Coming to Discovery Channel as part of its Elevation Weekend series tomorrow, Saturday, April 23: SHERPA
Jennifer Peedom’s look at the response to Mount Everest’s deadliest tragedy premiered at Sydney last year. It went on to screen at Telluride, Toronto, Melbourne, Aspen, Palm Springs, Adelaide, Washington DC’s Environmental, New Zealand, Dubai, Rocky Mountain Women’s and London fests, among others.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to HBO this coming Monday, April 25: HEART OF A DOG
Laurie Anderson’s meditation on the meaning of life and death had its debut at Telluride last year. Its festival circuit has also included Venice, Toronto, San Sebastian, New York, Adelaide, Dublin, Rotterdam, San Francisco, Leeds, and Chicago. The film was shortlisted for the Best Documentary Feature of 2015.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, April 22: HOCKNEY
Randall Wright’s portrait of the influential British artist made its debut at BFI London in 2014. The film went on to screen at BAFICI, Doc Aviv, Minneapolis St Paul, Brighton, Vancouver, Palm Springs, and St Louis, among other events.
Gaining access to the somewhat reclusive septuagenarian and to his extensive personal archive, Wright constructs an engaging biography of the artist. Introducing viewers to family and close friends, the film traces the artist’s roots in working class Bradford, England, his early forays into artistic expression, and his blossoming after he relocated to Los Angeles in the 1960s. In addition to sharing anecdotes about his life, they offer enjoyable anecdotes and behind-the-scenes observations about the origins of some of his famed paintings. For his part, Hockney not only offers compelling insight about his approach to time and space in his paintings, but also demonstrates surprising candor about his personal life, reflecting on his experiences as a gay man as AIDS ravaged the community in the 1980s.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
The San Francisco International Film Festival, the nation’s longest-running film festival, celebrates its 59th year starting tonight, Thursday, April 21. Almost 100 new feature films, among them approximately 40 documentaries, will be presented before the event wraps on Thursday, May 5 with a screening of Jesse Moss’ THE BANDIT, a love letter to Burt Reynolds’ SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT. Other nonfiction on offer follows: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
New to DVD/VOD: ART HOUSE
Don Freeman’s exploration of a number of artists’ houses premiered at a standalone screening in New Jersey in 2014. Other screenings have included Palm Beach, Newport Beach, and the Milan Design fests.
Photographer turned filmmaker Freeman profiles nearly a dozen “handmade” homes, dwellings that reflect their artists’ or designers’ aesthetics and which were often slowly built over the course of several years, in contrast to industrialized, cookie-cutter assemblages. The well-shot film is meant to be a celebration of this inventive, individualized approach to architecture, but despite showcasing a range of often fascinating homes, including Frederic Church’s Olana, Paolo Soleri’s Cosanti, and Byrdcliffe Arts Colony, Freeman’s approach feels like a series of excruciatingly slow slideshows for Architectural Digest more than a holistic longform documentary, made even more challenging for general audiences to watch due to its intrusive, off-putting score.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases, Uncategorized
Now available on DVD and VOD: STILL DREAMING
Hank Rogerson & Jilann Spitzmiller’s look at a Shakespearean performance by elder performers made its bow at DOC NYC in 2014. Screenings followed at Cleveland, Cinequest, Sedona, and BendFilm, among other events. In addition to its DVD release, the film is now available on VOD via Amazon and VHX.
I previously wrote about the film for DOC NYC’s program, saying:
Located just outside of Manhattan, the Lillian Booth Actors Home provides a most resonant setting for the staging of a classic play in which nothing is what it seems. Seeking ways to engage their residents, administrators bring in young professional Broadway directors to shepherd the charismatic retired performers through A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Contending not only with Shakespeare but with the physical and mental challenges of old age – as well as some outsized personalities – will this over-80s ensemble do the Bard justice?
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
New to DVD: CRAZY ABOUT TIFFANY’S
Matthew Miele’s tribute to the luxury retailer debuted in limited theatrical engagements and on VOD this past February.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
New to DVD: SPACE MEN
Amanda Pollak’s chronicle of pioneering experiments that made space travel possible debuted on PBS’s American Experience series last month.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Wednesday, April 20: HOW TO LET GO OF THE WORLD (AND LOVE ALL THE THINGS CLIMATE CAN’T CHANGE)
Josh Fox’s personal meditation on climate change had its debut at Sundance earlier this year. The doc has gone on to screen at Cleveland, Thin Line, environmental fests in San Francisco, Washington DC, Princeton, and Yale, and at the upcoming Hot Docs, among other events. The theatrical release is part of the grassroots renewable energy awareness Let Go and Love Tour that will travel to 100 US cities through the Spring.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to DVD and digital download today, Tuesday, April 19: DRUNK STONED BRILLIANT DEAD: THE STORY OF THE NATIONAL LAMPOON
Douglas Tirola’s chronicle of the influential humor magazine debuted at Sundance last year. The film also appeared at Nantucket, Tribeca, Hot Docs, Full Frame, AFI Docs, Traverse City, Edinburgh, Melbourne, Sarasota, Montclair, and Sydney, among several others.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
what (not) to doc 