Coming to DVD today, Tuesday, April 14: ANTARCTICA: A YEAR ON ICE
Anthony Powell’s exploration of life at the South Pole debuted at New Zealand International Film Festival in 2013. Fest berths have included Calgary, Anchorage, Cleveland, and Thin Line, among others.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to VOD today, Tuesday, April 14: MISERY LOVES COMEDY
Kevin Pollak’s survey of the work behind stand-up comedy debuted at Sundance this year. It will also screen at Tribeca next week. The doc comes to iTunes now, followed by a limited theatrical engagement later this month.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens tonight, Monday, April 13: THE HOMESTRETCH
Anne de Mare and Kirsten Kelly’s profile on teen homelessness debuted at Hot Docs last year. Screenings followed at AFI Docs, Citizen Jane, Indie Memphis, Human Rights Watch, and Hot Springs, among others.
I previously wrote about the doc here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to HBO tonight, Monday, April 13: LIVING WITH LINCOLN
Peter Kunhardt and Brian Oakes’ look at one family’s role in preserving a presidential legacy makes its debut as part of the cable network’s popular nonfiction programming.
The family in question is Kunhardt’s own, making this a personal exploration of five generations of familial duty to “the collection,” a largely photo-based archive of all things Abraham Lincoln that was begun by the director’s great-grandfather, Frederick Hill Meserve. Born the same year the Civil War ended, Meserve started amassing his collection to illustrate his father’s war diaries, and soon found himself in possession of the definitive photographic record of the 16th US President, iconic images that would go on to serve as the basis of our popular conception of his likeness on Mt Rushmore, the $5 bill, and the penny. But Kunhardt, who narrates the film, discusses Meserve’s role as the originator of the collection, his focus is largely on Meserve’s primary collaborator, his daughter Dorothy, Peter Kunhardt’s grandmother. Dorothy, a children’s book author and illustrator best known for PAT THE BUNNY, emerges as a fascinating figure full of ideas and aspirations but also possessed of stifling self-doubt that long delayed her book about Lincoln’s assassination. Interwoven with her story is that of Lincoln and his own relationship with his family, as revealed through the historical collection. While the juxtapositions are sometimes a bit clunky and perhaps indulge in some overly speculative psychologizing, Kunhardt’s film still succeeds in conveying the deep significance – and costs – of this generational duty on the Meserve-Kunhardt family.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to theatres this Friday, April 10: SONG FROM THE FOREST
Michael Obert’s portrait of a return to Western civilization debuted at IDFA in 2013. Other fest screenings have included DOC NYC, SXSW, ZagrebDox, Thessaloniki Doc, London, Cleveland, It’s All True, Planete + Doc, DOXA, Pan African, !f Istanbul, and Camden.
I previously wrote about the film for DOC NYC’s program:
Drawn to the Central African Republic to study the songs of the Bayaka pygmies 25 years ago, American musicologist Louis Sarno abandoned modern civilization to join the tribe and start a family. Fulfilling a long-standing promise to show his teenager, Samedi, the world, father and son trade the rainforest for the concrete jungle and travel to New York City, visiting family and friends like Louis’ college roommate, director Jim Jarmusch. While Samedi takes it all in, Louis, surprisingly, is the one who becomes the fish out of water.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to theatres this Friday, April 10: IN COUNTRY
Mike Attie and Meghan O’Hara’s profile of an unlikely pastime debuted at Full Frame last year. It went on to screen at DOC NYC, Hot Docs, CPH:DOX, and Camden, among other events.
I previously wrote about the film for DOC NYC’s program:
By now, the idea of Civil War re-enactment is familiar, but the subjects of Mike Attie and Meghan O’Hara’s intriguing film relive the battles of a far more surprising conflict: Vietnam. Drawing a mix of combat enthusiasts, Iraq War soldiers, actual Vietnam veterans, and even a former South Vietnamese Army officer, this band of brothers regularly recreates – by choice – a war that a whole generation would rather forget. What lies behind their compulsion to restage an unpopular war: therapy, nostalgia or something else?
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, April 7: MONK WITH A CAMERA
Guido Santi and Tina Mascara’s portrait of a wealthy photographer’s road to enlightenment had its world premiere at IDFA in 2013. It went on to screen at Palm Springs, Ashland, Full Frame, Cleveland, Documentary Edge, and Sedona, among others.
I previously wrote about the doc upon its theatrical release here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
Coming to DVD tomorrow, Tuesday, April 7: HAPPY VALLEY
Amir Bar-Lev’s examination of the Penn State scandal’s impact on the local community made its debut at Sundance last year. Its festival circuit included Nantucket, DOC NYC, Hamptons, Camden, Traverse City, BAMcinemaFest, Philadelphia, Sarasota, True/False, and Nashville, among others.
I profiled the doc before Sundance here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Film Festivals, Recommendations, Releases, Sundance
Coming to DVD next Tuesday, April 7: MAD AS HELL
Andrew Napier’s chronicle of the rise of Cenk Uygur and the Young Turks had its world premiere at Hot Docs last year. Other screenings have included Tallgrass and Santa Barbara.
I previously wrote about the doc upon its theatrical release here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Recommendations, Releases
Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens this coming Monday, April 6: LITTLE HOPE WAS ARSON
Theo Love’s investigation into the burning of East Texan churches premiered at Slamdance last year. It went on to screen at Cucalorus, Austin, Heartland, Big Sky, Portland, Omaha, Red Rock, and Lone Star, among others
I previously wrote about the doc upon its theatrical release here.
Filed under Documentary, Film, Releases
