Category Archives: Recommendations

Coming to theatres today, Wednesday, October 30:
17 BLOCKS

Director:
Davy Rothbart

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2019

Select Festivals:
Nantucket, Karlovy Vary, Traverse City, AFI Docs, Zurich, Melbourne Doc, Milwaukee, Nashville, Woods Hole, Heartland, Hot Springs Doc, Antenna Doc, Woodstock

About:
A longitudinal portrait of an African American family in Washington DC.

The doc screened as part of Nantucket, for which our program notes read:
In 1999, nine-year-old Emmanuel and his family began to film their lives in Washington DC. Though they live just 17 blocks from the US Capitol, their dangerous neighborhood is a world away, plagued with poverty, addiction, gangs, and gun violence. Befriended by filmmaker and journalist Davy Rothbart, the family continue to document their experiences over the next two decades, together constructing an affecting, deeply intimate portrait of love and loss.

Coming to HBO tonight, Tuesday, October 29:
ANY ONE OF US

Director:
Fernando Villena

World Premiere:
SXSW 2019

Select Festivals:
Mountainfilm, Bentonville, Newport Beach, Greenwich

About:
A professional mountain biker is followed for two years after a spinal cord injury.

Paul Basagoitia suffered a serious spinal cord injury upon a crash landing during a mountain bike competition. Though it’s determined that he may never regain mobility, Basagoitia pushes himself over the course of the next two years, experiencing exhilarating progress and frustrating setbacks alike, with supportive partner Nichole by his side. Interspersed is a chorus of others who have had spinal cord injuries, relating their own experiences and how their lives have changed. While this inclusion attempts to universalize Basagoitia’s story, and is not without some added emotional heft at times, it comes off as too surveylike as a whole. The real power is in Basagoitia’s vulnerability, as he works through both traditional and alternative therapies, and comes to grips with his new reality.

Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, October 29:
JAY MYSELF

Director:
Stephen Wilkes

World Premiere:
DOC NYC 2018

Select Festivals:
deadCENTER, Newport Beach

About:
A renowned photographer prepares to leave his longtime home and studio.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens today, Monday, October 28:
MADE IN BOISE

Director:
Beth Aala

World Premiere:
AFI Docs 2019

Select Festivals:
Margaret Mead, GlobeDocs, Hot Springs Doc, Woodstock

About:
An exploration of how and why Boise ID has become the center of America’s surrogacy industry.

For individuals or couples seeking to have children through surrogacy, Boise has emerged as the unexpected site of a surrogacy boom, credited to a relatively affordable cost of living, a population of healthy young women, and a faith-based community that values families. Beth Aala profiles four women who have become part of this industry, helping others experience the joys of parenthood while also benefiting financially, as well as the expectant parents. While not without controversy or health complications – both explored candidly here – the film provides a positive and often moving look at and demystification of the surrogacy process.

Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, October 25:
MAKING WAVES: THE ART OF CINEMATIC SOUND

Director:
Midge Costin

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2019

Select Festivals:
Cannes, BFI London, Munich, Deauville, Sitges

About:
An exploration of the largely overlooked history and craft of film sound.

Film sound is a vital element of the cinema experience, but an invisible one, and easy to take for granted. While the audience, etymologically, should be predisposed to hearing films, it is usually instead predisposed to focus on film visuals. Director Midge Costin’s doc asks viewers to shift their attention to the aural realm, and how a largely unsung team of sound engineers, sound editors, and sound effects specialist, among others, contribute to the success or failure of a film. The film gathers notable directors, like David Lynch, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, and Ang Lee, together with sound wizards like Walter Murch and numerous other craftspeople and technicians who are not household names, to explore the various elements that come into play to build a film’s sound elements, using clips from a wide range of mostly American films to illustrate their points – and to break up the fairly conventional talking heads approach. The result is an engaging and surprising accessible behind-the-scenes peek into a part of the filmmaking process that has a lot more impact than might be assumed.

Coming to HBO tomorrow, Thursday, October 24:
SAUDI WOMEN’S DRIVING SCHOOL

Director:
Erica Gornall

World Premiere:
GlobeDocs 2019

Select Festivals:
Margaret Mead

About:
After the ban on women drivers is lifted in Saudi Arabia, several women embrace this newfound freedom.

Since 1957, women were not permitted to drive in Saudi Arabia, the only nation in the world with such a ban. Women protested this restriction over the years, facing imprisonment and the loss of other freedoms. In September 2017, King Salman issued a decree that the ban would be lifted, effective in June 2018, though activists continued to be persecuted. Erica Gornall’s hour-long project references these continued abuses several times and profiles some activists, while also sharing the experiences of several everyday women whose lives will change with this expanded freedom. Among these stories are a car dealer who has been waiting to learn to drive for years; a chatty Uber driver who happily engages her mostly male customers in discussions around women’s rights; a racecar driver who has waited a long time to legally compete in her own country, and a middle aged widow who nervously but happily takes on driving to free her mother and herself from dependence on taxis and other family members for simple daily tasks. While these profiles are engaging, and the joy demonstrated is at times infectious, Gornall’s film wisely touches on deeper issues at play in Saudi society when it comes to restrictions on women’s liberty, chiefly the continued existence of guardianship laws. These laws position all women, regardless of age or marital status, as subservient to the men in their lives – their fathers, husbands, or brothers – and requires women to seek explicit permission to make major decisions including travel, education, and marriage. While the driving issue might seem resolved, the film makes the case that selective freedoms like this still remain partial and incomplete without full equality under the law.

Coming to theatres this Friday, October 25:
LIBERTY: MOTHER OF EXILES

Directors:
Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato

World Premiere:
HBO (October 2019)

About:
A tribute to the Statue of Liberty.

I previously wrote about the doc here.