Well, that is certainly a valid personal taste! But, I think the term "manipulative" suggests Curtis is somehow being "dishonest" in his filmmaking. I find tha

Well, that is certainly a valid personal taste! But, I think the term "manipulative" suggests Curtis is somehow being "dishonest" in his filmmaking. I find that instead he's trying to craft an intellectual argument which may lead you to rethink things. In this film, the suggestion is that eroding at the nature of truth can lead to many in society feeling numb to current events, because they cannot trust what is "real" and what is "theater". The result might be fatalism/apathy. This is an interesting thought and, in my view, very relevant to our world.