Festival:
The 19th Urbanworld Film Festival
Dates:
September 18-22
About:
Five documentary or hybrid features screen at this NYC spotlighting films by African American and multicultural filmmakers.
BAKOSO: AFROBEATS OF CUBA
Category Archives: Recommendations
Urbanworld 2019: Documentary Overview
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
On VOD: I USED TO BE NORMAL: A BOYBAND FANGIRL STORY
Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, September 17:
I USED TO BE NORMAL: A BOYBAND FANGIRL STORY
Director:
Jessica Leski
Premiere:
Hot Docs 2018
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Sydney, Revelation Perth, Melbourne, Fantastic Fest, Adelaide, London, Hawaii, Göteborg, Rotterdam, Miami, Santa Barbara, Cleveland, Istanbul
About:
A look at boyband superfans.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On DVD/VOD: TONI MORRISON: THE PIECES I AM
photo by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders
TONI MORRISON: THE PIECES I AM
Director:
Timothy Greenfield-Sanders
Premiere:
Sundance 2019
Select Festivals:
Nantucket, Miami, Cleveland, Montclair, Wisconsin
About:
An intimate profile of the Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning literary icon.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Special Screening & In Theatres: WHERE’S MY ROY COHN?
photo by Ap/REX/Shutterstock
WHERE’S MY ROY COHN?
Director:
Matt Tyrnauer
World Premiere:
Sundance 2019
Select Festivals:
Zurich, Atlantic, New Zealand
About:
An exploration of the dark influence of Machiavellian attorney Roy Cohn on today’s polarized political landscape.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Special Screening & In Theatres: MIDNIGHT TRAVELER
Coming to NYC’s DCTVscreening series tonight, Monday, September 16 and to theatres this Wednesday, September 18:
MIDNIGHT TRAVELER
Director:
Hassan Fazili
World Premiere:
Sundance 2019
Select Festivals:
Berlin, CPH:DOX, Hot Docs, Docaviv, DocumentaMadrid, DOXA, Sheffield, Thessaloniki, True/False, Doc Edge, RiverRun, Seattle, Montclair, Biografilm, San Francisco, Salem, Sydney
About:
The filmmaker, his wife, and their two daughters face an uncertain road to asylum when they are forced to flee Afghanistan.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
In Theatres: THE GAME CHANGERS
Coming to theatres via Fathom for a special one-night only event tonight, Monday, September 16 before opening in New York/Los Angeles this Friday, September 20:
THE GAME CHANGERS
Director:
Louie Psihoyos
World Premiere:
Sundance 2018
Select Festivals:
Berlin, Hot Docs, Thessaloniki Doc, Mountainfilm, Boulder, Washington DC Environmental, EarthxFilm
About:
An exploration of the misconceptions and truths about plant-based diets.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
In Theatres: DESOLATION CENTER
Coming to theatres today, Friday, September 13:
DESOLATION CENTER
Director:
Stuart Swezey
World Premiere:
CPH:DOX 2018
Select Festivals:
Sheffield, DokuFest, Big Sky Doc, Slamdance, DOXA, Indielisboa, Chicago Underground, Revelation, Sydney Underground, In-Edit Spain, Cork, Freep, Florida
About:
A look back at underground happenings stemming from the 1980s LA punk and industrial scene.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
In Theatres: AMÉRICA
Coming to theatres today, Friday, September 13:
AMÉRICA
Directors:
Erick Stoll and Chase Whiteside
World Premiere:
True/False 2018
Select Festivals:
IDFA, CPH:DOX, Full Frame, Sheffield, AFI Docs, BAMcinemaFest, New Orleans, Denver, Camden, Guanajuato, DokuFest, Hot Springs Doc, Ashland, Maryland, Sidewalk, Reykjavik, Adelaide, Docs Against Gravity
About:
Three brothers take on the role of caretakers for their grandmother.
After her son, Luis, is (perhaps unjustly) arrested for elder abuse, the care of 93-year-old América falls to her grandsons Diego, Rodrigo, and Bruno. The three brothers, itinerant circus performers, have been estranged, but try to put aside their differences for the sake of their beloved grandmother, who suffers from dementia. Erick Stoll and Chase Whiteside’s wistful, humanistic film follows the family over three years, capturing the young men as they dote on América, navigate the legal system to free their father, quarrel with one another, and, ultimately, demonstrate the deep bonds of familial love.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
In Theatres: MOONLIGHT SONATA: DEAFNESS IN THREE MOVEMENTS
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, September 13:
MOONLIGHT SONATA: DEAFNESS IN THREE MOVEMENTS
Director:
Irene Taylor Brodsky
World Premiere:
Sundance 2019
Select Festivals:
Nantucket, Hot Docs, Portland, AFI Docs, Mountainfilm, Martha’s Vineyard, Provincetown
About:
A personal meditation on deafness through the experiences of the filmmaker’s son, her parents, and Beethoven.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
On DVD: TEDDY PENDERGRASS: IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME
Coming to DVD tomorrow, Friday, September 13:
TEDDY PENDERGRASS: IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME
Director:
Olivia Lichtenstein
World Premiere:
Philadelphia 2018
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Sound Unseen, African Diaspora, Leeds, San Francisco Black, Melbourne Doc
About:
A look back at the triumph and tragedy of the R&B singer.
The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
The unforgettable voice behind “Don’t Leave Me This Way,” “Close the Door,” and “If You Don’t Know Me By Now,” Teddy Pendergrass was poised to be the biggest R&B artist of all time with five consecutive platinum albums. But his career was halted by a 1982 car accident that left him paralyzed at age 31. This definitive biography, set to a soulful soundtrack, captures revealing interviews with his closest associates to trace his rise, fall, and post-accident comeback at Live Aid.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
