joyce McKinney. She's a former Miss Wyoming beauty queen who gained a great deal of notoriety after being accused of kidnapping a young Mormon missionary, restraining him in chains and raping him in England in 1977. The unbalanced McKinney is interviewed extensively, particularly about her ambition to write a memoir telling her side of the tale.

Critics Consensus

It's far from his most thought-provoking work, but Tabloid finds Errol Morris as smart, spirited, and engaging as ever.

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William Goss

Film.com

Nov 18, 2011

Operates as both an examination of the dominating media mentality at the time and an embodiment of it, no less keen on delving into the juicy details now as tabloid rags were then.

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Derek Malcolm

London Evening Standard

Nov 11, 2011

3/5

Morris suggests that you can sometimes find profundity in triviality - and though Joyce condemns herself out of her own mouth, it is always possible to feel sorry for a woman whose obsession has so totally ruled her life.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

Nov 10, 2011

4/5

A vivid picture of the way we lived then.

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Apr 4, 2022

4/4

While the film contains elements that prove sleazy, at times incredibly funny, but also carry an unquestionable sadness, Morris' camera remains trained on his interview subjects, and he does not judge.

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Graeme Tuckett

The Post NZ

Mar 22, 2021

Lays out one of the most bizarre, compelling and jaw-dropping true crime stories you will ever run into.

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Dustin Chang

Floating World

Mar 21, 2021

In the age of Newscorp scandal and sensationalized murder trials, Joyce McKinney story seems fun and innocent. Morris is on top of his game and has never been any more entertaining than this.

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Poe M

Jan 25, 2019

While the film borders sometimes on the sensationalism that it criticizes (even visibly delighting in how bizarre this whole story is), Morris finds a perfect anchor for it in the ludicrous way the tabloid media exploit anything that is crazy enough to attract readers.

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Hagrid R

Nov 29, 2018

It gives equal treatment to all perspectives on the incident that it's about but this is not as good as Errol Morris usually is.

Hagrid S

Sep 29, 2017

Cool story of the effect of being in a cult (mormons) and media sensationalism/cooperation with the media machine in the midst of a "scandal." This wouldn't be much of a story now-a-days.

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Han M

Sep 28, 2017

Minor entry in the Errol Morris canon doesn't have artistic flair of his past documentaries, but it sure tells a heck of an entertaining tale.

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Errol Morris

Director

Joyce McKinney

Self

Troy Williams

Self

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Synopsis

One of America's top documentary filmmakers, Errol Morris, turns his attention to the outrageous and nearly unbelievable story of Joyce McKinney. She's a former Miss Wyoming beauty queen who gained a great deal of notoriety after being accused of kidnapping a young Mormon missionary, restraining him in chains and raping him in England in 1977. The unbalanced McKinney is interviewed extensively, particularly about her ambition to write a memoir telling her side of the tale.

Director: Errol Morris
Producer: Julie Ahlberg, Mark Lipson
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: Huber Bros. Productions
Rating: R (Sexual Content|Nudity)
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 15, 2011, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 1, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $640.5K
Runtime: 1h 28m

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