Coming to NYC’s Maysles Cinema for a threatrical run starting today, Monday, June 16: NORTHERN LIGHT
Nick Bentgen’s portrait of family, community, and snowmobile racing in the Recession debuted at True/False last year. It went on to screen at Visions du Réel, Hot Docs, BAMcinemaFest, New Orleans, Viennale, and Sebastopol Doc, among others.
I previously wrote about the doc out of True/False here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
A nearly deserted North Dakotan town becomes the unlikely battleground for white supremacy.
With no more than two dozen inhabitants, rural Leith ND drew the attention of Craig Cobb, a notorious white supremacist who had relocated to the state due to the recent oil boom, because of the availability of land. Purchasing several plots, he later expressed his intent: to draw other white supremacists to the town and take over its governance, a goal met with resistance by the long-time residents. Filmmakers Michael Beach Nichols and Christopher Walker chronicle the standoff, as the two opposed small communities try to lay claim to their self-determination with the help of their supporters. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, In the Works
Coming to PBS’s Global Voices on the WORLD Channel this Sunday, June 15: I WILL BE MURDERED
Justin Webster’s unusual story of Guatemalan death and politics debuted at Guatemala’s Memoria, Verdad, Justicia fest last year. It went on to screen at Hot Docs, Madrid’s Documenta, Traverse City, Lima, Sao Paulo, Tallgrass, Chicago, Antenna, Denver, Havana, and Cartagena, among others.
I previously wrote about the film in my Hot Docs coverage for Indiewire, saying:
Shortly before his death, Guatemalan attorney Rodrigo Rosenberg, whose clients were recently assassinated, recorded a video accusing President Alvaro Colom of his murder. After his execution, his confidante released the video and it became a nationwide sensation, leading to calls for Colom to resign. Public pressure forced an in-depth investigation in a country where 98% of murders go unsolved, but what the head of the taskforce found is wholly unexpected. Justin Webster crafts an investigative documentary that humanizes its victim even as it reveals genuinely surprising details about his case. Despite its twists and turns, the various nefarious figures that pop up, and the competing theories thrown in and out, Webster maintains a clarity of storytelling that might all too easily have become a muddled mess in other hands. What results is an absolutely stranger than fiction tale of lives cut short by corruption and secrets, and a demonstration of the power of the public to demand an end to impunity for even its highest elected officials.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, June 13: EVERGREEN: THE ROAD TO LEGALIZATION
Riley Morton’s look at Washington State’s battle over marijuana legalization debuted at the Seattle International Film Festival last year. Other fest screenings have included Spokane and Bermuda Docs.
Morton’s film focuses on Washington’s controversial ballot initiative I-502, a measure to license, regulate, and decriminalize marijuana in the state, which was passed in the November 2012 election. Given that this result understandably made national and international news, Riley can’t depend on campaign doc conventions to ramp up suspense as it counts down to election night, which makes it unfortunate that the film is still structured in a fairly predictable manner, with a surfeit of talking heads and nitty gritty local campaign politics that may be lost on non-Washington viewers. To that point, it’s telling – and a smart move – that the doc’s subtitle has been slightly revised since its fest premiere to excise a specific mention of Washington State. At the same time, the overall subject matter is absolutely of national interest, and the general arguments put forth by Morton’s interview subjects certainly inform the national debate over legalization, so there’s clearly an audience that should be interested in the film and the case study provided by Washington State as cannabis legalization activism continues to spread.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Brooklyn’s Northside Festival kicks off today, Thursday, June 12, and runs through next Thursday, June 19, with film programming starting on Monday evening. As it has for the past several years, this mini-SXSW joins the worlds of music, cinema, and innovation together, and presents a healthy number of docs in its line-up – both new and recent work and an eclectic selection of retrospective classics or unseen gems. The following offers notable selections from this year’s film programming: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Coming to NYC’s Rooftop Films this Friday, June 13: THE SEARCH FOR EMAK BAKIA
Oskar Alegria’s Man Ray-inspired journey debuted at BAFICI in 2012. It’s gone on to screen at Edinburgh, Telluride, San Sebastian, DocLisboa, Morelia, RIDM, Ambulante, San Francisco, DocAviv, DOXA, EDOC, and Sydney, among others.
Avant-garde artist Man Ray’s short film poem, EMAK-BAKIA, was shot in Biarritz in 1926. Despite the literal translation of its Basque title – “leave me alone” – the film so captivates Alegria that he instead sets out to get closer to it, attempting to pin down its origins out of rumors and legends. In a literal sense, the filmmaker seeks out the undisclosed location of the house where Man Ray shot the film, but in his research, allows curiosity to lead him to tangential asides, some generating unusual surprises, but many amounting to nothing useful in a concrete sense, which nevertheless inform his understanding of – or better yet, serve to evoke – the elusive artist and his work. The resulting project is a strangely charming realization of the timeworn adage that it’s not the destination, but the journey, that proves more edifying.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Beginning tomorrow, Thursday, June 12, the New York edition of the Human Rights Watch Film Festival celebrates a quarter century of showcasing films addressing vital global concerns. With screenings through Sunday, June 22, the event will screen nearly two dozen programs to bear witness to and bring greater awareness of continuing human rights abuses around the world. Among the thematic offerings this year are: Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens this Sunday, June 15: THE NEW BLACK
Yoruba Richen’s look at the relationship between African Americans and gay rights had its premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival last year. It went on to screen at Human Rights Watch, AFI Docs, Frameline, Urbanworld, Citizen Jane, Hot Springs, Polari, and New Orleans, among others.
I included the film in my AFI Docs coverage here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to theatres this Friday, June 13: IVORY TOWER
Andrew Rossi’s investigation of the current economics of higher education debuted earlier this year at Sundance. It has also screened at Sarasota, Miami, Seattle, Ashland, Full Frame, Cleveland, and Montclair, among others.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to DVD and VOD today, Tuesday, June 10: TIM’S VERMEER
Teller’s exploration of an art history mystery had its world premiere at Telluride. Other fest screenings included Toronto, Palm Springs, Denver, St Louis, Portland, Dubai, the Hamptons, and New York Film Festival, and enjoyed a limited theatrical release. The doc was shortlisted for the Best Documentary Feature Oscar. It now becomes available in a Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack, as well as digitally via iTunes.
I previously wrote about the film out here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
what (not) to doc 