Author Archives: basiltsiokos

Photo courtesy of the George W Bush Presidential Library and Museum

Director:
Barak Goodman

World Premiere:
American Experience (May 2020)

About:
A two-part biography on the life and career of the 43rd president of the United States.

Part of the storied PBS program’s ongoing series of presidential profiles, director Barak Goodman’s portrait chronicles Bush’s life and unlikely ascendancy to the White House, telling the story of a maverick seeking to come out from the shadow of his father and to assert the legitimacy of his uniquely contested election even as he was forced early in his term to turn from domestic matters to international concerns following the 9/11 attacks. While Bush, his family, and most of his close associates do not participate in the biography, Goodman does secure notables including mastermind Karl Rove. While not as critical of the administration as some viewers might wish, the portrait does confront its various controversies, outright lies, and blunders, often rightly placing the blame on the Commander in Chief, while still making an argument for the complexity of Bush’s presidency.

Coming to virtual theatrical today, Friday, May 1:
CAPITAL IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

Director:
Justin Pemberton

World Premiere:
Sydney 2019

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Melbourne, New Zealand, Jerusalem, Hamburg

About:
An adaptation of the unexpected international bestselling economics book.

I previously wrote about the film for DOC NYC’s program, saying:
Based on economist Thomas Piketty’s groundbreaking New York Times bestseller, this accessible and enlightening adaptation explores the history of wealth, power, and inequality from the French Revolution to the present day. Is today’s ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor an aberration, or just the way capitalism is meant to work? Drawing on experts, historians, and even THE SIMPSONS, Justin Pemberton’s film offers a thought-provoking reframing of global economics and a caution for the future.

New to Netflix this week:
A SECRET LOVE

Director:
Chris Bolan

World Premiere:
SXSW 2020 (cancelled)

About:
A portrait of a lesbian couple facing aging and change after six decades together.

Terry Donahue and Pat Henschel met in 1947, beginning a lesbian relationship in a dangerous pre-Stonewall world that necessitated secrecy in public. In private, however, they cultivated a rich social life with other gay people in their home in Chicago, the Canadian couple having relocated there to enable Donahue’s career in the All-American Girls Baseball League – her own A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN story, too briefly touched upon here. Living together through the decades, family members largely accepted that the two women were good friends and roommates, not learning the truth about their love until relatively recently. Filmmaker Chris Bolan, Donahue’s grandnephew, reveals the story of the women’s longstanding relationship against the backdrop of a more contentious development – Bolan’s mother, Diana – Donahue’s favorite and most supportive niece – is on a mission to bring the couple back to Canada to enter an assisted care facility to better handle their health issues, an idea to which Henschel is extremely resistant. This central conflict tellingly reveals the tensions often felt between queer and biological families, though it’s notable that no one here is painted as a villain. Ultimately, Bolan’s film is a sweet, poignant, and affecting tribute to Donahue and Henschel’s enduring love.

Coming to DVD/VOD today, Tuesday, April 28:
DENNIS AND LOIS

Director:
Dennis Scholl

World Premiere:
DOC NYC 2018

Select Festivals:
BAFICI, Manchester, Long Beach, Garden State

About:
A portrait of a pair of live music superfans.

The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
Dennis and Lois met in 1975 at legendary rock club CBGB, bonding over a shared passion for music. More than 40 years later, these aging super fans are still going strong, befriending their favorite musicians, selling band merchandise as volunteers, housing touring rockers in their toy museum-like home, and traveling all over to catch live shows. Chris Cassidy’s upbeat portrait is about enjoying life at its fullest, with a punk-rock edge.

Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, April 28:
WHEN LAMBS BECOME LIONS

Director:
Jon Kasbe

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2018

Select Festivals:
Sheffield, New Orleans, Mountainfilm, Denver, Zurich, Planet in Focus, San Diego, Movies That Matter, Docs Against Gravity, Budapest Docs, Wild & Scenic, Washington DC Enviro, Philadelphia Enviro, Indie Grits

About:
A complex exploration of ivory hunting, from the perspectives of ranger and poacher.

I previously wrote about the doc here.