Festival:
The 16th True/False Film Fest
Dates:
February 28-March 3
About:
The beloved Columbia MO nonfiction event showcases approximately 35 new and recent documentary features. Continue reading
Category Archives: Documentary
True/False 2019 Overview
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
On VOD: TO END A WAR
Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, February 26:
TO END A WAR
Director:
Marc Silver
Premiere:
Colombia (September 2017)
Select Festivals:
Colombian Film Festival NY
About:
The Colombian government tries to broker peace with guerrilla forces to end a 50+ year conflict.
For 52 years, a Marxist guerrilla group, FARC, waged a civil war within Colombia, adding to instability in the nation. Since 2011, Colombian liberal progressive President Juan Manuel Santos engaged in peace talk negotiations with Timeleon Timochenko, the leader of FARC, a self-described ordinary man, on neutral ground in Havana, Cuba. The two camps agree that peace is the goal, and, in 2015, set a deadline of March 23, 2016 to come to an agreement, which is predicated on several controversial points, including the transition of FARC from its rebel structure into a political party. In trying to sell the peace plan to the nation, Santos finds expected resistance, as FARC has been positioned as the enemy for decades, with rightwing former president Álvaro Uribe, Santos’ predecessor, becoming something of a rallying symbol for Colombians angry at the idea of welcoming terrorists into the political process. Silver does an admirable job of condensing this background for viewers likely not familiar with the situation, and follows the process as Santos urges his citizens to vote for a peace agreement despite mounting opposition, achieving impressive access to both FARC and the government.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On VOD: LOTS OF KIDS, A MONKEY AND A CASTLE
New to VOD this week:
LOTS OF KIDS, A MONKEY AND A CASTLE
Director:
Gustavo Salmerón
Premiere:
Karlovy Vary 2017
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Toronto, IDFA, London, Sydney, Melbourne, Hamptons, Camden, San Sebastian, San Francisco, Docaviv, Encounters
About:
A film about the director’s eccentric mother as she reacts to the loss of one of her dreams.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On TV: LATE BLOSSOM BLUES
Coming to PBS’s America ReFramed screening series tomorrow, Tuesday, February 26:
LATE BLOSSOM BLUES
Directors:
Wolfgang Pfoser-Almer and Stefan Wolner
Premiere:
Clarksdale 2017
Select Festivals:
Bentonville, Oxford, Diagonale, Asbury Park, Crossing Europe, Doc’n’Roll
About:
A portrait of a bluesman who didn’t emerge on the scene until his 80s.
Leo “Bud” Welch released his debut in 2014, at the age of 81, and became a sensation, playing shows all over the US, Europe, and Africa. Pfoser-Almer and Wolner explore the story behind this late-in-life musical career with this simple, if somewhat overlong, profile of the man and his life in small town Bruce MS. They follow Welch, his manager, Vencie Varnado, and other collaborators as the musician enjoys the realization of his dream of being a professional musician while maintaining a relatively normal life in Bruce and coping with the realities of his advanced age. Of particular note is Welch’s ability to successfully straddle the worlds of gospel and blues – the music of God and the Devil, respectively, as explored here. The good-natured Welch and his unlikely story have a certain appeal, but the doc remains most suited to music fans rather than the general viewer.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Special Screening: TO KID OR NOT TO KID
Coming to NYC’s DCTV screening series tonight, Monday, February 25:
TO KID OR NOT TO KID
Director:
Maxine Trump
Premiere:
DOC NYC 2018
About:
A personal look at women’s decision not to have kids.
The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
Filmmaker Maxine Trump turns the camera on herself and her close circle of family and friends as she confronts the idea of not having kids. While exploring the cultural pressures and harsh criticism child-free women regularly experience, as well as the personal impact this decision may have on her own relationship, Maxine meets other women reckoning with their choice: Megan, who struggles to get medical permission to undergo elective sterilization, and Victoria, who lives with the backlash of publicly acknowledging that she made a mistake when she had a child.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
On TV: PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF DESIRE
Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens tonight, Monday, February 25:
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF DESIRE
Director:
Hao Wu
Premiere:
SXSW 2018
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Hot Docs, Sheffield Doc Edge, Seattle, CAAMFest, Melbourne, Fantasia, Documenta
About:
A look at a disturbing online world of popularity and fandom in China.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
ZagrebDox 2019 Overview
Festival:
The 15th ZagrebDox
Dates:
February 24-March 3
About:
Approximately 75 new and recent features are presented in Croatia’s notable nonfiction event. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
In Theatres: THE COMPETITION (LE CONCOURS)
Coming to theatres today, Friday, February 22:
THE COMPETITION (LE CONCOURS)
Director:
Claire Simon
Premiere:
Venice 2016
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, IDFA, True/False, CPH:DOX, Docaviv, Docs Against Gravity, London, Göteborg, Taipei
About:
An inside look at a French film school and its next generation of hopeful filmmakers.
I previously wrote about the film for DOC NYC, saying:
Director Claire Simon goes behind closed doors during the months-long admissions period at France’s most selective film school, La Fémis, where thousands of hopefuls apply for only 40 available slots. The state-run institution, which teaches aspiring filmmakers their craft through hands-on training with working professionals, also turns to the latter to evaluate applicants. Simon captures entrance interviews and candid discussions among the selection committee, creating a revealing portrait of an institution and its gatekeepers.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
In Theatres: PROSECUTING EVIL: THE EXTRAORDINARY WORLD OF BEN FERENCZ
Coming to theatres today, Friday, February 22:
PROSECUTING EVIL: THE EXTRAORDINARY WORLD OF BEN FERENCZ
Director:
Barry Avrich
Premiere:
Toronto 2018
Select Festivals:
United Nations Association, Santa Barbara, Boulder, Jerusalem, Jewish fests in Atlanta, Tampa Bay, Hartford, Palm Beach, San Diego, Honolulu, and Santa Cruz
About:
A profile of the last surviving member of the Nuremberg prosecutorial team.
Ben Ferencz was brought to NYC as a baby by his parents, fleeing the persecution of Jews in Europe in the early 1920s. By the time he joined the US Army to fight in WWII, he had received a law degree from Harvard. As part of his duties as the war ended, Ferencz was tasked to collect evidence of war crimes, visiting liberated concentration camps to bear witness to Nazi atrocities committed there. When the Nuremberg trials were called, the young lawyer, just 27, was appointed chief prosecutor in the trial of the Einsatzgruppen, the Nazi death squads responsible for the deaths of more than one million Jews and other supposed enemies of the German state. This set him off an a lifelong mission to prevent further crimes against humanity, including genocide, by advocating for an International Criminal Court – an entity that finally became a reality in 2002. Barry Avrich’s film is a capable if conventional biography, benefitting primarily from the now-nearly 100-year-old subject’s deeply impactful personal reflections, testimony that earns its gravitas without the need for the project’s distracting, bombastic score.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
In Theatres: WRESTLE
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, February 22:
WRESTLE
Director:
Suzannah Herbert
Co-Director:
Lauren Belfer
Premiere:
San Francisco 2018
About:
An intimate look at a Huntsville AL high school wrestling team.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
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