Category Archives: Recommendations

Coming to NYC’s Stranger Than Fiction series tomorrow night, Tuesday, February 11: BROTHERS HYPNOTIC

Reuben Atlas’ exploration of musical legacy among a band of brothers had its world premiere at SXSW last year. It went on to screen at Hot Docs, Montclair, Los Angeles, Film Society’s Sound + Vision, Urbanworld, Antenna, Indie Memphis, Hawaii, Leeds, Sound Unseen, RIDM, Pan African, and the upcoming Big Sky and Noise Pop.

Atlas offers an intimate profile of the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, consisting of the eight sons of Phil Cohran, a Chicago-based jazz trumpeter who is known for playing with Sun Ra and Earth, Wind and Fire, among others. Cohran and the boys’ mothers introduced them to music at an early age, grooming them to be positive, inspirational young African American role models. After breaking with their father’s leadership, they set their own course, resisting commercialization to make music their own way. Atlas documents their transformation from street performers to independent, internationally touring artists, with occasional high-profile gigs serving as a backing band to the likes of Prince. Simultaneously showing the universal struggles facing independent musicians as well as the specific challenges of escaping their father’s – and his generation’s – shadow, the film is engaging, but does falter a bit in adequately individuating its various subjects’ personalities. Still, Atlas takes on more than the typical music doc often does, offering intriguing musical and political history in Cohran’s story, while maintaining a focus on the present-day concerns of the younger musicians’ careers.

Coming to PBS’s AfroPoP series this coming Monday, February 10: BOYS OF SUMMER

Keith Aumont’s chronicle of Curaçao’s all-star Little League team’s run for the World Series made its debut at the New York International Latino Film Festival in 2010. It went on to screen at New Orleans, the Dominican Republic’s Global Film Festival, Sebastopol Doc, Palm Beach, Austin’s Cine Las Americas, and Utrecht’s Latin American Film Festival, among others.

At the start of Aumont’s film, Curaçao, despite its small size, has sent its all-star team to the Little League World Series for an impressive seven consecutive years. Picking up just six weeks before an important regional Caribbean championship, the film profiles coach Vernon, other supporters, and several of the players as they train and compete to once again make it to their ultimate destination – the World Series. It’s not lost on the subjects that, although they’ve competed at this highest level, they ultimately lost to Japan the previous year. Still, their accomplishments have elevated the team to national heroes, a point of pride for the tiny island nation, and a motivation to succeed. While Aumont generally hews to the line of competition doc conventions, Vernon emerges as a compelling substitute father figure who pushes his charges to never give less than what he knows they’re capable of, and narrative expectations are often upended as the team gets closer to their goal.

Coming to Fusion‘s DocuMental series tomorrow, Saturday, February 8: HOW TO LOSE YOUR VIRGINITY

Therese Shechter’s exploration of the elusive concept of purity made its festival premiere last Fall at Jihlava. It went on to screen at DOC NYC, Cucalorus, and the St John’s International Women’s fest, among others.

I previously wrote about the doc during its crowdfunding campaign here, and for the DOC NYC program guide, saying:
In a culture that has overwhelmingly embraced the dictum “sex sells,” why does the concept of virginity still hold sway? Using her own experiences, filmmaker Therese Shechter humorously explores the chimerical nature of the idea, and how it’s been used to control women’s sexuality and sense of self-worth. The result, drawing from the expertise of vintage sex-ed films, abstinence advocates, and sex educators alike, is a surprising look at virginity’s influence, from purity pledges to porn sub-genres.