Coming to Showtime this Sunday, August 30:
LOVE FRAUD
Directors:
Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing
World Premiere:
Sundance 2020
About:
An investigation of a notorious serial fraudster through the women he’s seduced, robbed, and abandoned.
I profiled the docuseries before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to VOD today, Friday, August 28:
YOU CANNOT KILL DAVID ARQUETTE
Directors:
David Darg and Price James
World Premiere:
SXSW 2020
Select Festivals:
Fantasia
About:
Actor David Arquette seeks redemption in the wrestling ring.
Twenty years ago, to promote his wrestling comedy READY TO RUMBLE, Arquette worked with World Championship Wrestling to develop a storyline in which he enters the wrestling world, playing an exaggerated, entitled version of himself, only to quickly win the heavyweight title. For die-hard wrestling fans, this was a step too far – a disrespectful, “unfair” blemish on their beloved “sport.” In the intervening years, Arquette’s once-promising acting career has faltered. As David Darg and Price James’ film opens, Arquette has recently had a heart attack and is out of shape, yet this is the time that he chooses to re-enter the world of wrestling, which he genuinely loves, to seek redemption and prove all the haters wrong. As the directors follow him in his quest – which involve several scenes that feel as staged as professional wrestling itself, but also a few which show the legitimate damage he puts his body through – the viewer is left wondering if the entire thing is a promotional stunt.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to HBO Max tonight, Thursday, August 27:
CLASS ACTION PARK
Directors:
Chris Charles Scott and Seth Porges
World Premiere:
Florida 2020
Select Festivals:
Fantasia, Indie Street, Docville
About:
A look back at NJ’s notorious amusement park, Action Park.
Located in Vernon NJ, just 50 miles away from NYC, Action Park was a regular attraction for families and teens from the late 1970s through the mid-1990s. As revealed in Chris Charles Scott and Seth Porges’ infectiously enjoyable revisitation of the site’s heyday, Action Park was also likely the world’s most dangerous amusement park, with patrons regularly suffering injuries both minor and major, and, in many cases, death. Drawing on a parade of past attendees, former staff, and Vernon residents, the film indulges the audience in a wild recounting of the highs and lows of Action Park – the Wild West, no-holds-barred freedom that attracted die-hard fans, but also the shocking lack of even basic security precautions that resulted in far too many accidents, and, intriguingly, the story of Gene Mulvihill, the shady owner that made it all possible. While not the most polished production, this memorable film successfully evokes nostalgia for a lost era when kids could enjoy the thrill and adventure of unsupervised play and parents didn’t live in constant fear.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to virtual cinemas tomorrow, Friday, August 28:
HOUSE OF CARDIN
Directors:
P David Ebersole and Todd Hughes
World Premiere:
Venice 2019
Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Chicago, Frameline, Provincetown, Palm Springs, Cleveland, RiverRun, Outfest
About:
A portrait of legendary fashion designer Pierre Cardin.
The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
Pierre Cardin forever changed fashion in multiple ways: He freed women from figure-molded clothes and introduced new shapes, styles, and colors; he was a pioneer in crossing over from haute couture to ready-to-wear; and he brought his designs to multiple products beyond clothes. Drawing on Cardin’s archives and insightful interviews with the designer himself, filmmakers P David Ebersole and Todd Hughes provide a lively, entertaining, and joyous overview of his contributions to the world of fashion and beyond.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to CNN this Saturday, August 29:
AFTER TRUTH: DISINFORMATION AND THE COST OF FAKE NEWS
Director:
Andrew Rossi
World Premiere:
SXSW 2020
About:
An investigation into the development, dissemination, and impact of conspiracy theories and fake news.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to select theatres and to virtual cinemas this Friday, August 28:
MR SOUL!
Director:
Melissa Haizlip
Co-Director:
Sam Pollard
World Premiere:
Tribeca 2018
Select Festivals:
Hot Docs, True/False, AFI Docs, New Orleans, Rotterdam, Durban, BlackStar, Urbanworld, Pan African, Los Angeles, Chicago, Denver, London, Indie Memphis, Woodstock, Heartland
About:
A portrait of the pioneer behind SOUL!, the acclaimed African-American public television cultural variety show.
Between 1968-1973, NYC’s public television station produced SOUL!, a weekly performance-oriented variety program made by and primarily for African-American audiences. The show quickly grew in popularity, drawing regular viewership by more than half of African-American households across the nation. At the heart of SOUL! was its creator and host, Ellis Haizlip, whose forward thinking approach to shining the spotlight on Black culture introduced audiences to a wide range of artists and thinkers, from popular singers and avant-garde jazz performers to outspoken poets and controversial political activists. Haizlip emerges as an intriguing, singular figure, an openly gay man who rejected the showboating of the traditional host role but whose insightful interviewing skills and curatorial acumen gave the program its revolutionary edge. Here, his niece, Melissa Haizlip, crafts an illuminating and fascinating portrait not only of her uncle, but of his landmark program, fondly remembered by a generation influenced by its positive representation and message of uplift and excellence – but largely unknown to viewers who came of age after 1973, when political pressures from the Nixon administration forced its cancellation. This portrait, with its extensive footage from the show, helps re-establish SOUL!’s vital position in cultural history.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to virtual cinemas this Friday, August 28:
EPICENTRO
Director:
Hubert Sauper
World Premiere:
Sundance 2020
Select Festivals:
CPH:DOX, Docaviv, Dokufest, Vienna
About:
A meditation on postcolonial Cuba.
My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to virtual cinemas tomorrow, Wednesday, August 26:
NOMAD: IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF BRUCE CHATWIN
Director:
Werner Herzog
World Premiere:
Tribeca 2019
Select Festivals:
Telluride, Sheffield, Vancouver, Rome, Doclisboa, Rio, Palm Springs
About:
A personal reflection on the master filmmaker’s friendship with the late English travel writer and adventurer.
Though Bruce Chatwin passed away in 1989, his friendship has clearly left an indelible mark on Werner Herzog. In this homage, the German filmmaker sets out on a quest of sorts, revisiting locations notable to Chatwin, or in some way linking their kindred spirits. In separate chapters, titled after Chatwin’s books, Herzog travels from Patagonia, the site of a family legend that inspired Chatwin’s adventurous career; to the Australian outback, where Chatwin studied Aboriginal songlines; while also featuring him in conversation with Chatwin’s widow and biographer. While not amongst Herzog’s most accomplished projects, this tribute maintains his signature style and has its own smaller-scale appeal.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, August 25:
ON PUTIN’S BLACKLIST
Director:
Boris Ivanov
Premiere:
Vancouver 2017
About:
An investigation of Russia’s foreign adoption ban and what it reveals about the nation’s broader international politics.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Photo by Robert M Nielsen
Directors:
Puloma Basu and Rob Hatch-Miller
World Premiere:
Tribeca 2019
Select Festivals:
Montclair, Maryland, Calgary, Vancouver, Nashville, Cork, St Louis, Sound Unseen, Cleveland
About:
A love letter to the now-shuttered NYC record store institution.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
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