Category Archives: Releases

January 31, 2022 · 12:01 PM

On TV: MISSING IN BROOKS COUNTY

Coming to PBS’s Independent Lens tonight, Monday, January 31:
MISSING IN BROOKS COUNTY

Director:
Lisa Molomot, Jeff Bemiss

World Premiere:
Dallas Docufest 2020

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Double Exposure, United Nations Association, Hot Springs Doc, Rocky Mountain Women’s, Fargo, Salem, Sonoma, Thin Line, Cleveland, Annapolis, Ashland, Sarasota, RiverRun, Mountainfilm

About:
The deadly consequences of America’s immigration policy are revealed in a Texan border town.

I previously wrote about the doc here.

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January 19, 2022 · 12:46 PM

On TV: WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT COSBY

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

Coming to Showtime Sunday, January 30:
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT COSBY

Director:
W Kamau Bell

World Premiere:
Sundance 2022

About:
Can you separate the art from the artist? Should you even try? While there are many people about whom we could ask those questions, none poses a tougher challenge than Bill Cosby.

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January 19, 2022 · 12:01 PM

Streaming: FEELS GOOD MAN

Coming to MUBI Friday, January 28:
FEELS GOOD MAN

Director:
Arthur Jones

World Premiere:
Sundance 2020

Select Festivals:
True/False, SXSW, Big Sky Doc, Taipei, Fantasia, Sidewalk, Kyiv

About:
An exploration of the unpredictable development of an influential Internet meme.

My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.

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January 19, 2022 · 11:15 AM

In Theatres: THE CONDUCTOR

Coming to theatres Thursday, January 27:
THE CONDUCTOR

Director:
Bernadette Wegenstein

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2021

Select Festivals:
SF Jewish, United Nations Association, Luneberg Doc, Global Peace

About:
Leonard Bernstein’s protégée Marin Alsop reveals how she smashed the glass ceiling to become an internationally renowned conductor.

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January 19, 2022 · 10:30 AM

On VOD: HAMTRAMCK, USA

Coming to VOD next Tuesday, January 25:
HAMTRAMCK, USA

Director:
Razi Jafri, Justin Feltman

World Premiere:
SXSW 2020 (unscreened)

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, DOXA, Sarasota, St Louis, CAAMFest, Melbourne Doc, Virginia

About:
An election in America’s first majority Muslim city splits the community along ethnic lines.

The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
Formerly a solid Polish Catholic town, Hamtramck MI is America’s first majority Muslim city. During one election cycle, popular incumbent Karen Majewski faces Muslim challenger Mohammed Hassan for mayor, and the typically harmonious, culturally commingling community begins to split along ethnic lines. Going behind the scenes of small-town politics to explore the beauty and challenges that come with multiculturalism, Razi Jafri and Justin Feltman’s film is a heartwarming reminder that civility and respect can coexist in our political races.

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January 19, 2022 · 9:45 AM

Streaming: PRISM

Coming to OVID.tv Friday, January 28:
PRISM

Director:
Eléonore Yameogo, An van Dienderen, Rosine Mbakam

World Premiere:
New York 2021

About:
The lighting for movie cameras has always been calibrated for white skin; three filmmakers collectively explore the literal, theoretical, and philosophical dimensions of that reality in this discursive, playful, and profound work of nonfiction.

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January 18, 2022 · 12:46 PM

On DVD & Streaming: GORBACHEV. HEAVEN

Coming to DVD Tuesday, January 25 and to OVID.tv Friday, January 28:
GORBACHEV. HEAVEN

Director:
Vitaly Mansky

World Premiere:
IDFA 2020

Select Festivals:
Visions du Réel, Docaviv, Dokufest, Tallinn Black Nights, Sofia, Hong Kong, BelDocs, Docs Against Gravity

About:
Gorbachev, the architect of glasnost and perestroika, but condemned by his own people, lives out the last days of his life in an empty house in the suburbs near Moscow.

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January 18, 2022 · 12:01 PM

Streaming: THERE WILL BE NO MORE NIGHT

Coming to MUBI Tuesday, January 25:
THERE WILL BE NO MORE NIGHT

Director:
Eléonore Weber

World Premiere:
Indielisboa 2020

Select Festivals:
IDFA, Camden, Cinema du Reel, Jihlava, DOXA

About:
Footage from the frontlines of the French and American armies in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, are explored with pilot Pierre V as he examines – and admits – his emotions. This cinematic experiment unveils the darker secrets of that which can be seen through the unique lens of the military viewfinder.

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January 18, 2022 · 11:15 AM

On DVD: DICK JOHNSON IS DEAD

Coming to DVD via The Criterion Collection Tuesday, January 25:
DICK JOHNSON IS DEAD

Director:
Kirsten Johnson

World Premiere:
Sundance 2020

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, True/False, CPH:DOX, Doc10

About:
The filmmaker approaches her father’s mortality with inventiveness and dark humor.

My pre-Sundance profile of the doc may be found here.

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January 18, 2022 · 10:30 AM

On DVD: BECOMING HELEN KELLER

Coming to DVD Tuesday, January 25:
BECOMING HELEN KELLER

Director:
Michael Pressman

World Premiere:
American Masters PBS broadcast (October 2021)

About:
An exploration of the complex life and legacy of the author, advocate, and human rights pioneer, Helen Keller, who used her celebrity and wit to champion rights for women, people with disabilities, and people living in poverty.

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