Category Archives: Documentary

New to DVD/VOD this week:
VALIANT

Director:
Cruz Angeles

World Premiere:
Vegas Golden Knights game (Las Vegas, November 2019)

About:
Las Vegas’ first professional hockey team unites the city in the wake of the worst mass shooting in American history.

The Golden Knights debuted in 2017 as an NHL expansion team, the brainchild of owner Bill Foley, a successful businessman. Despite having notable players like Stanley Cup winner Mac-Andre Fleury in its roster, expectations were low for the team, with skepticism about the support hockey might be able to engender in a one-industry town like Las Vegas. Then, on October 1, just days before the Knights’ debut game in Dallas, Las Vegas became the site of the deadliest mass shooting in the US, when a gunman targeted concert attendees on the Las Vegas Strip, killing 58 and wounding or injuring nearly 900 others. On October 10, the Golden Knights had their inaugural home game, honoring the victims in their pregame show, and winning the game, providing the city with a hopeful focus after the tragedy. They continued a winning streak unprecedented for a new team, ultimately making it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. Director Cruz Angeles tells their unlikely underdog story in an overly slick manner, with an over the top score and unearned sense of gravitas, but likely will find appreciative viewers even outside of the core hockey fanbase.

Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, December 3:
TO BE OF SERVICE

Director:
Josh Aronson

World Premiere:
theatrical release (November 2019)

About:
Veterans find support for PTSD through service dogs.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

Coming to VOD tomorrow, Tuesday, December 3:
LINDA RONSTADT: THE SOUND OF MY VOICE

Directors:
Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2019

Select Festivals:
Provincetown, AFI Docs, Atlantic

About:
A look back at the celebrated pop artist’s career.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

Coming to theatres today, Friday, November 29:
AFTER PARKLAND

Directors:
Emily Taguchi and Jake Lefferman

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2019

Select Festivals:
Hot Docs, Traverse City, Denver, Camden, Martha’s Vineyard, AFI Docs, Key West

About:
A profile of several survivors and family members as they reckon with the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

Initially coming to Parkland, FL via their work for Nightline, filmmakers Emily Taguchi and Jake Lefferman focused in on students, including David Hogg, Sam Zeif, and Brooke Harrison, as well as Andrew and Manuel, parents of victims, to construct this portrait of the aftermath of the tragedy. Between heart-rending accounts of their experiences and their engagement in activism in different ways, the film captures its subjects’ grief and attempts to channel it. This is not the first nor the last film on the tragedy, and, combined with extensive media coverage, with Hogg in particular becoming a very visible public figure in the meantime, it unfortunately feels a bit too familiar. Making its world premiere this past April, only a little over a year after the event, it’s a thoughtful and genuine project, but might have benefited from more time and further development.

New to DVD/VOD this week:
CHASING PORTRAITS

Director:
Elizabeth Rynecki

Premiere:
Jewish Motifs Warsaw 2018

Select Festivals:
St Louis, Rhode Island, Southern Circuit, Jewish fests in San Francisco, Boston, Jerusalem, New York, Miami, and Palm Springs

About:
The filmmaker takes a quest around the world to find her great-grandfather’s lost art.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

New to DVD and VOD this week:
TIN CITY

Director:
Dina Mande

World Premiere:
San Luis Obispo 2018

Select Festivals:
Newport Beach, LA Femme

About:
A profile of a California wine hot spot.

The titular subject of director Dina Mande’s film is an industrial area situated in Paso Robles, halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, which has attracted independent wine makers and spirit distillers to set up shop. In a relatively short period of time, their artisanal offerings have made the location a popular destination for foodies and wine connoisseurs. The film profiles various proprietors, detailing their entrepreneurial spirit and their appreciation for the area. Mande clearly is enamored of Tin City and its personalities, to such an extent that this talking heads survey feels like an overextended promotional video. Diehard oenophiles might still find the film somewhat worthwhile, but otherwise it feels of decidedly local and limited appeal at best.

New to VOD via MUBI this week:
BIXA TRAVESTY

Directors:
Claudia Priscilla and Kiko Goifman

World Premiere:
Berlin 2018

Select Festivals:
Sheffield, Galway, Busan, Mar del Plata, Göteborg, Outfest, Frameline, Mix Copenhagen, Tampere

About:
A profile of a radical black trans performer in Brazil.

Linn da Quebrada is an outspoken transgender performance artist and musician based in São Paulo who uses any available platform to challenge heteronormative constructs of gender, often through confrontational lyrics and outfits. She’s also a drama queen and a narcissist, at least as represented in Priscilla and Goifman’s loose, episodic portrait. Aside from a few fleeting moments, the filmmakers seem content to allow da Quebrada to dictate her entire representation on camera, resulting in a very manufactured persona that almost never allows the viewer to get a deeper sense of the subject. Unfortunately, a little of her abrasive stage antics and mugging for the camera go a long way, ultimately making the film feel overlong and tedious.