Thread: All Things : Documentaries

Most of those look like they'd be hard to watch, but the one about H.H. Holmes I feel like I gotta check out.

Watch: Trailer For Werner Herzog’s Death Row Documentary ‘Into The Abyss’

Review: ‘Crime After Crime’ Is A Haunting Portrait Of A Domestic Violence Victim Behind Bars > The Playlist

So, um guys, the OWN Documentary Club is kicking ass in its film selections. We know OWN is the channel your mom watches, but the documentaries it features are excellent films that have received festival runs, critical acclaim, and can’t be seen on a large national stage anywhere else. It’s a great outlet for those documentary films that contain years of work by the filmmakers and don’t see the kind of distribution they deserve. The access alone is one reason why the OWN Documentary Club is worth the while—any distribution for documentaries is needed—but also because they’ve sported some home run choices in their selections. The woman knows how to pick good stuff after all, and “Crime After Crime,” funded in part by the Sundance Documentary Film Program, is another bases loaded, out of the park hit for documentary fans. Following the years-long appeal to release the illegally incarcerated Deborah Peagler from her 25 to life sentence, the film is a devastating portrait of the power of the human spirit, and a searing indictment of the broken criminal justice system that will leave audiences in a puddle on the floor.

...

With filming starting in 2002, this film covers the better part of a decade in this woman’s fight, and it’s a fitting tribute to the unlikely spokesmodel for the roughly 100,000 female victims of domestic violence who are behind bars today. Her story is one that needs to be told, and despite all of the adversity, it’s a haunting portrait of Debbie Peagler’s life, and we owe it to her to bear witness. Just don’t forget the tissues. [A]

Werner Herzog And Mr. Beaks Gaze INTO THE ABYSS!
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Watch: Trailer For The Extensive PBS Presentation 'Woody Allen: A Documentary' | Filmmakers, Film Industry, Film Festivals, Awards & Movie Reviews | indieWIRE

Produced by Brett Ratner (for real), and directed by Robert Weide ("How To Lose Friends And Alienate People," "Lenny Bruce: Swear to Tell the Truth"), "Woody Allen: A Documentary" goes behind the scenes with Allen into his home, onto his film sets, and even to his childhood haunts in Brooklyn in what promises to be an exhaustive look at a director who generally keeps his personal life, well, personal. Weide spent considerable time with Allen, following him through the making of "You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger" right up until to the Cannes premiere of "Midnight In Paris." And if that didn't tip you off, this thing is comprehensive as hell.

Among those being interviewed for the two-part, three and a half hour doc (including Allen himself)? Antonio Banderas, Josh Brolin, Penelope Cruz, John Cusack, Larry David, Mariel Hemingway, Scarlett Johansson, Julie Kavner, Diane Keaton, Martin Landau, Sean Penn, Chris Rock, Mira Sorvino, Naomi Watts, Dianne Wiest, Owen Wilson; writing collaborators Marshall Brickman, Mickey Rose and Doug McGrath; cinematographers Gordon Willis and Vilmos Zsigmond; Allen’s sister Letty Aronson; longtime manager Jack Rollins; casting director Juliet Taylor; pals Dick Cavett and Martin Scorsese and more.

So yeah, this is nothing short of a must see. "Woody Allen: A Documentary" airs November 20th from 9 to 11 pm, and November 21st from 9 to 10:30 pm. Set your DVRS.

Trailer is not embedd-able, so go to the link to watch it if you're interested.

Watch: Trailer For Roger Corman Doc 'Corman's World: Exploits Of A Hollywood Rebel' | Filmmakers, Film Industry, Film Festivals, Awards & Movie Reviews | indieWIRE

Lucky for us director Alex Stapleton has commemorated the prolific filmmaker with "Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel," a terrific documentary about his career featuring interviews from all of the aforementioned icons. He may have produced his fair share of schlock but he also allowed filmmakers and actors the freedom to produce the kinds of subversive films that never would have gotten greenlit at a major studio. It's a candid, funny and educational doc that was one of this writer's favorite films at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and should be on every cinephile's viewing list. The film will be released in select theaters on December 16th via Anchor Bay Films who have just released a trailer and poster, both of which you can see below.

Review: Werner Herzog Analyzes Life & Death In 'Into The Abyss' | Filmmakers, Film Industry, Film Festivals, Awards & Movie Reviews | indieWIRE

Herzog ultimately manages to take a breed of documentary, which has nestled for too long in its lack of ambition, in a different direction. He comes out the other side with a deep, uncomfortable, oddly-toned rumination on life -- both pleasing enough to those who enjoy the standard truTV offerings and others interested in munching on a bit more substance. This writer is kind of baffled at the film's lukewarm reception (some reviews seem a little too critically vicious); yes, compared to his mostly fantastic resume "Into the Abyss" seems relatively minor. But evaluated on its own strengths and merits it's an absolutely worthy film, containing subtle insights into various facets of mortality. Apparently the German director has more of these on his plate. We say bring'em on. [B]

OSCARS: 15 Documentary Features Make Academy’s First Cut

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 15 films in the Documentary Feature category will advance in the voting process for the 84th Academy Awards®. One hundred twenty-four pictures had originally qualified in the category. The 15 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production company:

“Battle for Brooklyn” (RUMER Inc.)
“Bill Cunningham New York” (First Thought Films)
“Buck” (Cedar Creek Productions)
“Hell and Back Again” (Roast Beef Productions Limited)
“If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front” (Marshall Curry Productions, LLC)
“Jane’s Journey” (NEOS Film GmbH & Co. KG)
“The Loving Story” (Augusta Films)
“Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory” (@radical.media)
“Pina” (Neue Road Movies GmbH)
“Project Nim” (Red Box Films)
“Semper Fi: Always Faithful” (Tied to the Tracks Films, Inc.)
“Sing Your Song” (S2BN Belafonte Productions, LLC)
“Undefeated” (Spitfire Pictures)
“Under Fire: Journalists in Combat” (JUF Pictures, Inc.)
“We Were Here” (Weissman Projects, LLC)

The Documentary Branch Screening Committee viewed all the eligible documentaries for the preliminary round of voting. Documentary Branch members will now select the five nominees from among the 15 titles on the shortlist.

No Senna? Wow.

They made two other Paradise Lost docs? I watched the first one and liked it because I was just fascinated with that case.

And because I was out to lunch, lol, I missed the Allen doc. *sigh*

AND Roger Corman is a god among men.