Category Archives: Documentary

On VOD: BOOM BUST BOOM

boom bust boomComing to VOD today, Tuesday, March 15: BOOM BUST BOOM

Terry Jones, Bill Jones, and Ben Timlett’s creative look at economic crashes has largely bypassed festivals to instead screen at universities, conferences, and other professional events since its debut last March. It opened theatrically last week and now comes to VOD platforms including iTunes.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

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On DVD: STEVE JOBS: THE MAN IN THE MACHINE

SteveJobs_HeroComing to DVD today, Tuesday, March 15: STEVE JOBS: THE MAN IN THE MACHINE

Alex Gibney’s look at the life and legacy of the computer pioneer debuted at SXSW last year. Other fest berths included Nantucket, New Orleans, San Francisco, Seattle, AFI Docs, Melbourne, Woodstock, Napa Valley, DocPoint, Big Sky, and IDFA.

I previously wrote about the film here.

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On DVD: CENSORED VOICES

censored voicesComing to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, March 15: CENSORED VOICES

Mor Loushy’s revealing look back at the Six Day War bowed at Sundance last year. Screenings followed at Berlin, Hot Docs, BFI London, DMZ Docs, DOXA, DocAviv, Documenta Madrid, and Docs Against Gravity, among other events.

I profiled the doc before Sundance here.

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Special Screening: THE MIND OF MARK DEFRIEST

1201x782-Key-IMAGE-_DeFriest-Courtesy-of-Found-Object-Films-and-Thought-Café-copy-1160x652Coming to NYC’s Stranger Than Fiction tomorrow, Tuesday, March 15: THE MIND OF MARK DEFRIEST

Gabriel London’s chronicle of a notorious prisoner made its bow at Hot Docs in 2014. It went on to screen at DOC NYC, Los Angeles,, Denver, Lone Star, Tallgrass, Key West, CPH:DOX, and at several university and community screenings around the country. The film enjoyed a limited theatrical release and has been broadcast on Showtime.

I previously wrote about the doc upon its theatrical release here.

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On VOD: THE ARMOR OF LIGHT

armoroflightComing to VOD tomorrow, Tuesday, March 15: THE ARMOR OF LIGHT

Abigail Disney’s exploration of faith and the Second Amendment debuted at Tribeca last year. Screenings followed at Traverse City, AFI Docs, Hamptons, Galway, Montclair, Milwaukee, St Louis, Heartland, Global Peace, Oxford, and SF Jewish, among others. The film now comes to VOD platforms, including iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, and Vudu.

I previously wrote about the doc upon its theatrical release here.

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On TV: DIVIDE IN CONCORD

1201x782-KEY-IMAGE-DIVIDE_IN_CONCORD_KEY_IMAGE_01-1160x652Coming to PBS’s America ReFramed this coming Tuesday, March 15: DIVIDE IN CONCORD

Kris Kaczor’s chronicle of a grandmother activist taking on wastefulness had its world premiere at Hot Docs in 2014. The doc went on to screen at Nantucket, DOC NYC, Martha’s Vineyard, Traverse City, Portland, Big Sky, Cleveland, and several environmental fests, among other events.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

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In Theatres: BOOM BUST BOOM

boom bust boomComing to theatres today, Friday, March 11: BOOM BUST BOOM

Terry Jones, Bill Jones, and Ben Timlett’s crash course in world economics has been screening extensively in university and professional settings since last March.

MONTY PYTHON alumnus Terry Jones serves not only as one of this entertaining project’s directors, but also its cheeky host, a guide through economic history and human behavior that seeks to explain why we seem destined to repeat cycles of booms and busts when we really should know better. A surfeit of talking heads is invigorated through an expansive – or, perhaps for some viewers, excessive – use of animation, puppetry, graphics, and even a song or two. Rather than stick to the most recent financial crisis exclusively, the film demonstrates the importance of looking back in time to the various other instances where greed and arrogance led to devastating crashes, from Dutch tulip mania in 1627 to the stock market crash of 1929. The lessons learned from these historical episodes underscore a primary thesis – that economists, and the institutions that train them, have willfully turned a blind eye to history and to humanity’s tendency to irrational economic behavior, embracing a neoclassical model that has left them ill-prepared to recognize the impending dangers of the next bust until it happens once again.

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Thessaloniki Documentary Festival 2016 Overview

18th-thessaloniki-documentary-festival-belgesel-ajanda_51The 18th edition of the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival begins tomorrow, Friday, March 11, and will present approximately 140 new and recent nonfiction features by the time it ends on Sunday, March 20. The following overview offers some highlights in many of the thematic sections of the event: Continue reading →

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In Theatres: CITY OF GOLD

city of goldComing to theatres tomorrow, Friday, March 11: CITY OF GOLD

Laura Gabbert’s profile of a restaurant critic and his love for Los Angeles made its debut at Sundance last year. It went on to screen at DOC NYC, SXSW, Melbourne, Napa Valley, Vancouver, Traverse City, deadCENTER, Provincetown, Newport Beach, AFI Docs, New Zealand, and Montclair, among other fests.

I profiled the doc before Sundance here.

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SXSW 2016: Documentary Overview

CavlPGUWwAEV3AqSXSW returns this Friday, March 11, with approximately 140 features screening as part of the event’s film program, running through Saturday, March 19. Among these are nearly 60 documentaries, a slight reduction from last year’s record 68, appearing throughout many of the festival’s sections, highlighted below: Continue reading →

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