Currently browsing the "Documentary" category.
Cave of Forgotten Dreams
Posted by Arty Chick on June 20, 2011
I must begin with this statement: I love Werner Herzog!! If I had to choose a favorite filmmaker in the world it would be he. Beginning with Aguirre: The Wrath of God, his unique way of depicting the world has enthralled me. Most of his films would not be considered mainstream by any stretch, and Cave of Forgotten Dreams is not like anything else out there, but I think it should appeal to a wider audience because it is a portrait of a truly fascinating place, a unique opportunity to step into a cave beautifully decorated more than 30,000 years ago and off limits to most of humankind. In this excellent documentary the audience is allowed a private viewing of the world’s oldest known paintings.
Dumbstruck
Posted by Mainstream Chick on April 23, 2011
Dumbstruck is an okay documentary that suffers from poor execution of a good premise. If you’re into dummies, then by all means, check it out. But if ventriloquists creep you out, take a pass. I really wanted to like this movie, especially because I like to see TV people succeed in their attempts to break into film (the writer/director is Mark Goffman, executive producer of the USA series White Collar; plus, I spotted the name of one of my favorite Top Model editors and former co-workers, Alyssa Clark, as the credits rolled.) Heck, I’d even voted for ventriloquist Terry Fator to win America’s Got Talent a few years back – and I hardly ever vote on that stuff! So really – I wanted to like it! But the film just never came together for me.
Pom Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold
Posted by Mainstream Chick on April 23, 2011
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Morgan Spurlock (Super Size Me) is selling out! Well – sort of. His latest documentary is entirely bankrolled by advertising and product placement. But that’s okay, because the film is all about the proliferation of branding, advertising and product placement in our society. So companies are actually paying him to expose their people and their products to potential ridicule. The movie’s tagline sums it up best: “He’s not selling out. He’s buying in.”
I Am
Posted by Mainstream Chick on March 24, 2011
I Am is one of those documentaries that means well, but bored me to tears. Seriously. Way more than Al Gore’s dry, yet mysteriously compelling Inconvenient Truth powerpoint presentation. I Am features director Tom Shadyac (who made millions from big-budget hits including Ace Ventura, Bruce Almighty and The Nutty Professor) embarking on a personal quest: to ask intellectual and spiritual leaders around the globe, “What’s wrong with our world – and how do we fix it?” A noble quest indeed, but not one that can be accomplished in 76 minutes.
Justin Bieber: Never Say Never
Posted by Mainstream Chick on February 22, 2011
Today’s lesson: Never say ‘never’ to a G-rated documentary about a teenage phenom. Justin Bieber: Never Say Never is actually quite good – even if you aren’t an 8 to 12 year-old-girl stricken with Bieber Fever.
Gasland
Posted by Arty Chick on February 3, 2011
Fracking! That is what Gasland is all about. If you haven’t heard of fracking, you’ll know more than you could imagine after watching this frightening documentary. It all begins when filmmaker Josh Fox gets a notice that a gas company wants to lease the rights to extract natural gas from his pristine land in Eastern Pennsylvania. They are offering him $100,000, which is pretty enticing. So he visits a nearby town Dimock, PA to see how they are doing, since they are already an active drill site. There he sees the first evidence of the immense damage that fracking causes, most dramatically demonstrated when the residents show him that the water coming out of their kitchen faucets can be lit with a match.
Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin’ About Him?)
Posted by Arty Chick on January 4, 2011
Casino Jack and the United States of Money
Posted by Arty Chick on December 16, 2010
Not to be confused with the Casino Jack with Kevin Spacey opening today, Casino Jack and the United States of Money is a documentary, which examines the rise and fall of über-lobbyist Jack Abramoff from his beginnings with the College Republicans to his multi-million dollar deals with Indian Casinos and questionable foreign heads of state, his possible ties to organized crime, and his too close relationships with very powerful politicians which finally brought him down. He was just released last week from a federal prison after serving 3 1/2 years for the defrauding of American Indian tribes and corruption of public officials.
