Coming to Rooftop Films tomorrow, Thursday, August 1: THE EXPEDITION TO THE END OF THE WORLD
Daniel Dencik’s ridealong to the Arctic Circle made its bow at CPH:DOX last year. It has gone on to screen extensively, including at True/False, Docville, Thessaloniki Doc, Planete+ Doc, Karlovy Vary, Los Angeles, AFI Docs, and Traverse City.
I included the doc in my True/False coverage here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Coming to CNN this Thursday, August 1: OUR NIXON
Penny Lane’s behind-the-scenes tour through Nixon’s administration had its world premiere at Rotterdam earlier this year. Additional fest slots included SXSW, New Directors/New Films, Los Angeles, Ann Arbor, Nantucket, Seattle, AFI Docs, and Traverse City, among others. The film will also receive a national theatrical rollout beginning at the end of August via Cinedigm.
I previously wrote about the doc out of SXSW here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, July 30: RADIO UNNAMEABLE
Paul Lovelace and Jessica Wolfson’s portrait of a WBAI radio legend debuted at Full Frame last year. Its fest circuit also included berths at Silverdocs, Big Sky, BAMcinemaFest, and Sarasota, among others. After a limited theatrical release, the doc comes to iTunes, XBOX, and Playstation via FilmBuff.
I previously wrote about the film out of Silverdocs here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
The 9th annual edition of Michael Moore’s Traverse City Film Festival technically begins tomorrow, Tuesday, July 30, and runs through Sunday, August 4, but “pre-festival” screenings have actually been taking place since Saturday afternoon. The festival offers its audiences the opportunity to experience a wide selection of “just great movies,” representing standouts from larger festivals like Sundance and SXSW, as well as a sampling of brand new films and some retrospectives. Among these are more than forty documentary features, including its Centerpiece slot, Chiemi Karasawa’s ELAINE STRITCH: SHOOT ME, and the following:
Screening as part of the pre-fest “Friends Only” show was the world premiere of Ky Dickens’ SOLE SURVIVOR (pictured), recounting the experiences of people who miraculously survived plane crashes. Also exploring a tragic air accident is Kristina Borjesson’s TWA FLIGHT 800, which investigates claims made by whistleblowers of a cover-up. Robert Greenwald’s WAR ON WHISTLEBLOWERS: FREE PRESS AND THE NATIONAL SECURITY STATE takes as its subject the fates facing those who would publicly reveal government wrongdoing.
Other newer or lesser-seen docs appearing at the festival are Ben Anderson’s THIS IS WHAT WINNING LOOKS LIKE (pictured), about the transition facing Afghanistan as US forces leave the war-torn country to its own security and defense forces; Shosh Shlam and Ada Ushpiz’s GOOD GARBAGE, following Palestinian men and boys as they attempt to support their families by picking through garbage at a Hebron dump; and Jane Gillooly’s SUITCASE OF LOVE AND SHAME, an auditeuristic exploration of a 1960s affair conducted through tape recordings. Finally, of special note is Traverse City’s tribute to Michael Apted with a retrospective screening of all the docs in the UP series.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Rooftop Film’s previously cancelled screening of Sarah Burns, David McMahon, and Ken Burns’ doc will now take place tomorrow, Tuesday, July 30.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Coming to NYC’s Film Forum this Wednesday, July 31: SMASH & GRAB: THE STORY OF THE PINK PANTHERS
Havana Marking’s exploration of the notorious jewel thief gang had its world premiere at IDFA last year. It went on to screen at Sheffield and the East End Film Festival.
I previously wrote about the doc out of Amsterdam here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Can a background extra use an appearance in a Super Bowl commercial to become a leading man?
Like so many others, Jesse Heiman moved to Los Angeles hoping to become successful in the entertainment business. Lacking contacts, training, and a job, he signed up for background extra work. His distinctive, unusual looks have led to steady work ever since, garnering split-second appearances in the backgrounds of scores of popular films and TV series. After a Swedish man began to notice Heiman popping up in various films, he compiled these appearances in a YouTube video that heralded the young actor as the “World’s Greatest Extra.” That video went viral, leading to a guest appearance on Leno, and, most significantly, a Super Bowl commercial for GoDaddy. With this set up, director/producer Nick Weis and producer/editor Emily Carroll follow Heiman for the next year, to see if this newfound attention can be harnessed into lasting fame, or if instead he’s destined to return to the shadowy backgrounds while others take the spotlight. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, In the Works
Coming to WORLD Channel’s Global Voices series this Sunday, July 28: THE LOST DREAM
Jehan S Harney’s exploration of the fate of two Iraqis who assisted US forces makes its debut as part of the PBS series, which brings international stories into perspective for American audiences. After its broadcast, the doc will be available for a limited time on WORLD’s website.
Harney’s film focuses on the plight of two Iraqi men, Nazar – a gold merchant who was tortured by Saddam Hussein’s forces, his hand amputated – and Salam – a young doctor and father. Both saw the American invasion of their country as an opportunity to free their people from the shackles of dictatorship, and collaborated with the US forces. Though their help was welcomed – Nazar, especially, was heralded a hero by the Bush administration, used as a symbol of the brutality of Hussein’s regime – they suffered gravely for their actions. In the face of threats against these “traitors” from insurgent forces – including the murder of Salam’s in-laws, and the bombing of Nazar’s house – both flee Iraq to seek asylum in America. While Nazar is able to bring his wife and children along, Salam is forced to separate from his wife for several years. Ultimately, both families struggle not only with a foreign culture, but with the gradual awareness that, for all their sacrifices for the US, they’re largely on their own. Nazar, despite his disability, PTSD, and language issues preventing him from working, is caught in a bureaucratic maze that claims he is not disabled, threatening his family with homelessness. Salam and his wife, though possessed of advanced medical degrees in Iraq, are unable to obtain the proper licenses to practice in America, and must contend with lower level positions, their cumulative experiences putting a strain on their marriage. Harney’s film captures their frustration, sense of betrayal, and deep sadness, exposing the shortsightedness of US immigration and asylum policies for those who may need help the most.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Coming to HBO as part of their Summer Docs series this Monday, July 29: FIRST COMES LOVE
Nina Davenport’s chronicle of her path to single motherhood made its debut at Toronto last year. It went on to screen at Rotterdam, Sarasota, Woods Hole, Palm Springs, Montclair, Cleveland, Florida, Nantucket, and many others.
I wrote about the doc out of Toronto here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
NYC’s Film Society of Lincoln Center turns the spotlight on music docs in their new Sound + Vision series, which runs this Friday, July 26 through Thursday, August 1. Covering a wide range of topics and approaches, the seventeen feature docs included in the program celebrates musicians as well as the power music has on our lives. Very generally speaking, it’s a genre that doesn’t always immediately strike a chord with me, but I would single out the following highlights:
Among the films that I’ve not had a chance to see yet but have been on my radar: Lily Keber’s BAYOU MAHARAJAH: THE TRAGIC GENIUS OF JAMES BOOKER (pictured), about the man known as the “Black Liberace;” Hark-Joon Lee’s 9 MUSES OF STAR EMPIRE, which follows the making of a K-pop girl group over a year; John Anderson’s BORN IN CHICAGO, the story of a group of middle-class white musicians who were inspired by Mississippi Delta black performers in the 1960s; Olallo Rubio’s GIMME THE POWER, a profile of the successful political activist Mexican band Molotov; and Désirée von Trotha’s WOODSTOCK IN TIMBUKTU: THE ART OF RESISTANCE (pictured), a look at a desert musical festival and its role in uniting the nomadic Touareg people.
Titles that I’ve seen elsewhere that are worth a look include: Jesse Acevedo’s VIVA CUBA LIBRE: RAP IS WAR!, also focuses on the ability of popular music to catalyze protest, through the story of Cuban rap duo Los Aldeanos; Greg “Freddy” Camalier’s Sundance alum MUSCLE SHOALS, on the famed Alabama recording studio; Doug Hamilton’s SXSW alum, BROADWAY IDIOT, on the adaptation of Green Day’s heralded album into a successful Broadway musical; and Bobbi Jo Hart’s I AM NOT A ROCK STAR, an intimate portrait of a gifted young Canadian pianist over eight years.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
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