Festival:
The 16th SF DocFest
Dates:
May 31-June 15
About:
Approximately 50 features screen at this scrappy San Francisco nonfiction event presented by the SF IndieFest. Continue reading
Category Archives: Recommendations
SF DocFest 2017 Overview
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Overviews, Recommendations
On VOD: BEHEMOTH
Coming to VOD tomorrow, Tuesday, May 30:
BEHEMOTH
Director:
Zhao Liang
Premiere:
Venice 2015
Select Festivals:
IDFA, New Directors/New Films, Dubai, True/False, DocAviv, Moscow, Sheffield, Melbourne, Stockholm, Hong Kong, Istanbul
About:
A poetic meditation on the environmental impact of China’s rapid economic development.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On TV: FARMER/VETERAN
Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens tonight, Monday, May 29:
FARMER/VETERAN
Directors:
Alix Blair and Jeremy M Lange
Premiere:
Dallas 2016
Select Festivals:
New Orleans, Big Sky Doc, Cucalorus, Sidewalk, Hot Springs Doc, Brooklyn
About:
An Iraq War veteran finds solace in farming more than from the scores of meds he is prescribed.
Alex is a 32 year old retired US Army Staff Sergeant suffering from PTSD who has turned to farming a small plot of land with his fiancee and eventual wife, Jessica. Shaken after three tours of duty in Iraq, he confesses to having psychotic thoughts, worries about harming the incredibly patient and supportive Jessica, and harbors delusions about his time in the service. Although the couple, and Alex in particular, initially take to farming, its challenges – and those of his mental health concerns – start to catch up with them. Blair and Lange sensitively and compellingly capture their subjects, and the difficult transition from soldier to civilian.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Special Screening: THE GENIUS AND THE OPERA SINGER
Coming to NYC’s Rooftop Films tomorrow, Saturday, May 27:
THE GENIUS AND THE OPERA SINGER
Director:
Vanessa Stockley
Premiere:
Hot Docs 2017
About:
An inside look at a toxic mother/daughter relationship.
Almost a mash-up between GREY GARDENS and WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?, Stockley’s unusual and discomforting portrait introduces viewers to 55-year-old Jessica and her 91-year-old mother Ruth, who have lived together in a cramped, rent-controlled West Village apartment since 1957. Jessica is introduced first, an opinionated troublemaker who antagonizes the police in the opening scene, and who reveals that she’s just prevailed in a protracted battle to have Ruth released from an eldercare facility after the latter was ruled incompetent and removed from Jessica’s care. But Jessica’s not quite the hero she at first appears to be. Once home, the self-proclaimed genius goes at her mother, a retired one-time opera singer, with such venom, it’s at times hard to watch. There’s a definite line of exploitation that the film skirts, or arguably crosses, in documenting the ravings of someone likely suffering from borderline personality disorder, and the resultant verbal abuse heaped on Ruth. At the same time, Ruth gives as good as she gets, complicating matters in this fascinating portrait of family dysfunction that’s sure to provoke heated discussion and debate among its audience.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations
In Theatres: BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB: ADIOS
Coming to theatres today, Friday, May 26:
BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB: ADIOS
Director:
Lucy Walker
Premiere:
May 2017
About:
The Grammy Award-winning musicians who engendered worldwide interest in Cuban music take a final tour.
I previously profiled the doc when it was originally scheduled to debut at Sundance this past January here. It was unexpectedly withdrawn from the festival before its premiere, reportedly due to post-production delays.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On TV: JACQUES PÉPIN: THE ART OF CRAFT
Coming to PBS’s American Masters tomorrow, Friday, May 26:
JACQUES PÉPIN: THE ART OF CRAFT
Director:
Peter L Stein
Premiere:
American Masters (May 2017)
About:
A celebration of the acclaimed French chef and his impact on American food culture.
Stein’s entry into the long-running PBS biography series hews close to its conventions, but despite some minor superfluous re-enactments, still manages to serve up an appealing overview of Jacques Pépin’s life and culinary career. The film traces his path from apprentice work in Lyon, success as a young chef in Paris, and appointment to serve French heads of state, only to risk everything by leaving for New York City. Successfully re-establishing himself in a foreign land, he surprisingly declined multiple invitations to serve as the Kennedy White House chef in favor of taking on the challenge of running a test kitchen for Howard Johnson’s. A near-fatal auto accident a decade later set Pépin off on yet another path, putting him in the spotlight as a food writer and television host, and inspiring generations of professional and amateur chefs with his attention to the mastery of the fundamental techniques of cookery. Stein capably covers the culinary icon’s achievements, even as a minor stroke begrudgingly slows down the affable and now octogenarian Pépin from his active schedule of travel and appearances.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
In Theatres & On VOD: JOSHUA: TEENAGER VS SUPERPOWER
Coming to theatres and to VOD via Netflix tomorrow, Friday, May 26:
JOSHUA: TEENAGER VS SUPERPOWER
Director:
Joe Piscatella
Premiere:
Sundance 2017
Select Festivals:
Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, Human Rights Watch London, Hot Docs,
About:
The story of an unlikely champion for Hong Kong’s sovereignty from China.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
In Theatres: LONG STRANGE TRIP
Coming to theatres across the US for tonight only, Thursday, May 25, and through June 2 in NYC/LA:
LONG STRANGE TRIP
Director:
Amir Bar-Lev
Premiere:
Sundance 2017
Select Festivals:
True/False, SXSW, San Francisco, Hot Docs, Full Frame,
About:
An epic history of the legendary Grateful Dead.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
In Theatres: RESTLESS CREATURE: WENDY WHELAN
Coming to theatres tonight, Wednesday, May 24:
RESTLESS CREATURE: WENDY WHELAN
Directors:
Linda Saffire and Adam Schlesinger
Premiere:
NYFF 2016
Select Festivals:
Palm Springs, Miami, RiverRun, Athena
About:
After three decades with the New York City Ballet, a prima ballerina faces the reality of impending retirement.
As Saffire and Schlesinger’s film begins, Wendy Whelan is in her mid-40s, pushing her body far past the typical limits for a professional ballet dancer. Not yet ready to leave the NYCB, her home since 1984, the celebrated dancer is determined to push past an injury that requires hip surgery and a long rehabilitation period. Still, facing the prospect of a decline from the perfection demanded of ballet, she eventually bows to the inevitable. This intimate film chronicles Whelan’s resilience and adaptability as she shifts her attention to contemporary dance, embarking on a project in collaboration with acclaimed male choreographers, while also making plans for her grand exit from the ballet.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
On DVD: BIRTH OF A MOVEMENT
New to DVD this week:
BIRTH OF A MOVEMENT
Directors:
Susan Gray & Bestor Cram
Premiere:
Independent Lens (February 2017)
About:
An African-American newspaper editor led a civil rights struggle against DW Griffith’s THE BIRTH OF A NATION.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
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