Oh my goodness, I loved this movie. It was real. It was truth. And yes, it was operatic. This is not a typical documentary. It never preached to you, it simply showed you what happened after Katrina and leaves you to decide how to feel. Some people have a problem with movies like that because when people see a documentary, they expect to be schooled in something or preached to. This film doesn't do that.<br /><br />But it does show the whole spectrum of humanity. You have people doing really awful and really amazing things. As someone in animal rescue, this film hits the nail on the head. You see so many horrible and wonderful things and it is both that keep you going.<br /><br />Most documentaries that I see look like a 60 Minutes news special or A&E Biography: you see lots of shots of people walking up and away from things while a voice over tells you "the facts." An American Opera is more than facts; it's emotion playing out on screen. Most documentaries hit you in the heart; this film hits you in the gut. An American Opera is not for wimps.<br /><br />You will cry, laugh, get angry, cheer for the heroes, and most of all, you will leave the theater wanting to do something. This film activates you. You leave the film with a sense of personal pride, a self-call to action: one person cannot change the world by helping one animal, but they can change the world of that animal.<br /><br />A quick note on the soundtrack: the music in this film is in the vein of Garden State  very earthy, organic, and down-to-earth. My iTunes has grown a lot because of the undiscovered, amazing talent this film brings to the big screen.