“Lost in London” is a beautifully shot film by Michael Smith and Wojciech Duczmal. The duo who have collaborated on many documentaries for the BBC over the years, teamed up this time to create a lyrical essay-film, or documentary-poem.
Inspired by Baudelaire’s idea of the flâneur, the stroller whose epiphany is the shifting urban spectacle, the film is about one individual’s personal response to the unique spirit that charges the city he inhabits – in this case, Michael’s response to the inner East End, where he has lived for many years.
It’s a film about the deep, complex, bitter-sweet romance between an individual and his city. Like many long-term love affairs, it’s a dysfunctional one, but nevertheless, this film is a love story between a person and a place.