Operation Avalanche (2016)

A mockumentary set during the space race of the late 1960s, it explores the idea of the U.S. faking the moon landing to get ahead of the Russians, a famous conspiracy theory explored in popular media (including in 2024). A pair of CIA agents infiltrate NASA to expose a possible mole and wind up participating in the subterfuge. What's really impressive about this film is how it recreates the era and blends the footage to look authentic. Matt Johnson already had some experience with this shooting style in The Dirties and Nirvanna the Band the Show, but this is a much more mature interpolation and the effect is seamless.

3 Kubrick techniques out of 5

THE DIRTIES [2013]

The Dirties is Canadian writer/director Matt Johnson's debut about a couple of high school students making a film about exacting deadly revenge on the students who torment them.  One is doing it for comedic venting while the other is constructing a blueprint for the real deal.
It starts out quite amusing but as it unfolds we realize we're slowly falling down a dark and disturbing hallway that seems to impossible to turn back from.  Its wicked sense of humor is what makes the film stand out from all the other films that attempt to touch base with similar subject matter.
It sounds risky to approach the material in such a style but when all is said and done I found it makes an impact with stark realism that is far more effective than anything before it.

4 end title sequences I could watch again and again out of 5