what (not) to doc

Coming to theatres tomorrow, Friday, March 1:
JOSEPH PULITZER: VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

Director:
Oren Rudavsky

Premiere:
Mill Valley 2018

Select Festivals:
Cleveland, Hot Springs Doc, Thin Line, Sedona, Sebastopol Doc, Atlanta Jewish, New York Jewish

About:
The rags-to-riches story of the Hungarian immigrant turned American media giant.

Known to modern audiences for the journalism award that bears his name, Joseph Pulitzer had a transformative impact on the fourth estate, as detailed in Oren Rudavsky’s well-researched biographical profile. Pulitzer, a Hungarian Jew, emigrated to the US at the age of 17 in 1864, soon made his way to St Louis, and found a job at a local newspaper. Over time, he moved into publishing, acquiring first the St Louis Post-Dispatch and later the New York World, increasing circulation by appealing to a broad readership, championing progressive causes, and challenging powerful figures, including politicians and rival publisher William Randolph Hearst, with whom he engaged in a series of escalating battles of sensationalism to compete for headlines and readership. While the film takes on a somewhat old-fashioned feel with its excessive narration and re-enactments, it does smartly come at a time when journalism is shamefully under fire by the nation’s most powerful elected official, imparting it with a topicality and urgency that makes it a worthwhile watch.

New to DVD and VOD this week:
FLIN FLON: A HOCKEY TOWN

Director:
Dustin Cohen

Premiere:
Cinequest 2018

Select Festivals:
Northwest Fest, Oil Valley, Austin Revolution, Hamilton

About:
A portrait of small Canadian mining town and its local junior hockey league.

Flin Flon, Manitoba – its unusual name borrowed from a character in a 1905 science fiction novel – is a typical remote Canadian town. With a population of approximately 5000, and mining as its main industry, the community does have one claim to fame: the Flin Flon Bombers. This junior hockey team counts among its alumni more than 40 NHL players, including some Hall of Famers. As more than one local explains, everyone in town is obsessed with the Bombers, and the Bombers – aged 18-20 years old, many coming from outside of the community – love their local fans. Dustin Cohen’s film offers up a slice of Canadiana, loosely profiling several members of the team, as well as some residents, resulting in a slight but affectionate profile of a small town and its young athletes.

New to DVD and VOD this week:
WILL WORK FOR VIEWS: THE LO-FI LIFE OF WEIRD PAUL

Directors:
Joseph Litzinger and Eric Michael Schrader

Premiere:
NH Docs 2018

Select Festivals:
Philadelphia Unnamed, Covellite

About:
After 30 years of making funny videos and recording songs, a pre-YouTube vlogger is still looking to catch his big break and make a living off of his work.

Litzinger and Schrader introduce viewers to Paul Petroskey, 45 years old, who has been making videos since the age of 13, initially with an early consumer video camera. Known as Weird Paul, the quirky Petroskey is convinced he will be famous through his work, which includes a range of silly songs/music videos, unusual observations, responding to viewer messages – pretty typical YouTuber fare. The difference here is that he’s been doing this since before the Internet existed, and bills himself as the “original vlogger.” Weird Paul works at a Spencer’s Gifts to make ends meet, but otherwise is obsessive about creating content for his YouTube channel, checking his stats, and reading and responding to comments – but he doesn’t make any money from it. He does have the support of his oddball girlfriend, parents, son from a previous marriage, and local suburban Pennsylvania fans. The film draws from his 30-year archive to give a sense of his humor and output, but primarily is focused on Weird Paul’s excitement over being offered a gig in Hollywood, something he’s always dreamed of, even if it’s not a paid gig. There’s something appealing in Weird Paul’s haplessness and quirkiness, making for a generally watchable portrait of an eccentric personality, but the film remains a surface affair, never generating any real drama or much surprise.

Coming to PBS’s America ReFramed screening series tomorrow, Tuesday, February 26:
LATE BLOSSOM BLUES

Directors:
Wolfgang Pfoser-Almer and Stefan Wolner

Premiere:
Clarksdale 2017

Select Festivals:
Bentonville, Oxford, Diagonale, Asbury Park, Crossing Europe, Doc’n’Roll

About:
A portrait of a bluesman who didn’t emerge on the scene until his 80s.

Leo “Bud” Welch released his debut in 2014, at the age of 81, and became a sensation, playing shows all over the US, Europe, and Africa. Pfoser-Almer and Wolner explore the story behind this late-in-life musical career with this simple, if somewhat overlong, profile of the man and his life in small town Bruce MS. They follow Welch, his manager, Vencie Varnado, and other collaborators as the musician enjoys the realization of his dream of being a professional musician while maintaining a relatively normal life in Bruce and coping with the realities of his advanced age. Of particular note is Welch’s ability to successfully straddle the worlds of gospel and blues – the music of God and the Devil, respectively, as explored here. The good-natured Welch and his unlikely story have a certain appeal, but the doc remains most suited to music fans rather than the general viewer.