Category Archives: Recommendations

October 20, 2022 · 12:01 PM

In Theatres: ALL THAT BREATHES

Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, October 21:
ALL THAT BREATHES

Director:
Shaunak Sen

World Premiere:
Sundance 2022

Select Festivals:
Cannes, New York, Docaviv, IDFA, BFI London, Busan, Krakow, Sydney, Dokufest, Hong Kong, Camden, Zurich, Athens, Vancouver, Hamptons, Hot Springs Doc, Bergen, Rome, Taipei Golden Horse, Stockholm, Montclair

About:
Against the darkening backdrop of Delhi’s apocalyptic air and escalating violence, two brothers devote their lives to protect one casualty of the turbulent times: the bird known as the Black Kite.

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October 19, 2022 · 3:02 PM

In Theatres: THE RETURN OF TANYA TUCKER

Coming to theatres tomorrow, Thursday, October 20:
THE RETURN OF TANYA TUCKER

Director:
Kathlyn Horan

World Premiere:
SXSW 2022

Select Festivals:
Telluride, Toronto, Nashville, Wodstock, Hot Springs Doc, Montclair, Chicago

About:
Rising star Brandi Carlile writes an album for her hero, trailblazing country music legend Tanya Tucker, spurring the greatest comeback in country music history.

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October 12, 2022 · 1:31 PM

Streaming: HIGH ON CRACK STREET: LOST LIVES IN LOWELL

Coming to OVID tomorrow, Thursday, October 13:
HIGH ON CRACK STREET: LOST LIVES IN LOWELL

Director:
Jon Alpert, Maryann DeLeo, Richard Farrell

Select Festivals:
IDFA, DOC NYC

About:
A harrowing chronicle of addiction in an economically depressed blue-collar Massachusetts town.

The film screened at DOC NYC for its 20th anniversary, for which our program notes read:
Jon Alpert and Maryann De Leo teamed with former drug addict Rich Farrell, a resident of Lowell, Massachusetts, for this harrowing chronicle of addiction in the economically depressed blue-collar town. Filmed over a year and a half, Brenda, Dicky, and Boo-Boo are followed in and out of crackhouses, rehab, and jail, seeking an escape from the despair of their surroundings. Their lives later served as the inspiration for THE FIGHTER, for which Christian Bale, portraying Dicky, won an Oscar.

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October 11, 2022 · 3:02 PM

On VOD: AMERICAN RAPSTAR

Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, October 11:
AMERICAN RAPSTAR

Director:
Justin Staple 

World Premiere:
CPH:DOX 2020

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, SXSW, Doc’n Roll

About:
An eye-opening exploration of the SoundCloud rap phenomenon, a scene of troubled, young, lo-fi rappers that has used social media to develop a rabid fan base.

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October 11, 2022 · 12:01 PM

On DVD: HALLELUJAH: LEONARD COHEN, A JOURNEY, A SONG

Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, October 11:
HALLELUJAH: LEONARD COHEN, A JOURNEY, A SONG

Director:
Daniel Geller, Dayna Goldfine

World Premiere:
Telluride 2021

Select Festivals:
Venice, IDFA, CPH:DOX, Vienna, Gent, Tribeca

About:
The definitive exploration of singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen as seen through the prism of his internationally renowned hymn, Hallelujah.

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October 10, 2022 · 1:31 PM

In Theatres: TAMING THE GARDEN

Coming to theatres today, Monday, October 10:
TAMING THE GARDEN

Director:
Salomé Jashi

World Premiere:
Sundance 2021

Select Festivals:
Berlin, CPH:DOX, New Directors/New Films, Shanghai, Cinéma du Réel

About:
An artful look at the unusual disruption caused by the removal and transport of several massive trees from small Georgian villages.

I profiled the doc before Sundance here.

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October 7, 2022 · 1:31 PM

In Theatres: LAST FLIGHT HOME

Coming to theatres today, Friday, October 7:
LAST FLIGHT HOME

Director:
Ondi Timoner

World Premiere:
Sundance 2022

Select Festivals:
Telluride, BFI London, Woodstock

About:
An examination of Eli Timoner’s life and intentional death and his family’s emotional turmoil as they grapple with his decision to end his own life.

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October 4, 2022 · 12:01 PM

On DVD: ‘TIL KINGDOM COME

Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, October 4:
‘TIL KINGDOM COME

Director:
Maya Zinshtein

World Premiere:
Docaviv 2020

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, IDFA, Chicago, Denver, Double Exposure

About:
An investigation of unlikely political bedfellows between America and Israel.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

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October 3, 2022 · 3:02 PM

On DVD: THREE MINUTES — A LENGTHENING

Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo: Family Affair Films

Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, October 4:
THREE MINUTES — A LENGTHENING

Director:
Bianca Stigter

World Premiere:
Venice 2021

Select Festivals:
Sundance, Toronto, IDFA, DOC NYC, Philadelphia, Göteborg, Thessaloniki Doc, Provincetown, Sydney, Cleveland, Docs Against Gravity

About:
A home movie shot by David Kurtz in 1938 in a Jewish town in Poland – the only moving images left of the Jewish inhabitants of Nasielsk before the Holocaust – is examined to unravel the stories hidden in the celluloid.

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October 3, 2022 · 12:01 PM

On TV: THE LAST OUT

Coming to PBS’s POV tonight, Monday, October 3:
THE LAST OUT

Director:
Sami Khan, Michael Gassert

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2020

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Hot Springs Doc, Virginia, Heartland, New Horizons

About:
Three talented Cuban athletes leave everything behind to pursue the ultimate dream of Major League Baseball, but face exploitation and unfulfilled promises.

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