I've only made it through about 90 minutes of "State Legislature," the 3 1/2-hour epic on the Idaho Legislature which appeared on Public Television Wednesday night. The rest sits patiently on my DVR, embedded amidst some "Forensic Files" and the kids' "Simpsons." I gotta say — with no disrespect to our Dan Popkey, who wrote glowingly about the film Sunday — I didn't get hooked. I found it plodding at times, and I'm a card-carrying policy wonk. I suspect it was really confusing to anyone who wasn't there. You can fit what I know about cinema verite into a shot glass, with ample room for the booze, but without any kind of subtitles, I feel sorry for any outsider trying to tell the players without a scorecard -- Opinion Editor Kevin Richert/Idaho Statesman.

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Dan Popkey's "Viewers' Guide to 'State Legislature" here

Question: Do you plan to see "State Legislature," a 3 1/2-hour documentary by Frederick Wiseman on the 2004 Idaho Legislature?

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