Better suited for an episode of American Experience than theatrical release, it's irritating that The Loving Story is on the Oscar documentary shortlist alongside so many films that make bold choices and give so much more profundity to the human stories they tell. There's no a word said here that couldn't be gathered from a Wikipedia article on the Loving case. For someone familiar with the case and its historical implication, there's absolutely nothing new brought to the table. The talking heads with the Lovings' daughter and their former lawyers offer no context.
Above all, the footage that was selected to accompany the sound bites and archival interviews is outright dull. The very few choices Buirski does make, like showing the Lovings sitting together on their porch smiling back in the 1960s while the tapes of the Supreme Court arguments are played, are just baffling. Even if this were some hour-long TV documentary, I don't think it would be accomplished in any sense.
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