Recommend me some documentaries

[nOmArch]

There's also a 2-discer floating around.

Yes, it is the full movie compressed to a single layer DVD-R with the bonus disc comprising random footage not connected to the original movie.

 

[reave]

A few favorites, off the top of my head:

Hands on a Hardbody. I saw this one when it was playing in Austin. One of my favorites. Nearly impossible to find now, but I managed to finally get a copy.

The Battle of Brazil. Great doc about Gilliam's struggle to release his version of the greatest movie in the world.

Heavy Metal Parking Lot. Find it. Love it.

The Dancing Outlaw. Same here. Find it NAO.

Television Under the Swastika. Or just about anything about the Nazi propaganda machine.

Vernon, Florida. Errol Morris' early work was light years better than the docs he found success with, imho.

Gates of Heaven. See above.

The Interrupters. A personal favorite doc because one of the filmmakers is a friend of mine and I met the main subjects in the film. But my bias doesn't change the fact that this is a great doc.

In the Shadow of the Moon. These guys went to the fucking moon. You didn't. Listen up and be blown away by the last surviving honest-to-God superheroes.

 

[Frantic Canadian]

A few favorites, off the top of my head:

Hands on a Hardbody. I saw this one when it was playing in Austin. One of my favorites. Nearly impossible to find now, but I managed to finally get a copy.

I thought this was going to be bodybuilding related but it's about those contests where you have to keep your hand on a car the longest to win it. I'll be honest with you, it doesn't like a very interesting premise for a documentary.

The Battle of Brazil. Great doc about Gilliam's struggle to release his version of the greatest movie in the world.

Is this included on the 3-disc release of Brasil from the Criterion Collection?

Heavy Metal Parking Lot. Find it. Love it.

I LOVE heavy metal documentaries. Definitely on my must-see list.

The Dancing Outlaw. Same here. Find it NAO.

Reading the IMDB's description it doesn't sound that great, but then it seems to get interesting. Might have to watch a trailer before deciding if I want to look it up. I find it funny that the IMDB lists this as a documentary short in their description and then give it a running time of 101 minutes. What exactly do they consider a running time for a feature-length documentary. :lol:

Television Under the Swastika. Or just about anything about the Nazi propaganda machine.

Not really a fan of anything Nazi-related. Or anything war-related actually, unless it's about the Vietnam War. Can't explain why though.

Vernon, Florida. Errol Morris' early work was light years better than the docs he found success with, imho.

I thought I had seen this but turns out I hadn't. Must have just seen the DVD at the library. Will have to look it up in that case.

Gates of Heaven. See above.

Seen it. Liked it, but was expecting it to be better than it was.

The Interrupters. A personal favorite doc because one of the filmmakers is a friend of mine and I met the main subjects in the film. But my bias doesn't change the fact that this is a great doc.

Sounds interesting. I love gang-related movies and docs.

I watched Becoming Chaz this afternoon. It follows the transition of Chastity Bono as she becomes Chaz Bono. Very entertaining.

 

[hebrides]

Genghis Blues: blind singer-songwriter-guitarist Paul Pena (who wrote one of Steve Miller's biggest hits and recorded an album that should have been one of the best albums of the 1970s but had its release blocked for 27 years) discovers Tuvan throat singing while listening to shortwave radio and teaches himself how to do it. He then travels to Tuva, the country literally in the center of Asia, to compete in the annual tournament. Beautiful, funny, earthy, weird, and with great music. I was lucky enough to see Pena perform in NYC shortly before his death, and he was one of the most genuine people I've ever encountered -- a sensitive soul with a hell of a voice who was never afraid to tell you exactly how he felt.

Cane Toads: An Unnatural History. A truly ridiculous and ridiculously true documentary about the introduction of the cane toad to Australia, featuring a theme song by Neil Finn.

Shakespeare Behind Bars. A film that is by turns inspiring and disturbing, it follows the inmates of a prison who put on an annual Shakespearean production (in this case, The Tempest). I found myself really questioning my own values several times during this as I grew to like the inmates as performers and then had to reevaluate whether I still could after learning what they had done (and in most cases, finding, sometimes to my surprise, that I could).

My Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet with Baz Luhrmann. This film follows Shakespearean (and, more recently, TV) actor Paterson Joseph as he attempts to direct a production of Romeo and Juliet in his native Harlesden with an all-amateur, all-inner city cast (with Luhrmann providing occasional via-satellite advice as a sort of surrogate Shakespeare). The film follows the standard "art is good for you" format, but it also provides a window into the everyday lives of people who often don't get portrayed in TV or film except as drug addicts or criminals. Some of the "actors" have truly remarkable stories to tell about themselves, and two of them are standout performers in the production as well.

These last two were originally going to be part of my dissertation, now on semi-permanent hold, as was My Bare Lady, a reality show featuring four American porn stars as they compete to land the role of Juliet in a production of Romeo and Juliet in London (not the same one as the one above). That one wasn't as compelling, but it did have its moments, and one of them was actually a pretty decent (serious) actress…

 

[reave]

I thought this was going to be bodybuilding related but it's about those contests where you have to keep your hand on a car the longest to win it. I'll be honest with you, it doesn't like a very interesting premise for a documentary.



Is this included on the 3-disc release of Brasil from the Criterion Collection?



I LOVE heavy metal documentaries. Definitely on my must-see list.



Reading the IMDB's description it doesn't sound that great, but then it seems to get interesting. Might have to watch a trailer before deciding if I want to look it up. I find it funny that the IMDB lists this as a documentary short in their description and then give it a running time of 101 minutes. What exactly do they consider a running time for a feature-length documentary. :lol:



Not really a fan of anything Nazi-related. Or anything war-related actually, unless it's about the Vietnam War. Can't explain why though.



I thought I had seen this but turns out I hadn't. Must have just seen the DVD at the library. Will have to look it up in that case.



Seen it. Liked it, but was expecting it to be better than it was.



Sounds interesting. I love gang-related movies and docs.

I watched Becoming Chaz this afternoon. It follows the transition of Chastity Bono as she becomes Chaz Bono. Very entertaining.

- Hands on a Hardbody is more interesting than the description lets on.

- No, it's on the Criterion Brazil set.

- The Dancing Outlaw is a very weird, low budget doc. Not for everyone, but a very interesting subject.

 

[ssj]

second reave's In the Shadow of the Moon rec. phucking awesome. those astronauts did something that humanity will always (hopefully) remember the 20th century for.

 

[leeroy]

saw midnight movies last night
http://www.imdb.co.uk/title/tt0457414/

plus I've always enjoyed louis theroux documentary's

 

[nOmArch]

- Hands on a Hardbody is more interesting than the description lets on.

Hands on a Hardbody is totally ace.

 

[DominicCobb]

Actually just thought of one.

The Man with the Movie Camera (1929): the whole thing's on YouTube. It's not your typical documentary, but I highly recommend it. One of my favorite movies.

 

[Adabisi]

I LOVE heavy metal documentaries. Definitely on my must-see list.

It's a classic. Enjoy. Zebra guy rules.

 

[Adabisi]

Speaking of metal docs, I really enjoyed these ones:

Such Hawks, Such Hounds - The stoner metal scene. Great interviews with Matt Pike & co.

Until the Light Takes Us - early '90s Norwegian black metal scene. Music, murder and church burnings.

Lemmy - raw look at one of the most down to earth rock stars on the planet.

 

[nOmArch]

saw midnight movies last night
http://www.imdb.co.uk/title/tt0457414/

plus I've always enjoyed louis theroux documentary's

That certainly looks interesting, will grab a copy, ta for the heads up.

You can't really go wrong with Loius Theroux, his weird weekends series was fantastic, particularly the Savile and Paul Daniels episodes. The Hamiltons was really good as well now I come to think about it.

If you like him have a gander at Jon Ronson, I think you'll like his stuff as well.

 

[nOmArch]

Hawkwind - Do Not Panic

Good if you like that sort of thing.

 

[leeroy]

That certainly looks interesting, will grab a copy, ta for the heads up.

You can't really go wrong with Loius Theroux, his weird weekends series was fantastic, particularly the Savile and Paul Daniels episodes. The Hamiltons was really good as well now I come to think about it.

If you like him have a gander at Jon Ronson, I think you'll like his stuff as well.

the midnight movies is currently on lovefilm.com so you could watch it without having to buy it ;-)

loved how loius would work he looks such a geek that everyone believed he'd be a real push over

given the recent events i wouldn't mind re-watching the savile one again though i can't imagine the beeb repeating it, lol

will check out jon ronson thanks for heads up

 

[Gaith]

The Interrupters. A personal favorite doc because one of the filmmakers is a friend of mine and I met the main subjects in the film. But my bias doesn't change the fact that this is a great doc.

Agreed. Who needs comic-book nastiness like a quasi-Darth Vader seeking to blow up an entire city for his girlfriend in order to "restore the balance of corruption" or some shit when you've got real-life stories like that of the hardened young punk who's afraid of killing/being killed by his brother, and won't even hug his mother? :-(

... But what do these young people in such blighted surroundings have to aspire to? The factories that built Chicago aren't coming back. There aren't enough white-collar jobs for those that already have the education to perform them. What's left? Cat sweat and McDonald's?

"Instead of a war on poverty, they got a War on Drugs so the police can bother me." - Tupac, practitioner of the
"gangsta rap" genre created by Ronald Reagan.

It's all a damn shame. We need us some real heroes to empower this elite-designated underclass.


... Reminds me of another doc I've been meaning to see: Detropia.

 

[Adabisi]

... Reminds me of another doc I've been meaning to see: Detropia.

I haven't seen that one, but Requiem for Detroit is interesting.

 

[Frantic Canadian]

Hawkwind - Do Not Panic

Good if you like that sort of thing.

Wasn't Hawkwind one of Lemmy's pre-Motorhead bands?

 

[Rogue-theX]

^ from 72-75:

 

[nOmArch]

Lemmy was just the Bassist in Hawkwind whereas Motorhead was HIS band.

Funny story about SIlver Machine, they knew they had a hit on their hands but they couldn't decide who was going to sing it, so they all had a go and nobody was right, Lemmy walked up to the mic at the end of the session and nailed it in one take, the rest was, as they say, history.

 

[Frantic Canadian]

Lemmy was just the Bassist in Hawkwind whereas Motorhead was HIS band.

I know. I just meant that it was a band that Lemmy was in prior to Motorhead being formed.