Coming to the JCC in Manhattan’s CineMatters series tonight, Tuesday, April 28: PATROLMAN P
Ido Mizrahy’s investigation into 1970s NYPD corruption had its world premiere at DOC NYC in 2013. It went on to screen at the Jerusalem Film Festival and on DIRECTV.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Coming to NYC’s Stranger Than Fiction series tomorrow, Tuesday, April 28: AFTER THE DANCE
Daisy Asquith’s personal investigation into family secrets debuted last month at Dublin. It previously screened as a work-in-progress at last year’s Sheffield.
Asquith’s mother, Pat, was conceived out of wedlock after a local dance in County Clare, Ireland, and, to prevent family embarrassment, was adopted by an English couple with the help of local nuns. Pat’s biological mother kept the episode a secret for decades. Even after Pat tracked her down, and met her half-siblings, she found herself shunned because of the stigma her very existence would bring to the family. Twenty years later, with Pat’s mother now dead, she sets out to County Clare with her daughter to reconnect with the more receptive siblings and, most importantly, to track down information on her mysterious father, Tom Browne. Despite all the time that’s passed, Asquith finds that the shame and fear that forced her grandmother’s desperate actions six decades ago still maintains its grip, rooted in Irish Catholicism. Still, resolute to find answers, the mother and daughter continue their quest over the objections of family members, lay claim to their heritage, and manage to track down a link to the Browne family that leads them on a journey across the ocean. While embracing the personal, Asquith has still managed to craft an engaging story about family and guilt that rings universally true.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Coming to PBS’s American Experience and to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, April 28: LAST DAYS IN VIETNAM
Rory Kennedy’s chronicle of the US withdrawal from Saigon had its world premiere at Sundance last year. It went on to screen at Nantucket, DOC NYC, Sarasota, deadCENTER, Los Angeles, Martha’s Vineyard, and Ashland, among others, and was shortlisted for the Best Documentary Oscar.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to HBO tonight, Monday, April 27: TALES OF THE GRIM SLEEPER
Nick Broomfield’s examination of a case of serial killing in South Central Los Angeles debuted at Telluride last year. It went on to screen at Toronto, DOC NYC, NYFF, CPH:DOX, AFI Fest, and Zurich, among others, and was shortlisted for the Academy Awards.
I previously wrote about the doc upon its theatrical release here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to VOD today, April 24: CITIZENFOUR
Laura Poitras’ chronicle of the Edward Snowden story debuted at the New York Film Festival last Fall. It went on to screen at London, DOC NYC, DOK Leipzig, CPH:DOX, IDFA, and Goteborg, and enjoyed a successful theatrical release. The film was the winner of the Best Documentary Oscar earlier this year. It now comes to VOD platforms including iTunes, Google Play, Playstation, Vudu, XBOX, Amazon, and all digital providers.
I previously wrote about the doc upon its release
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to theatres tonight, Friday, April 24: MISERY LOVES COMEDY
Kevin Pollak’s exploration of the process behind stand-up comedy had its world premiere at Sundance earlier this year. The film just screened at Tribeca after being released on VOD earlier this month.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to theatres today, Friday, April 24: THE GREAT MUSEUM
Johannes Holzhausen’s insider tour of one of Austria’s finest art institutions debuted at Berlin last year. It has gone on to screen extensively, including berths at San Francisco, Seattle, Sydney, New Zealand, Los Angeles, Jerusalem, London, IDFA, CPH:DOX, Biografilm, Reykjavik, Vancouver, and the Hamptons.
Part of a recent spate of nonfiction focused on museums, which includes sprawling multi-hour works like Frederick Wiseman’s NATIONAL GALLERY, Oeke Hoogendijk’s THE NEW RIJKSMUSEUM, and the omnibus CATHEDRALS OF CULTURE series, Holzhausen’s more contained foray into institutional operations focuses on Vienna’s impressive Kunsthistorisches Museum, established by the legendary Hapsburgs in 1891. As cleverly revealed in its opening sequence, which tours through the massive interior of the spectacular building until it follows a workman into a grand hall where he abruptly begins tearing up the floor, the film’s throughline is the renovation and reinstallation of the museum’s Kunstkammer galleries. Beyond this undertaking, the museum staff’s daily routines are observed, from investigating potential insect damage to old canvases and repairing timeworn artifacts to thanking donors for bequeathing a cherished family heirloom of historical significance to holding a staff meeting which, in a pleasantly awkward moment, reveals levels of hierarchy between curatorial and service staff. Holzhausen brings an informed art historian’s eye to his camera’s unobtrusive wanderings around the museum, but also has a knack for capturing these human moments among the grandeur, making for both an enlightening and relatable look at this rarified institution.`
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, April 24: KURT COBAIN: MONTAGE OF HECK
Brett Morgen’s reflection on the iconic Nirvana frontman made its bow at Sundance earlier this year. It has gone on to screen at Berlin, Miami, Dublin, and Full Frame, among other events. It will screen at the upcoming Hot Docs, and come to HBO next month.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to PBS’s Voces series tomorrow, Friday, April 24: NOW EN ESPAÑOL
Andrea Meller’s behind-the-scenes look at TV’s efforts to serve Spanish-speaking audiences made its world premiere at Santa Barbara earlier this year. Other fests have included Big Sky, CineFestival, and Chicago Latino, in addition to community screenings around the country.
Meller’s film explores the challenges faced by non-white actors in a still far too whitewashed Hollywood by exploring the experiences of the five Latina actresses cast as the Spanish voice cast for ABC’s DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES series, part of a short-lived initiative by the network to reach broader Spanish-speaking audiences by providing dubbed versions. With a cast consisting of two Mexicans, a Venezuelan, an Uruguayan, and an American of Puerto Rican and Mexican descent, the trashy nighttime comedy/drama soap cast easily conveys the diversity that exists within a generically oversimplified “race” which is usually confined to stereotypical services or background roles in film and TV, if that. Still, where Meller falters is in trying to adopt DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES’ cheeky tone – while the show was successful enough to last eight seasons, it lost its mass popularity early on and hasn’t been on the air for three years. In tying her work too slavishly to a now-defunct series rather than opening it up to move beyond a single show, Meller’s documentary very quickly begins to feels very dated and very niche. Still despite this structuring drawback, she has managed to find engaging subjects who make pointed observations about the limited opportunities afforded to Latino/a performers in a backward thinking entertainment industry.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to NYC’s Maysles Cinema tonight Thursday, April 23: SHOWRUNNERS: THE ART OF RUNNING A TV SHOW
Des Doyle’s behind-the-scenes look at how television gets made debuted in Ireland as part of Dublin’s Stranger Than Fiction doc festival. Screenings followed in Zurich and Austin, as well as a theatrical release in Los Angeles and a VOD release.
I previously wrote about the film here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
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