Category Archives: Documentary

On TV: THE ORATORIO

Coming to PBS tomorrow, Friday, November 5:
THE ORATORIO

Director:
Alex Bayer, Jonathan Mann, Mary Anne Rothberg

World Premiere:
Santa Barbara 2020

Select Festivals:
Nashville, St Louis

About:
A watershed moment in American music history, the staging of an opera in a NYC cathedral in 1826, is recreated.

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In Theatres: LOVE IT WAS NOT

Coming to theatres today, Wednesday, November 3:
LOVE IT WAS NOT

Director:
Maya Sarfaty

World Premiere:
Docaviv 2020

Select Festivals:
IDFA, Hot Docs

About:
The unbelievable and tragic love story of Helena, a young Jewish prisoner in Auschwitz, and Austrian SS officer Franz Wunsch.

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Streaming: A COP MOVIE

Coming to Netflix today, Wednesday, November 3:
A COP MOVIE

Director:
Alonso Ruizpalacios

World Premiere:
Berlin 2021

Select Festivals:
San Sebastian, Melbourne, Zurich, Hamptons, BFI London, Sydney, Chicago

About:
Set on the mean streets of Mexico city, fiction and documentary intertwine in this portrayal of the life of a police officer.

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In Theatres: SIMPLE AS WATER

Coming to theatres tomorrow, Wednesday, November 3:
SIMPLE AS WATER

Director:
Megan Mylan

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2020 (unscreened)

Select Festivals:
Montclair, AFI Fest

About:
A meditation on the elemental bonds of family told through portraits of four Syrian families in the aftermath of war.

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Streaming: BERKELEY IN THE SIXTIES (1990)

Coming to OVID.tv tomorrow, Wednesday, November 3:
BERKELEY IN THE SIXTIES

Director:
Mark Kitchell

World Premiere:
Sundance 1990 (then known as the US Film Festival)

Notable Recognition:
The doc was nominated for the Academy Awards.

About:
A look back at the exhilaration and turmoil of the unprecedented student protests of the 1960s at the University of California that shaped a generation and changed the course of America.

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On VOD: THE ALPINIST

Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, November 2:
THE ALPINIST

Director:
Peter Mortimer, Nick Rosen

World Premiere:
SXSW 2020 (unscreened)

Select Festivals:
Telluride (unscreened)

About:
A profile of Marc-André Leclerc, a free-spirited 23-year-old climber who makes some of the boldest solo ascents in history.

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On DVD: THE HIDDEN LIFE OF TREES

Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, November 2:
THE HIDDEN LIFE OF TREES

Director:
Jörg Adolph

World Premiere:
German theatrical (January 2020)

Select Festivals:
Berlin, Bergen, Docville, Barcelona, Vancouver

About:
An immersive and eye-opening look at the scientific mechanisms behind forests.

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On VOD: MISSING IN BROOKS COUNTY

Coming to VOD tomorrow, Tuesday, November 2:
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.

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On TV: NORTH BY CURRENT

Coming to PBS’s POV today, Monday, November 1:
NORTH BY CURRENT

Director:
Angelo Madsen Minax

World Premiere:
Berlin 2021

Select Festivals:
Tribeca, Sheffield, Krakow, Melbourne, AFI Docs, Camden, Frameline, Outfest, Sidewalk, Freep, Doclisboa, Montclair

About:
In this personal essay about motherhood, grieving, and transgender masculinity, the unexplained death of his niece leads the director back to his family.

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In Theatres: SPEER GOES TO HOLLYWOOD

Coming to theatres today, Friday, October 29:
SPEER GOES TO HOLLYWOOD

Director:
Vanessa Lapa

World Premiere:
Berlin 2020

Select Festivals:
Telluride, Moscow, Jerusalem

About:
How high-ranking Nazi Albert Speer was able to rewrite his past.

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