If you're reading this review, you should already know Helvetica - if not by name, then definitely by appearance. It is perhaps the most popular typeface of the last half a century, and has never gone out of style. But before we get into the film itself, a little background…
Helvetica is a typeface that was designed over 50 years ago, in 1957, by the type designer Max Meidinger. In the late fifties, there was a revival of older sans-serif typefaces like Akzidenz Grotesk (still used today) and Meidinger was commissioned by the Haas Type Foundary, in Switzerland, to design a new sans serif font in this style. He used Akzidenz Grotesk as a basis for his new font - Helvetica (a name derived from Helvetia, the Latin name for Switzerland). The rest, as they say, is history.
In the movie Helvetica, Gary Hustwit (Director/Producer, maker of Objectified ) takes us on a journey through the life of the infamous font, from its early days through to modern times. Featuring candid interviews with some of the best graphic designers and typographers in the industry, it does an excellent job of showing the many, many used for the typeface over the past half-century. What's more, it also proves quite conclusively that Helvetica is one of the most successful fonts ever designed, loved by many and hated by a chosen few.
While it is a movie that is deeply into the realm of design and typography, there is something here for everyone, not just those in those specific fields. It's amazing to see how much Helvetica has influenced so much around us, from product packaging and signage to posters, advertising campaigns and book jackets.
Interviewees in Helvetica include Erik Spiekermann, Matthew Carter, Massimo Vignelli, Wim Crouwel, Hermann Zapf, Neville Brody, Stefan Sagmeister, Michael Bierut, David Carson, Paula Scher, Jonathan Hoefler, Tobias Frere-Jones, Experimental Jetset, Michael C. Place, Norm, Alfred Hoffmann, Mike Parker, Bruno Steinert, Otmar Hoefer, Leslie Savan, Rick Poynor, and Lars Müller.
Shot in high-definition on location in the United States, England, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, France and Belgium, the documentary had its world premiere at the South by Southwest Film Festival in March 2007.
Helvetica was a critical success, nominated for a 2008 Independent Spirit Award in the "Truer Than Fiction" category, and shortlisted for the Design Museum London's "Designs of the Year" Award. Watch it. And then watch it again.
