Coming to ESPN tomorrow, Tuesday, July 13:
BREAKAWAY
Director:
Rudy Valdez
World Premiere:
ESPN 30 for 30 (July 2021)
About:
Maya Moore, one of the best basketball players in the world, steps away from the sport for a remarkable reason: to fight for a man she believes was wrongly imprisoned.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to Netflix tomorrow, Tuesday, July 13:
NAOMI OSAKA
Director:
Garrett Bradley
World Premiere:
AFI Docs 2021
About:
What does it feel like to be one of the best tennis players in the world?
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to PBS’s POV tonight, Monday, July 12:
LANDFALL
Director:
Cecilia Aldarondo
World Premiere:
Tribeca 2020 (unscreened)
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, New Orleans, BlackStar, IDFA, Florida, Boston Latino, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Philadelphia Latino, Guanajuato, Camden
About:
A poetic look at Puerto Rico as the island faces new challenges in the aftermath of Hurricane María.
The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
An intimate and lyrical portrait of trauma, resilience, and resistance in Puerto Rico at a time when economic, political, and ecological forces post-Hurricane María have created a breeding ground for new predatory colonial practices. Told through the experiences of a close-knit community of hopeful and politicized people and through the encounters with cryptocurrency traders, luxury real estate developers, and newcomers flooding the island, Cecilia Aldarondo’s film raises vital questions about identity, survival, and recolonization.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to VOD today, Friday, July 9:
THE LIBRARY THAT DOLLY BUILT
Director:
Nick Geidner
World Premiere:
Facebook Live (December 2020)
About:
A behind-the-scenes look at Dolly Parton’s literacy-focused non-profit, Imagination Library.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to MUBI this Sunday, July 11:
ON THE STARTING LINE
Director:
Aldemar Matias
World Premiere:
Berlin 2019
Select Festivals:
Rio, Uruguay, It’s All True, Montevideo
About:
A young Cuban athlete and her mother struggle with an uncertain future.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to Film Forum today, Friday, July 9:
THE WITCHES OF THE ORIENT
Director:
Julien Faraut
World Premiere:
Rotterdam 2021
Select Festivals:
Documentary Fortnight, Jeonju, Midnight Sun
About:
United by their jobs in a textile factory, a Japanese women’s volleyball team chases absolute perfection—and finds international superstardom—representing postwar Japan on the 1964 Olympic stage.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, July 9:
THE LONELIEST WHALE: THE SEARCH FOR 52
Director:
Joshua Zeman
World Premiere:
Nantucket 2021
Select Festivals:
Boulder
About:
In this fascinating story about isolation and interconnection, the filmmaker and a team of intrepid scientists set out on a wild quest to find the 52 Hertz Whale, which has spent its entire life calling out at a frequency that is different from any other whale.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to Rooftop Films tomorrow, Friday, July 9:
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.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to theatres today, Wednesday, July 7:
THE PRICE OF FREEDOM
Director:
Judd Ehrlich
World Premiere:
Tribeca 2021
About:
A deep dive into American gun culture and the increasing force of political influence played by the NRA to challenge gun control legislation.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to VOD via Film Movement+ this Friday, July 9:
OVER THE LIMIT
Director:
Marta Prus
Premiere:
IDFA 2017
Select Festivals:
Hot Docs, Moscow Doc, Visions du Reél, DOK.fest Munich, DocsBarcelona, Zagreb Dox, Krakow, Docpoint, Göteborg, Thessaloniki Doc, One World, Ambulante
About:
A brutally candid look at a rhythmic gymnast’s Olympic training.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
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