Reel Talk: Rolling Documentary Thread 2009

To be honest, I don't have a lot of specific stuff to say until early February, but if anyone wants to speculate about Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca, et al., feel free. I guess I will say this: 2008 was a great year for docs, even though only a handful of my favorites made it to theaters. While there's a lot of great stuff coming out in 2009, I'm not seeing many obvious commercial hits. I actually find this quite exciting; distributors are obviously going to release some docs. It'll be interesting to see which ones actually get picked up...they might have to take some risks.

Anyway, here's the trailer for We Live In Public, the new Ondi Timoner (DiG!) film that's premiering at Sundance. Looks insane!

looking forward to this:

http://www.filmforum.org/films/theater.html

yay a documentaries thread!

wow @ that trailer

Looking forward to this, if it ever gets to London.

http://www.haring.com/universe_of_haring

Has anyone seen teh Soulwax documentary? "Part of the weekend never dies"? Dled it but I have yet to watch it.

Nathalie, I haven't had time to sit down with it yet, but I have good word that it's pretty awesome (I think it's mostly a concert doc?). Maybe a bit long?

James Toback's TYSON picked up by Sony...

Cinema Eye announces shortlist; destroys Oscars shortlist:
AMERICAN TEEN
THE BETRAYAL (NERAKHOON)
ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD
THE ENGLISH SURGEON
FORBIDDEN LIES
IN A DREAM
MAN ON WIRE
MY WINNIPEG
THE ORDER OF MYTHS
ROMAN POLANSKI: WANTED AND DESIRED
STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE
STRANDED, I'VE COME FROM A PLANE THAT CRASHED ON THE MOUNTAINS
TROUBLE THE WATER
UP THE YANGTZE
WALTZ WITH BASHIR

http://www.cinemaeyeawards.com/awards/2009shortlist.html

― Someone Still Loves You Evan and Jaron (Tape Store), Friday, January 9, 2009 3:42 AM (3 days ago)

I get angry during these awards ceremonies when I see celebrities clapping for documentaries. It feels like the only docs they ever back are bad issue documentaries--advocacy over craft. Can anyone think of celebrities who don't fit into that stereotype? Ludacris narrated THE HEART OF THE GAME, I guess...

Jesus, http://www.youtube.com/user/TopDocumentary ("Don't waste your time with blockbuster movies. Educate yourself. Watch documentaries!!!!")

I know I'm just preaching to the choir, but what the fuck? One of my life goals is to help documentary film make it in the box office. Selling them as forms of education? That's not just wrong and stupid, it's the worst advertisement ever.

This film is incredible:

Saw Soulwax doc. Part of my brain died a little bit

lol

Guys, WATCH OUT

Oscar nominations for Best Documentary:

* “The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)” (Cinema Guild), A Pandinlao Films Production, Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
* “Encounters at the End of the World” (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment), A Creative Differences Production, Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser
* “The Garden” A Black Valley Films Production, Scott Hamilton Kennedy
* “Man on Wire” (Magnolia Pictures), A Wall to Wall Production, James Marsh and Simon Chinn
* “Trouble the Water” (Zeitgeist Films), An Elsewhere Films Production, Tia Lessin and Carl Deal

Commence Tape Store complaining.

Commence Morbs agreeing. Standard Operating Procedure ousted.

WHAT THE FUCK?! THE GARDEN!!! JESUS

I should have predicted SOP snub (same subject matter as last year's winner, etc. etc.)

I'm going to be this guy, but what even IS The Garden? I presume it's maudlin and self-important, but what's the subject?

community garden brought so much to the area, but now...it's going to be destroyed?! It's not unbelievably terrible, it's just really mediocre, like the 8th best thing you see at an ok documentary fest.

SXSW announced its slate...(no comment)

The festival I work for has started to announce its slate, too...but a lot of my favorites aren't up yet.

From Eric Daniel Metzgar, the best visual documentary director working today....so gorgeous:

(um, obviously you need to watch the high-quality version, or else that comment doesn't make much sense)

Technically 2008, but I saw Dear Zachary last night and was pretty much a wreck by the end of it.

definitely

I was cowering on my couch from the horror of the story and its shocker-TV aesthetics (complete w/ awful score)

definitely

p.s. the t/f lineup is now up. might be one or two more additions coming.

man, Dear Zachary caught me off guard. Although dr. morbius is right, the monty python animation and treacly music were pretty jarring, but so were the points where his voice cracks during narration.

anyone seen this 1980 horror-shoot doc, Demon Lover Diary? allegedly hilarious:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0206681/

It's playing Sun afternoon at Linc Center.

No, but any imdb entry featuring Ted Nugent ... Himself is promising.

Naw, but I've been wanting to see it for a while now! Especially after watching a mediocre doc about the same sorta topic!

I probably shouldn't start my top ten list until after all the films have premiered, but fwiw, I think it's better than last year's...Morbs, are you going to Tribeca?

i imagine i'll be reviewing some stuff there again.

They'll have some really great docs this year, I think.

Hey guys, you can watch the Order of Myths online for free this week: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/k3rKdcZPsrsXgqXtSS

(The Order of Myths is my second favorite doc of last year, and it just won the Independent Spirit Award Truer than Fiction winner)

It's also on my PBS affiliate right now.

:)

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b361/tapestore/tf.jpg

http://waragainsttheweakmovie.com/

Has anyone seen At the Death House Door?

Is this thing coming out, um, anywhere, um, ever?

we live in public was pretty good

dude is a huge dickwad tho

I'll go ahead and kick off my top docs of 2009 list:

1. Because We Were Born
2. glastonburykids
3. October Country
4. Big River Man
5. Fixer
6. Loot
7. Sounds Like Teen Spirit
8. Necrobusiness
9. Burma VJ
10. War Against the Weak

glastonburykids

I wanted to see Glastonbury Kids but I didn't get to.
I really enjoyed Over the Hills and Far Away.

Oh wow, I'm sorta surprised you went to see OtH! Haven't sat through it yet!

I guess I will say this: 2008 was a great year for docs, even though only a handful of my favorites made it to theaters. While there's a lot of great stuff coming out in 2009, I'm not seeing many obvious commercial hits. I actually find this quite exciting; distributors are obviously going to release some docs. It'll be interesting to see which ones actually get picked up...they might have to take some risks.

― Someone Still Loves You Evan and Jaron (Tape Store), Friday, January 2, 2009 8:21 AM (2 months ago) Bookmark

LOL

Oh wow, I'm sorta surprised you went to see OtH! Haven't sat through it yet!
It was a happy coincidence. I was music managing at the Blue Note on Sunday morning and it happened to be the film that they were showing. The guys in the band said that they were gonna stick around and watch it, so I thought I would, too. I'm really glad I did!

OK, I'll definitely check it out now. Thanksss!

When it comes to documentaries, I much prefer this year to last year.

2

wht did ppl think of the september issue? poor director never really got much insight into wintour and to his credit seems to have realised this himself and made grace the real star

that's an accurate reading of the film. but grace is awesome!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhfzvzKm_xk

lol tape store fwiw there are no jokes this shitty in the actual film honest

I certainly hope not!

I wish critics had the balls to slam this: http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/afterthestorm

and no offense michael i think you're sweet and talented but also this: http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/paradise

Wait, I just assumed, everyone in NYC knows about Stranger Than Fiction, right?

http://stfdocs.com/

Make a point of seeing LOOT, COLONY and HOW TO FOLD A FLAG. Sorry I was too late to mention OCTOBER COUNTRY...

alright, so now that the US festival season is over, it's time to officially start reflecting on documentary in the 2000s. i think the genre has grown so much this decade, and i think it's going to grow even more in the 2010s.

but temporarily leaving behind the projections, what were your favorite films?

i'll submit a full list soon, but off the top of my head, these are easily some of the greatest non-fiction films ever made:
the mother
the order of myths
iraq in fragments
because we were born
the monastery
summercamp!
forbidden lie$
my winnipeg
billy the kid
man on wire
manda bala (send a bullet)
running stumbled
wisconsin death trip
loot
october country

I probably shouldn't start my top ten list until after all the films have premiered, but fwiw, I think it's better than last year's...

in retrospect, this is bullshit. but 2008 might have been the best year for documentaries...

These are the docs I remember liking this decade.

The American Nightmare
Bright Leaves
Bus 174
The Case of the Grinning Cat
Cinevardaphoto
Dave Chappelle's Block Party
Decasia
Domestic Violence
The Joy of Life
The Life of Reilly
Los Angeles Plays Itself
The Master and His Pupil
My Winnipeg
Remembrance of Things to Come

... and La Commune (Paris, 1871) and the two Jackass movies, to an extent.

Color me surprised that my decade top 100 will likely have about 10 to 12 docs.

My Winnipeg is in no way a doc! It's an autobiographical fantasia.

Neither are The Joy of Life and Decasia, to my eyes.

TS, I've seen 4 of the films on your list, but while only one made me sort of ill (Man on Wire), the other 3 (the order of myths, iraq in fragments, billy the kid) are not remotely great.

morbs, i think we've established that you have shitty taste

yeah, prettifying Baghdad burning is right up there w/ Flaherty and Wiseman.

Oh, and Eric, that's a v nice list.

um, if all that you got out of iraq in fragments is 'pretty,' i'm pretty sure you fell asleep

and nanook is very good, but there are (easily) 100 better documentaries from this decade

This is probably an unadventurous list but whatever, I liked all these:

Grizzly Man
Spellbound
Man on Wire
Capturing the Friedmans
Wordplay
Metallica: Some Kind of Monster
Jonestown: The Life and Death of People's Temple
Dear Zachary
My Kid Could Paint That
49 Up

Los Angeles Plays Itself A+

My definition of doc is very loose, Morbs, just like your definition of funny.

So long as no one mentions/lists Born Into Brothels, we'll all be copacetic.

Los Angeles Plays Itself A+

I missed this in both its original run and the one time it's screened here since. Hope it comes back at some point, since it will probably never be on DVD, right?

No, legal issues x 1000000 make it an extremely long shot. Worth torrenting though.

Oh, that never even occurred to me! (I only started torrenting TV shows recently.)

So long as no one mentions/lists Born Into Brothels, we'll all be copacetic.

― boring movies are the most boring (Eric H.), Tuesday, October 13, 2009 5:41 PM (2 hours ago) Bookmark

lolllll, otm

didnt see BintoB, but I can't imagine it's worse than Dear Zachary.

dear zachary is an incredible (sic) shitty documentary, much much better than brothels

t/s: brothels vs. the cove

Overlooked from '02: Stevie, by one of the Hoop Dreams guys.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0334416/

btw, for those curious...2010:
looking d.o.p.e.

I watched King of Kong tonight.

DEAR NYC,
See Loot on Monday at IFC:

Special NYC Sneak Preview of LOOT!
Mon, Nov 2 at 8 pm
and LOOT opens for a week at IFC starting on Nov 20th!

(one of my favorite docs of the year)

http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/exclusive/sonic_youths.php

Damn, no way in hell Oscars will come close to touching Cinema Eye this year: http://www.cinemaeyehonors2010.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/ceh2010-pr.pdf

Well, no, not with only two doc categories they're not.

Well, I mean, even the best picture nods! LOOT and OCTOBER COUNTRY are both in my top five of the year, and neither has a chance at the Oscars.

I know. I'm just saying Oscar obviously doesn't think as highly of the form as you do.

I'm not sure anyone thinks of the form as highly as you do.

sorta random clip, but hey, i can finally show you that BECAUSE WE WERE BORN exists:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x81jcr_puisque-nous-sommes-nes-extrait-n2_shortfilms

cleaner look: http://www.cinemaeyehonors2010.com/nominated-films-for-2010

I do like seeing Varda and Davies mentioned in the director category. Fat chance that will ever happen at the Oscars, et al.

Oscar shortlist:

* The Beaches of Agnes, Agnès Varda, director (Cine-Tamaris)
* Burma VJ, Anders Østergaard, director (Magic Hour Films)
* The Cove, Louie Psihoyos, director (Oceanic Preservation Society)
* Every Little Step, James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo, directors (Endgame Entertainment)
* Facing Ali, Pete McCormack, director (Network Films Inc.)
* Food, Inc., Robert Kenner, director (Robert Kenner Films)
* Garbage Dreams, Mai Iskander, director (Iskander Films, Inc.)
* Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors Without Borders, Mark N. Hopkins, director (Red Floor Pictures LLC)
* The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers, Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith, directors (Kovno Communications)
* Mugabe and the White African, Andrew Thompson and Lucy Bailey, directors (Arturi Films Limited)
* Sergio, Greg Barker, director (Passion Pictures and Silverbridge Productions)
* Soundtrack for a Revolution, Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman, directors (Freedom Song Productions)
* Under Our Skin, Andy Abrahams Wilson, director (Open Eye Pictures)
* Valentino The Last Emperor, Matt Tyrnauer, director (Acolyte Films)
* Which Way Home, Rebecca Cammisa, director (Mr. Mudd)

no anvil?? :(

Also no The September Issue.

so far I've only seen Varda and Ellsberg. Guessing Food Inc could win it.

Dear NYC,
You should seriously see LOOT and BIG RIVER MAN: http://www.ifccenter.com/

http://www.lootmovie.com/trailer.php?page=trailer

Ignore the reviews of LOOT, which seriously piss me off. Here's Karina Longworth on it:
"Darius Marder’s feature debut, which debuts on HBO in May, tracks two WWII veterans in their longshot quests to recover pillages valuables hidden since the end of the war. As much a film about the vagaries of memory and post-traumatic stress as it is a portrait of the charismatic car salesman-turned-treasure hunter who guides the veterans (one legally blind, the other blinded by his own hoarding habit), what’s most impressive about Loot is the way the narrative unfolds so effortlessly, with impeccable timing. It’s absolutely a once-in-a-lifetime story, which is not to say that the filmmaker simply got lucky: Marder doesn’t appear in the film or offer narration, but his presence, patience and diligence, his innate understanding of how to hook an audience, is felt in every frame."

And AJ of Alll These Wonderful Things:
"A thoroughly surprising, beautifully rendered look at loss and discovery that is as fresh and unexpected as the great, lost, no-star, indie narratives of the 1990s. Its provocative hook - a documentary about a treasure hunter - could almost overwhelm the simple, low key and alternately devastating and satisfying pleasures of this under-the-radar film. Despite its jury triumph in Los Angeles (and the check that came with it), the film has kept a low profile through the fall but it deserves full exposure as a fresh and provocative take on the nonfiction genre. A huge debut for director Marder."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ce432_JmdB8
Manohla on BIG RIVER MAN: http://movies.nytimes.com/2009/12/04/movies/04bigriver.html?hpw
Robert Koehler: http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117939358.html?categoryid=31&cs=1

In the last few days, probably in an end of year article, but possibly on ILX, I read a great two/three word description of spurlocky low concept contrived situation vanity documentary type things. although it may not have been referring to spurlock. does anyone have any idea what i read or where i read it? (!)

idk! but if you find it, plz bump

in other news, dear critics, a documentary isn't necessarily journalism and usually the best ones aren't! This is the reason why I hate people like Stephen Holden, who criticized PRESSURE COOKER because it didn't answer questions about how the teacher selects the class recipes (!!!) (and for the record, as is the case with most crowd pleasers, I think you could write a totally reasonable scathing review of that film, Holden didn't)
Here's a new, perhaps slightly subtler example: http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=4676
Now, it's hard to say because he doesn't really get into a whole lot of specifics, but a film doesn't have to answer factual questions, and in the case of this film, it seems to me like Marder very much intentionally left questions unanswered. If he had answered those questions, it would not only make the movie more didactic and less cinematic, it would also ruin the film's focus on memory, fate, haunted pasts, etc.
Hope some NYC ilxor gives it a chance.

BIG RIVER man is amazing

i read a great article about that dude in monocle (lol yuppie)

and it's on KG. will check it out.

hey guys you can now watch THE MOTHER on The Auteurs
<3 <3 <3
let me know what you think