Barbie
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Post by Barbie on Apr 4, 2021 2:21:56 GMT
The Family on Netflix. I think the choice to re-enact some of the scenes from Sharlet's book was kinda distracting but I get why it was done. The subject matter is very interesting, but the documentary wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. It also became kinda dumb when it implied that Russia was somehow using the National Prayer Breakfast to mess with America. Sorry I'm not buying into that anti-Russia nonsense. It's like a liberal version of QAnon
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Barbie
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Post by Barbie on Apr 4, 2021 2:24:37 GMT
The Ripper - Netflix miniseries
A very ambitious true crime documentary that attempts at telling the story of an incredibly challenging criminal case and of a completely botched police investigation in a profoundly changing society, without putting the murderer at the center of the story. It doesn't quite get there, imo. It is very effective in the retelling of how the social landscape was changing at the time, of how women (some of them interviewed here) felt more empowered and stood their ground amidst these shocking murders, of how de-industrialization of West Yorkshire gave the killer fertile ground for what he did. What I think it really lacks is a clearer portrait of the killer. I get that they didn't want him to be the main focus, but we basically don't know anything about him, and while it is obvious that he was a byproduct of a patriarchal, misogynistic society, that is a connection that the viewer makes, not something that is clearly depicted in the series. I'm kind of surprised that the makers didn't go there, because it would have made the whole doc much more effective, and it would have only been one more episode, probably, but alas, it is what it is. It is still worth a watch.
Agree with you! Honestly, I reject the idea that we should ignore the killer. I understand the logic behind it, but I think it's important for us as a society to understand what creates heinous killers like that. We deserve to know the motive so that we can learn and prevent future killers from being created. I think we can focus on the impact on victims while also finding out more about the killer.
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Barbie
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Post by Barbie on Apr 4, 2021 2:27:09 GMT
The Preppy Murder: Death in Central Park - told in five parts - a totally panoramic and absorbing dive into the crime of the 80s. This sounds interesting. Where can I watch it?
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Post by cheesecake on Apr 4, 2021 2:39:16 GMT
The Last Blockbuster (2020). Enjoyable and has some nice moments, but it was kind of slight and not all the narration worked.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2021 14:09:52 GMT
The Preppy Murder: Death in Central Park - told in five parts - a totally panoramic and absorbing dive into the crime of the 80s. This sounds interesting. Where can I watch it? Hey Barbie! I watched it with an Amazon Prime add-on - I can't remember which one off the top of my head - but if you search the documentary title, it should come up.
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Post by isabelaolive on Apr 5, 2021 21:32:20 GMT
Grizzly Man (2005) - 3/5
I decided to watch this documentary because it is always recommended to me by other people who are interested in documentaries and obviously also because it is directed by Herzog. And honestly, I'm not sure what to think about. Unlike many, I am not very familiar with Herzog's filmography. So far the only films I've seen of him have been 'Grizzly Man' and 'Cave of forgotten dreams', both documentaries, so I don't have an opinion on his directing style. But based on these two documentaries that I have seen so far, at least as a nonfiction director, he is no big deal. I don't really like the artifice he uses in his films and the repetitive narration ... For example, Wim Wenders is another director who, like Hezorg, directs documentaries and despite having seen few movies from his filmography, having seen Pina and Salt of the Earth I already know that he is an excellent director. Few directors direct documentaries at this level. Herzog, on the other hand, is average at most.
Now talking about the documentary itself, I was a little stunned at the end. It is not necessarily a heavy documentary, I have seen 'worse' things, but I was intrigued by the fact that a man like Thimothy Treadwell lived for more than a decade as an ecological activist and protector of grizzly bears. From the documentary and based on what I read about him on the Internet, it was clear that he suffered from some kind of mental or emotional problem (or both). At the end of the documentary there was a bitter taste in my mouth, I kinda don't know what to say ...
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avnermoriarti
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Friends say I’ve changed. They’re right.
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Post by avnermoriarti on Apr 7, 2021 6:59:31 GMT
Collective.2nd watch. Wonderful. This is a great example that shows that democracy (s) is/are only at the service of power. And I didn't even mention my country...
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erickeitel
Junior Member
The beauty of life is in small details, not in big events.
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Post by erickeitel on Jun 20, 2021 16:20:39 GMT
Watched virtually via the Provincetown Film Festival (still available until June 26 if you're in the US). It's hard to follow a documentary as powerful and innovative as Tower, and knowing that this is not an animation/doc hybrid but a traditional interview/archive footage approach is a giveaway that it won't be as strong. Still, it's an interesting subject about a wealthy heir who, under the influence of LSD, decided to give his wealth away and asked people to write letters asking him for money. (It goes without saying that it didn't quite work out.) 7/10
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Post by Mattsby on Jun 28, 2021 2:33:34 GMT
Salt for Svanetia (1930) After working under Kuleshov a bit, Mikhail Kalatozov went on and made this stylized little documentary, only 54m, about the poetic toils of a mountainside village. Already he has an eye for expressive images, between mystifying open spaces and the close-up. This wants to devastate you and pretty much succeeds but there is some surprising humor too.
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Post by Mattsby on Jul 24, 2021 2:50:32 GMT
Movies Are My Life: A Profile on Martin Scorsese (1978) Very obscure 60m British doc filmed in the summer of 1977 that screened as the b-side after American Boy at the NYFF but idk if it's been released or available since? Well people, it's on YouTube now! Lotta big names interviewed. I think my fav was Robbie Robertson who has some great witty remarks.... but there's also a crucial line from Cassavetes, he says something like: Other people have other gods but Scorsese's was always the movies. This corresponds with the opening line and the ending image, in a beautiful way. It's fascinating to view the early-career admiration for Scorsese as, already, an energetic master of his craft. Great moment: About halfway thru the doc there's an unplanned knock at the door (Who's That wink?), and Scorsese says "This could be interesting" giving a little twirl of the finger to suggest: Keep rolling.
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Post by ingmarhepburn on Jul 24, 2021 23:23:17 GMT
Searching for Ingmar Bergman (2018)
German filmmaker Margarethe von Trotta visits Bergman's Sweden, going to the places where he lived, where he shot some of his most famous films, and some of the places where he worked as a stage director. She has interesting conversations with some of the actors who worked with him (including Liv Ullmann and Gunnel Lindblom), and even some of his children (her interview to Daniel is especially interesting), to know more about Bergman himself and also to reflect on some of his films and recurring themes. This made for an interesting and enjoyable watch. I definitely recommend it, especially to Bergman's fans.
Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind (2020)
Natalie Wood's daughter Natasha guides us into a very intimate look on her mother's life and career. This is surprisingly very detailed, which will certainly please her fans. It covers Natalie Wood's whole life and career, from her humble origins to her first audition, her fist roles as a child actress, her biggest triumphs, and it also inevitably takes some time to focus on her unexpected and mysterious death. It features interviews and contributions from her two husbands and some of her colleagues, friends (Robert Redford, Mia Farrow, etc.) and family members; lots of sketches from her TV interviews; and lots of photos and footage. I enjoyed it and learned lots of new things about her.
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Post by MsMovieStar on Aug 6, 2021 5:43:58 GMT
Oh honeys, Roadrunner - A Film about Anthony Bourdain (2021) - a loving tribute to the late, charismatic, much loved, food traveller and writer Tony Bourdain (or some might say a cash-in by CNN who produced this movie, as well as his shows). I couldn't help feeling that here was a portrait of a man desperately trying to make the right choices (he was a former heroin addict) but ultimately making the wrong choice... which then proved fatal. His death is too recent and hangs over this documentary like a dark cloud despite the fact that for many people Bourdain was seen as someone who was vital and with an enormous sense of the celebration of life: So many wonderful things to eat; so many wonderful places to see; so many adventures to have. This didn't come across here for me as I think the underlying message here is, here is somebody who was born to self-destruct (think Kurt Cobain, Amy Winehouse, and those who we always knew would end badly). Yes, the Asia incident (the place & the person) is mentioned her, but everyone is very careful not to dwell on it or discuss it. Enigmatic. 8/10
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Barbie
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Post by Barbie on Aug 9, 2021 5:10:40 GMT
The Amanda Knox one on Netflix. It was alright, wish it was longer though. I do believe she’s innocent, and the doc is proof that it’s not just the US justice system that is rotten with bad cops and prosecutors. Also, fuck the media. It’s quite disgusting how they covered the trial
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Post by Mattsby on Aug 22, 2021 21:54:12 GMT
Kaddu Beykat / Letter from My Village (1976) "First feature film made by a sub-Saharan African woman." An interesting look at the African pace of life and local ritual. It's kinda like Herzog's Herdsmen of the Sun (1989) but closer to the heart bc the director Safi Faye is documenting her family, her village. Some parts are set up and dramatized but it's clearly mostly a documentary. It's not the funny, biting satire of Jean Rouch's Little By Little (1970), altho it is French-financed and the editor had just edited The Man Who Sleeps. This has 36 votes on IMDb.
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Post by MsMovieStar on Aug 23, 2021 17:52:18 GMT
Oh honeys, this was one of the saddest, most painful documentaries I've ever seen. Trust into the role of Tzadio at 15 years old by his celebrity obsessed grandmother, in Luchino Visconti's Death in Venice, where he became a sort of object of male beauty for homosexuals, actor Björn Andrésen, life before and after is one filled with endless family tragedy. It's no easy ride watching him recount his story in a very elliptical way, almost as if he wants to spare us the full sadness. 6/10
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2021 17:55:38 GMT
Oh honeys, this was one of the saddest, most painful documentaries I've ever seen. Trust into the role of Tzadio at 15 years old by his celebrity obsessed grandmother, in Luchino Visconti's Death in Venice, where he became a sort of object of male beauty for homosexuals, actor Björn Andrésen, life before and after is one filled with endless family tragedy. It's no easy ride watching him recount his story in a very elliptical way, almost as if he wants to spare us the full sadness. 6/10Oh honey, how did you see this?!
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Post by MsMovieStar on Aug 23, 2021 18:36:30 GMT
Oh honeys, this was one of the saddest, most painful documentaries I've ever seen. Trust into the role of Tzadio at 15 years old by his celebrity obsessed grandmother, in Luchino Visconti's Death in Venice, where he became a sort of object of male beauty for homosexuals, actor Björn Andrésen, life before and after is one filled with endless family tragedy. It's no easy ride watching him recount his story in a very elliptical way, almost as if he wants to spare us the full sadness. 6/10Oh honey, how did you see this?! Oh honey, found it by chance on Vimeo a couple of days ago (good cut too) but it is no longer there. I also use a VPN, although it should really be a VIP in my case... I can't really recommend unless you are a fan of either the movie or him or clinically depressed, as it was extremely depressing... but I guess he wanted to get his story out. One of those things I can't ever imagine wanting to watch again, although I did spend time on google as he is extremely vague about some things (His actual acting career). Not sure if the filmmakers were trying to frame it as a kind of 'metoo' story.
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Post by Mattsby on Aug 28, 2021 17:02:44 GMT
Vacuum-Cleaner Salesmen (1993) Pretty good.... About 55m, from Finland, indebted to the Maysles' Salesman (1969) and reminded me also of Dunder Mifflin and Raymond Carver's short story Collectors (from Will You Please Be Quiet Please).
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Post by Mattsby on Sept 6, 2021 20:20:07 GMT
Untold: Crimes & Penalties (2021) From the new Netflix doc anthology. My family keeps talking about this one..... How it'd make a good movie, and probably would. I like pretty much all the hockey movies I've seen.... and even tho this glad-hands the criminal aspect and breezes over some seemingly important "scenes" (like losing the championship) with a btw-briefness...... it's fast paced and an unbelievable story I'd never heard of before.... throw in some Slap Shot references and Bugsy Malone's Bad Guys all over the soundtrack, and I'm entertained.
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Post by cheesecake on Sept 19, 2021 23:42:14 GMT
Revisited Jesus Camp for the first time since it came out. BIG MISTAKE. Still the scariest horror movie I've ever seen.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2021 3:37:14 GMT
This was brilliant... Sakamoto is my favorite film composer.
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Post by MsMovieStar on Nov 3, 2021 7:14:31 GMT
Oh honey, this was riveting! That's all I can say, otherwise I'll spoil it. 8/10
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Nov 18, 2021 14:51:02 GMT
Revisited Jesus Camp for the first time since it came out. BIG MISTAKE. Still the scariest horror movie I've ever seen. I'm still scared to watch that.
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Nov 18, 2021 15:05:10 GMT
I've been watching quite a few lately. So many music docs this year, it's crazy. Sparks Brothers, the Billie Eilish doc, The Velvet Underground, Summer of Soul. All really strong. The Billie Eilish doc was surprisingly moving and The Velvet Underground doc directed by Todd Haynes was a beautiful tribute to that band and made me wonder why the hell I haven't listened to more of their music. Relies heavily on a split screen format combining interviewee footage with stunning photos. Not fast-paced at all but intimate and conversational and something you can really sink your teeth into. Viced pacinoyes countjohn Joaquim this is y'all's shit!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 18, 2021 17:08:03 GMT
Tommen_Saperstein - Reported for not also tagging me in that Velvet Underground post.
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