New to Mubi this week:
THE MONOPOLY OF VIOLENCE
Director:
David Dufresne
World Premiere:
Cannes Directors’ Fortnight 2020 (unscreened)
Select Festivals:
New York, Sheffield, Brussels, Toronto, Melbourne
About:
This exploration of police violence in contemporary France examines the ways in which a government justifies brutal acts against its own citizens, enacting totalitarian methods to keep the populace under its control.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
New to DVD this week:
DETAINEE 001
Director:
Greg Barker
World Premiere:
Showtime broadcast (September 2021)
About:
A harrowing exploration of how American grappled with justice in the fog of war following the 9/11 attacks, through the sensationalized capture of John Walker Lindh, a radical mujahideen fighter who became known as “the American Taliban.”
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
SXSW announced its 2022 line-up today, a total of more than 100 projects. Following is the list of nonfiction features and episodics, broken down by section:
Continue readingFiled under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
New to DVD this week:
LITTLE GIRL
Director:
Sébastien Lifshitz
World Premiere:
Berlin 2020
Select Festivals:
Karlovy Vary, Docs Against Gravity, Chicago, Ghent, Tokyo, Seville, MIX Brasil, Thessaloniki, Jerusalem, Seattle, Rendez-Vous with French Cinema
About:
A portrait of an eight-year-old who wants to express her true gender identity.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to theatres for a one-night-only engagement tonight, Wednesday, February 2 and to VOD this Friday, February 4:
POLY STYRENE: I AM A CLICHÉ
Director:
Paul Sng, Celeste Bell
World Premiere:
Glasgow 2021
Select Festivals:
SXSW, CPH:DOX, Hot Docs, Rotterdam, San Francisco, DOXA, Fantasia, Melbourne, Helsinki, Reykjavik
About:
The death of punk icon and X-Ray Spex frontwoman Poly Styrene sends her daughter on a journey across the world and through her mother’s archives to reconcile their fraught relationship.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, February 1:
WRITING WITH FIRE
Director:
Rintu Thomas, Sushmit Ghosh
World Premiere:
Sundance 2021
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Nantucket, IDFA, CPH:DOX, Hot Docs, RIDM, BlackStar, Guadalajara, DocsMX, Double Exposure, Sydney, Yamagata Doc, Ambulante, Denver, San Diego Asian, Hawaii, Bergen, San Francisco, Krakow, Seattle, Thessaloniki Doc, One World, Shanghai
Notable Recognition:
The doc has been shortlisted for the Academy Awards.
About:
A chronicle of the trailblazing work of India’s only news outlet run by Dalit women–once known as “untouchable.”
I previously wrote about the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, February 1:
A COPS AND ROBBERS STORY
Director:
Ilinca Calugareanu
World Premiere:
DOC NYC 2020
Select Festivals:
Cleveland, Big Sky Doc
About:
An NYPD officer’s career is threatened by revelations about his former life of crime.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, February 1:
AILEY
Director:
Jamila Wignot
World Premiere:
Sundance 2021
Select Festivals:
CPH:DOX, Tribeca, Frameline, Provincetown, Thessaloniki Doc
About:
A revealing, moving portrait of pioneering choreographer Alvin Ailey.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens tonight, Monday, January 31:
MISSING IN BROOKS COUNTY
Director:
Lisa Molomot, Jeff Bemiss
World Premiere:
Dallas Docufest 2020
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Double Exposure, United Nations Association, Hot Springs Doc, Rocky Mountain Women’s, Fargo, Salem, Sonoma, Thin Line, Cleveland, Annapolis, Ashland, Sarasota, RiverRun, Mountainfilm
About:
The deadly consequences of America’s immigration policy are revealed in a Texan border town.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
The winners of the 2022 Sundance Film Festival were announced earlier today. A list of the feature awards follows:
US Documentary Competition Awards:
World Cinema Documentary Competition Awards:
US Dramatic Competition Awards:
World Cinema Dramatic Competition Awards:
NEXT Awards:
Festival Favorite:
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
what (not) to doc 