Documentary recommendations

Grizzly Man

… about a very, very strange man who decided to live among grizzly bears. With
tragic results. It is not violent and it isn’t even all that much about grizzlies.
It is more a profile of an odd, alienated person. Don’t expect adventure or an
Into the Wild story. But as a portrait of a fascinating, very odd person, it is
very good (and very well reviewed). Werner Herzog, the director, is a renowned
German director.

Stop Making Sense

… about the band Talking Heads; a “rock” or concert documentary that is considered
one of the best documentaries made. Jonathan Demme, the director, made Silence of
the Lambs and Philadelphia.

Capturing the Friedmans

… about a family, particularly two men, who were accused of molesting children in
day care. The accusations become more and more bizarre and exaggerated. The move
ends up being about the nature of Truth – how hard it is to really find it out. A
superb, well-reviewed documentary, despite a subject matter that might make you
shy awa.

Celluloid Closet

… about the history of the way gay persons have been portrayed in cinema. It is
interesting historically to see the way images of gay people have evolved. It is
helpful for studies of cinema because you are made aware of the way movies often
rely on “types” or clichés to shape – or even villainize – characters. Narrated by
Lily Tomlin.

Thin Blue Line

… about a man falsely accused of a crime. It is considered one of the best

documentaries ever made. It was also instrumental in helping the victim. It also
changed the nature of documentaries and exemplifies the ethics of “re-enacted”
scenes.

Riding the Rails (I’m trying to get this one on my blog….)

… about the children and teens who were rendered homeless by the Depression –
forced to jump trains, ride the rails. This one is by Lexy Lovell, our speaker and
an FCS alum.

This Film Is Not Yet Rated

…about the way the current system for rating film works (quite mysteriously it
turns out) and also a nice over-view of the history of regulating and even
censoring movies in America.
Murderball

…about paraplegics who play full-contact rugby in jacked-up wheelchairs -

overcoming unimaginable obstacles to compete in the Paralympic Games in Athens,
Greece.

March of the Penguins

… about the annual journey of Emperor penguins as they march -- single file -- to
their traditional breeding ground. When this came out a few years ago everyone was
loving penguins (and the documentary).

Rize

…about the street dance phenomenon from the rough streets of South Los Angeles --
krumping.

4 Little Girls

…about the racial terrorist bombing of an African American church during the Civil
Rights Movement. A Spike Lee film.

My Architect recommended by M Lager & J Dankoff

… about director Nathaniel Kahn’s search to understand his father, noted architect
Louis Kahn, who died bankrupt and alone in 1974

Winged Migration recommended by J Gruber

…about the migratory patterns of birds, shot over the course of three years on all
seven continents. “Patterns” is the key word here as it is mainly a visual
experience.

Stevie recommended by J Weisgrau

...about a filmmaker who decides to find out what happened to a boy he once
"mentored" as Big Brother, only to find -- half-way through the film -- that
Stevie has committed a heinous crime.

Who the F - - - Is Jackson Pollock? recommended by H Weiss

...about a female truck driver who buys a splatter painting for five dollars and
then comes to learn that the painting may in fact be a Pollock worth millions.

Hoop Dreams recommended by L Novo & B Johnson

...about the lives of two African American boys who struggle to become college
basketball players on the road to going professional.
King of Kong recommended by W Kennedy

...about die-hard video game fans competing to break world records on classic
arcade games.

In the Shadow of the Moon recommended by A Vernacchio

…about surviving crew members from NASA's Apollo missions telling stories of space
flight in their own words.

Pumping Iron recommended by L Jones

...about a showdown for the 1975 Mr. Olympia bodybuilding context, with Arnold
Schwarzenegger defending his title. A classic.

The World According to Sesame Street recommended by L DelSoldo

…the creation and co-production of the popular children's television program in

three developing countries: Bangladesh, Kosovo and South Africa. Lindaw Hawkins
Costigon, the director, is an alum (’86).

Little Ice Age, Big Chill recommended by D Goldader

…about the Little Ice Age – its scientific properties, its natural causes, the
people it affected and specific examples of areas it decimated.

Paradise Lost : The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills recommended by C McCann

…about a horrific triple child murder that leads to an indictment and trial of
three nonconformist boys based on questionable evidence. Content requires a mature
viewer.

Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision recommended by R Richmond

…about Maya Lin, a visionary architect vaulted to fame at age 20 after her pared-
down, modern and controversial design was chosen to memorialize the Vietnam War in
Washington, D.C. The film also describes other memorials Maya Lin has created,
such as the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Ala.

Traces of the Trade recommended by J Gowen-Tolcott

…about the descendants of the largest slave-trading family in early America facing
their past, and present, as they explore their violent heritage across oceans and
continents