Frederick Wiseman’s City Hall is an absolute masterpiece of non-fiction filmmaking. After four years of living through the Trump administration (and writing review this from a region whose local government is frequently more beholden to corporate and business interests than its residents), there is something so beautiful about watching four and a half hours of civil servants doing all they can to make their city a better and more just and more equitable place. Wiseman alternates footage of Boston city council meetings, community gatherings, and briefings by city task forces with smaller sequences showing sanitation workers, health inspectors, courthouse marriages, and even traffic hearings. All of this is broken up by transition shots taken around Boston, reminding us of the city’s rich history and heritage, as well as its present. Taken together, Wiseman has crafted a comprehensive portrait of local government – the ways that it touches so many parts of our day-to-day lives, as well as the ways that having a functioning government makes our lives better. It’s an extremely compelling film, and even with the long running time, it flies by. And in this time of cynicism and ugly political opportunism, it’s an extremely hopeful film. When we come together and elect public servants who care about the community, we can see real change happen.