THE MARS GENERATION
Michael Barnett checks in with the would-be astronauts of the future.
Festival Section:
Kids
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Category Archives: Film
2017 Sundance Docs in Focus: THE MARS GENERATION
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
On DVD: ZERO DAYS
Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, January 17:
ZERO DAYS
Director:
Alex Gibney
Premiere:
Berlin 2016
Festivals:
Nantucket, AFI Docs, Sydney, Edinburgh, Biografilm, Jerusalem, New Zealand
Notable Recognition:
The doc has been shortlisted for the Academy Awards.
About:
A documentary thriller exploring the dangerous reality of cyberwarfare.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
2017 Sundance Docs in Focus: 78/52
78/52
Alexandre O Philippe parses the legendary shower scene from Alfred Hitchcock’s PSYCHO.
Festival Section:
Midnight
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Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
On DVD: WIZARD MODE
Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, January 17:
WIZARD MODE
Directors:
Jeff Petry and Nathan Drillot
Premiere:
Hot Docs 2016
Select Festivals:
DOXA, Portland, Rendezvous with Madness
About:
A portrait of a pinball champion who is on the autism spectrum.
Robert Gagno showed an early fascination with mechanical devices, while also struggling with language. Diagnosed with autism, his parents feared he would never be able to communicate, but despite challenges, he defied medical prognoses and is now a very communicative young adult. He’s also a pinball master, having found an affinity for the game and quickly ranking up with the elite players. Petry and Drillot’s appealing film follows Gagno on the competition circuit while also revealing the background and personality of their likeable, refreshingly vulnerable subject as he aims to master the hidden wizard levels of his favorite games and works toward attaining greater independence in life.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On VOD: HARRY AND SNOWMAN
New to VOD this week:
HARRY AND SNOWMAN
Director:
Ron Davis
Premiere:
Full Frame 2015
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Nantucket, New Orleans, Hamptons, Virginia, Provincetown, Sedona, Hot Springs Doc
About:
A story of love and friendship between a man and his horse.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
2017 Sundance Docs in Focus: WORLD WITHOUT END (NO REPORTED INCIDENTS)
WORLD WITHOUT END (NO REPORTED INCIDENTS)
Jem Cohen discovers a small British seaside town through chance encounters with its residents.
Festival Section:
New Frontier
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Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
2017 Sundance Docs in Focus: DID YOU WONDER WHO FIRED THE GUN?
DID YOU WONDER WHO FIRED THE GUN?
Travis Wilkerson transforms an obscured incident from his family’s past into a singular documentary murder mystery performance.
Festival Section:
New Frontier
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Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
On DVD: DANCER
Coming to DVD this coming Tuesday, January 17:
DANCER
Director:
Steven Cantor
Premiere:
Los Angeles theatres, September 2016
Select Festivals:
Zurich, BFI London, Calgary
About:
A profile of the bad boy of modern ballet, Sergei Polunin.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
2017 Sundance Docs in Focus: 18 BLACK GIRLS / BOYS AGES 1-18 WHO HAVE ARRIVED AT THE SINGULARITY AND ARE THUS SPIRITUAL MACHINES: $X IN AN EDITION OF $97 QUADRILLION
18 BLACK GIRLS / BOYS AGES 1-18 WHO HAVE ARRIVED AT THE SINGULARITY AND ARE THUS SPIRITUAL MACHINES: $X IN AN EDITION OF $97 QUADRILLION
Terence Nance reveals society’s race-related associations in this performance-based project.
Festival Section:
New Frontier
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Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Sundance
On TV: WHAT WAS OURS
Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens this coming Monday, January 16:
WHAT WAS OURS
Directors:
Mat Hames
Premiere:
Big Sky Doc 2016
Select Festivals:
Tulsa, SF Human Rights, LA Skins, Tribal Film Festival
About:
A small group of Native Americans seek the return of their lost sacred objects.
Wyoming’s Wind River Indian Reservation is home to the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes. When Jordan, an aspiring Arapaho museum curator, learns that his people’s sacred objects are in the trust of an outside church, or otherwise were long ago sold off to museums, he seeks reconnection with his tribal history. While some elders fear contact with these objects could bring misfortune, Jordan finds an ally in Arapaho high school student Mikala and, eventually, in Philbert, a Shoshone elder who credits his survival of combat in Vietnam to a sacred talisman. Hames follows this intergenerational, inter-tribal group as it travels to Chicago to rediscover their sacred objects with the goal of opening a museum on the reservation. The film feels repetitious and too languidly paced, but is well shot and affecting in its handling of sensitive themes.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
what (not) to doc 