This combination, a drastic transformation that feels organic rather than politically imposed, makes the rise of vice a useful point of entry into the debate about liberalism’s crisis. It’s a vivid illustration of why the critique of liberalism has power nowadays, even as it highlights the problems that beset its post-liberal challengers as well.

Just to be clear, Vice is Broke (now on Mubi) is not the definitive documentary about the rise and fall of internet-era media empire Vice, so you might want to adjust your expectations. Rather, it’s the Vice story told purely through the POV of a notable ...