Category Archives: Film

April 19, 2019 · 1:31 PM

In Theatres: INSTANT DREAMS

Coming to theatres today, Friday, April 19:
INSTANT DREAMS

Director:
Willem Baptist

Premiere:
IDFA 2017

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Thessaloniki Doc, Sofia, Docs Against Gravity, Jihlava, Slamdance, SF DocFest, Visions du Reel, IndieStreet

About:
Fans of Polaroid are determined not to let its magic vanish.

The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
A casualty of the digital revolution, Polaroid instant film and cameras were meant to fade quietly into oblivion when the company stopped production in 2008. Following three enthusiasts bent on keeping the instant dream alive, director Willem Baptist takes viewers on a hallucinatory quest to discover the secret chemical formula for Polaroid film. His documentary develops like prints pulled out of instant cameras, magically coming into focus as something wonderful appears before your eyes.

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April 19, 2019 · 12:01 PM

On DVD: LATE LIFE: THE CHIEN-MING WANG STORY

New to DVD this week:
LATE LIFE: THE CHIEN-MING WANG STORY

Director:
Frank W Chen

Premiere:
Los Angeles Asian Pacific 2018

Select Festivals:
NY Asian American International, San Francisco CAAMFest

About:
A former NY Yankee and Taiwanese hero attempts a comeback.

Celebrated as the first Taiwanese NY Yankee, earning him national praise in his homeland as “the Pride of Taiwan,” Chien-Ming Wang had a successful, if short, stint with that team before injuries derailed his path. Though he bounced between other teams after the Yankees, Wang’s injuries largely kept him from major league play, forced instead into instructional or minor leagues. Chen’s portrait picks up as he struggles to return to the majors, facing the challenges of competing against younger players, separation from his family, and the disappointment and fear of being a hasbeen. While sympathetic to its subject, the doc unfortunately is overlong and never digs particularly deeply into Wang’s motivation in the face of little reward and seemingly little chance of success, but should still resonate with diehard baseball fans.

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April 18, 2019 · 1:31 PM

On TV: GARRY WINOGRAND: ALL THINGS ARE PHOTOGRAPHABLE

Photograph by Judy Teller | Courtesy of Greenwich Entertainment

Coming to PBS’s American Masters tomorrow, Friday, April 19:
GARRY WINOGRAND: ALL THINGS ARE PHOTOGRAPHABLE

Director:
Sasha Waters Freyer

Premiere:
SXSW 2018

Select Festivals:
San Francisco, New Zealand, Thin Line, Vancouver, Haifa

About:
A history and appreciation of acclaimed street photographer.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

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Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases

April 18, 2019 · 12:01 PM

On DVD: JOSEPH PULITZER: VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

New to DVD this week:
JOSEPH PULITZER: VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

Director:
Oren Rudavsky

Premiere:
Mill Valley 2018

Select Festivals:
Cleveland, Hot Springs Doc, Thin Line, Sedona, Sebastopol Doc, Atlanta Jewish, New York Jewish

About:
The rags-to-riches story of the Hungarian immigrant turned American media giant.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

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April 17, 2019 · 3:02 PM

Art of the Real 2019 Overview

Festival:
The 6th Art of the Real

Dates:
April 18-28

About:
The Film Society of Lincoln Center includes 20 new features in this annual showcase of innovative nonfiction and hybrid filmmaking. Continue reading →

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Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations

April 17, 2019 · 1:31 PM

On DVD/VOD: STANDING UP

New to DVD and VOD this week:
STANDING UP

Director:
Jonathan Miller

Premiere:
DOC NYC 2017

Select Festivals:
Galway, DocuWest, AmDocs, Jewish fests in Toronto, Silicon Valley, Vancouver, and Washington

About:
A profile of three aspiring stand-up comics in NYC.

The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
So an Egyptian lawyer, a couch-surfing custodian, and an Orthodox Jew walk into a comedy club… and end up in a documentary. This appealing film follows these three unlikely aspiring stand-up comics, willing to risk everything in pursuit of their dreams of making it in comedy. Director Jonathan Miller tells their story with warmth and humor, taking us into the heart of New York City’s downtown open-mic scene, where would-be comics put it all on the line for laughs.

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April 17, 2019 · 12:01 PM

In Theatres: HAIL SATAN?

Coming to theatres today, Wednesday, April 17:
HAIL SATAN?

Director:
Penny Lane

Premiere:
Sundance 2019

Select Festivals:
Rotterdam, CPH:DOX, Full Frame, San Francisco, What The Fest!?, Salem, Boston Underground, Freep, Sidewalk

About:
A provocative exploration of the separation of church and state through the unlikely rise of the Satanic Temple religious movement.

I profiled the doc before Sundance here.

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Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance

April 16, 2019 · 3:02 PM

On DVD/VOD: ANOTE’S ARK

Coming to DVD and VOD today, Tuesday, April 16:
ANOTE’S ARK

Director:
Matthieu Rytz

Premiere:
Sundance 2018

Select Festivals:
Hot Docs, Vision du Reel, Docs MX, Black Nights Tallinn, Human Rights Watch, Big Sky Doc, Thin Line Doc, Washington DC Environmental, Movies That Matter, Cleveland, Minneapolis, LA Asian Pacific, DocLands, DOXA, Docs Against Gravity, Doc Edge, Mountainfilm

About:
An intimate chronicle of the consequences of climate change on a disappearing island nation.

My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.