Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, August 21:
LARGER THAN LIFE: THE KEVYN AUCOIN STORY
Director:
Tiffany Bartok
Premiere:
Hamptons 2017
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Full Frame, Cleveland, Edinburgh
About:
A portrait of a too-soon-departed fashion world pioneer.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
photo by Jim Judkis
Director:
Morgan Neville
Premiere:
Sundance 2018
Select Festivals:
Nantucket, Hot Docs, SXSW, True/False, San Francisco, Montclair, Seattle, Cleveland, Minneapolis St Paul, Wisconsin, Boulder, Miami
About:
A moving exploration of the enduring impact of children’s television show host Fred Rogers on generations of viewers through his pioneering program, MISTER ROGERS’ NEIGHBORHOOD.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to VOD tomorrow, Tuesday, August 21:
BOOM FOR REAL: THE LATE TEENAGE YEARS OF JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT
Director:
Sara Driver
Premiere:
Toronto 2017
Select Festivals:
New York, IDFA, Thessaloniki Doc, San Francisco, Bentonville, Panama, Full Frame, IFF Boston
About:
An exploration of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s early development as an artist in late 1970s/early 1980s NYC.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Coming to NYC’s Rooftop Films tomorrow, Friday, August 17:
THIS ONE’S FOR THE LADIES
Director:
Gene Graham
Premiere:
SXSW 2018
Select Festivals:
Sheffield, AFI Docs, San Francisco, Seattle, Montclair, IFF Boston
About:
An insider look at the African American exotic dancing scene of Newark NJ.
Graham’s boisterous subcultural portrait introduces viewers to the Dojo, a Newark NJ venue that serves as a karate school during the day but transforms into a male strip club once a week, catering primarily to African American women. Several male strippers are introduced and profiled briefly, plus Blaze, a lesbian dancer who strips for both lesbian specific and mixed crowds, but the film pays significant attention to Raw Dawg and Tygar, twin brothers who started the scene through their New Jersey Nasty Boyz troupe, using dance and creativity to stay out of legal trouble and help their family. The film’s other primary focus, as signaled by its title, is on the Dojo’s female fanbase. Women like Poundcake and C-Pudding speak to the joy they get in attending events, supporting their favorite dancers, and finding a space to call their own. Although the project suffers from a surplus of participants – too many to properly flesh out – and a fairly scattered approach that privileges spectacle over developing a clear narrative, it remains an entertaining look at an unexpected world.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
Coming to theatres and to Hulu this Friday, August 17:
MINDING THE GAP
Director:
Bing Liu
Premiere:
Sundance 2018
Select Festivals:
Nantucket, Hot Docs, Sheffield, CPH:DOX, DOXA, AFI Docs, Full Frame, Biografilm, Doc 10, Big Sky Doc, San Francisco, Cleveland, Freep, BAMcinemaFest, Sun Valley, San Diego Asian, LA Asian Pacific, CAAMFest, RiverRun, Newport Beach, Docs Against Gravity, Nashville, Guanajuato, Traverse City, Dokufest
About:
Friends from volatile homes, bonded over their love of skateboarding, face the responsibilities and complexities that come with adulthood.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to VOD this Friday, August 17:
FRAUD
Director:
Dean Fleischer-Camp
Premiere:
Hot Docs 2016
Select Festivals:
Sheffield, BAMcinemaFest, Fantastic Fest, Hamptons, Denver, AFI Fest, Sidewalk
About:
A family’s home movies reveal the dark side of consumer culture.
I previously wrote about the hybrid here.
Filed under Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, August 14:
THE (DEAD MOTHERS) CLUB
Directors:
Carlye Rubin and Katie Green
Premiere:
Silver Springs 2014
Select Festivals:
Sarasota, Crossroads, Santa Fe
About:
An exploration of how daughters cope with the death of their mothers.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, August 14:
THE FAMILY I HAD
Directors:
Katie Green and Carlye Rubin
Premiere:
Tribeca 2017
Select Festivals:
New Orleans, Docaviv, Camden, Hamptons, Melbourne
About:
A mother reckons with the aftermath of her son’s horrific crime.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to MUBI today, Monday, August 13:
A CAMBODIAN SPRING
Director:
Christopher Kelly
Premiere:
Sheffield 2016 (under original title, THE CAUSE OF PROGRESS) / Hot Docs 2017 (final cut)
Select Festivals:
One World, Human Rights Watch, Brooklyn, Galway, Docs MX, Antenna, Busan
About:
A profile of activists opposing corruption under the guise of development in Cambodia.
Shot over the course of six years, Kelly’s film charts the struggles of the disenfranchised residents of Phnom Penh’s Boeung Kak lake region to combat a blatant land grab by the government in the name of development. Among those finding themselves spurred into action to defend their homes and families are young mothers Toul Srey Pov and Tep Vanny, who become committed activists seeking to put pressure on the local government and on outsider funders, such as the World Bank. Though they emerge as leaders, fractures begin to form as the latter takes on an increasingly public and international role, while the former eventually puts an end to her activism. Though Srey Pov cites a desire to focus on her family, Vanny spreads rumors that she instead was bribed by the government before recognizing that sowing internal strife is assuredly in their opponents best interest. Working alongside these citizen activists is the Venerable Luon Sovath, a Buddhist monk who feels called to support the people under his care, even when this runs afoul of direct orders from his religious superiors. Proficient with camera phones, he documents the abuses perpetrated by the government, not only on the people of Boeung Kak, but on himself – through the course of the film, he is constantly harassed by police and fellow monks, threatened with arrest and even with being defrocked. Kelly’s project is a long and dense one, expanding beyond the local land grab issue to larger matters of more widespread corruption, but this is not always properly contextualized, such as the story behind political opposition leader Sam Rainsy and his exile and later return for election. Though stronger when focused on his three protagonists, the film remains a compelling look at the power and determination of individuals to stand up against injustice.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Festival:
The 24th Sarajevo Film Festival
Dates:
August 10-17
About:
Nonfiction makes up about a third of the more than 100 features of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s premier festival, an event founded during the siege of Sarajevo. Continue reading
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
