Helvetica
Directed by Gary Hustwit
Distributed by Plexifilm

Initially I saw Helvetica as a sort of challenge, both for the filmmaker and the viewer. Making a feature length documentary about a font is no simple task, and sitting through one as an audience member could have proven to be even tougher. Luckily, director Gary Hustwit has risen to the challenge and succeeded in managing to create an interesting look at the world’s most printed typeface, all the while providing us with some pretty beautiful images.

Oddly enough, I went in to this film confident that the subject matter would hold up. I’ll admit that I’m a bit of a font junkie myself, having spent some serious time on the internet searching for free fonts. I pay particular attention to the use of fonts in films. Whether it be John Carpenter’s use of Albertus, or Stanely Kubrick’s use of Futura (now handed down to Wes Anderson), fonts can play a large role in establishing the overall tone of a film. After all, in most cases it’s the first thing we see on screen. Of course, it only makes sense that the film ‘Helvetica’ would use the title’s famous font for its opening credits.

Throughout the film we’re introduced to a number of graphic designers and type designers who have varying degrees of notoriety in the typography world. We’re even introduced to the man who created Verdana! A brief history lesson on the creation of the type face (Originally titled Neue Haas Grotesk and later changed to Helvetica, the Latin for Switzerland) traces its roots back to the Haas Type Foundry, at which graphic designer Max Miedinger is said to have created the now infamous sans serif typeface. However, the film provides us with a different side of the story as Alfred Hoffman, former director of the Haas Type Foundry, claims that his father, Edward Hoffman, played a large role in its creation. While watching these folks talk about helvetica as art, you can’t help but look at things in a completely different light. Suddenly city buses become moving art displays. Subway stations begin to resemble bizarre art exhibits, differing only in the patrons apathetic indifference towards the works on display.

The passion demonstrated here was admittedly a bit of a shocker. These people love fonts! Having said that, not all of them love helvetica. The film stays pretty unbiased in its presentation, treading the neutral line between helvetica haters and helvetica lovers, but overall it seems that the font is generally praised for its neutrality and simple nature. Something that could never be improved upon. However, others feel that it has run its course and simply doesn’t spark any creativity or passion. One woman goes so far as to say that the Helvetica font is representative of the Viet Nam war. That’s some pretty heavy stuff. I’ll never look at the American Airlines logo the same way again.

Helvetica is definitely a wonderfully refreshing form of storytelling, and yet another example of a filmmaker pushing the boundaries of tradition documentary film making towards something exciting and original. There are no stories too small for this medium, as long as there’s passion behind it all.