Metacritic reviews

Doug Nichol’s documentary California Typewriter is a rich, thoughtful, meticulously crafted tapestry about the evolution of the beloved writing machine for purists, history buffs, collectors and others fighting to preserve or re-embrace analog life.

People who love typewriters--you know who you are--shouldn't tap the space bar once, let alone twice, before rushing to see Doug Nichol's agile, deeply affectionate documentary California Typewriter. But anyone who loves machines, poetry or, better yet, the poetry of machines should see it too.

The overlong but charming documentary California Typewriter is an ode to the iconic writing instrument. I have to say I feel kind of guilty celebrating it on my word processor.

Nichol has created a loving valentine to all the iconoclasts who resist what the rest of the world defines as progress.

The best thing is that Nichol doesn’t adopt a luddite stance. He doesn’t try to impart the evils of technology, at least not much. (Some people in the film lean that way.) He’s more inclined to chronicle the joys of a fading delight, one click-clack at a time.

California Typewriter is a most engaging documentary about the latest wrinkle in the Return of Analog.

It’s a compelling look at a valuable contraption that’s slipping through our grasp, and will send many viewers to flea markets and eBay for one of their own.

This quirky, obsessive documentary is about so much more than broken keys and busted type wheels. It’s really about how we create art.

A lively and appealing analog-nostalgia documentary.

Although many of its subjects are endearing characters, the film’s scattered approach undermines its point about the simple endurance of an artifact.