Share Your Favorite Documentaries Thread!

[Taupe Beats]

On 1/23/2023 at 9:31 AM, Wunderbar said:

West of the tracks from wang bing. very beautiful and human.

It documents an Chinese industrial area's economic collapse and the effect it has on the workers.

It is filled with beautiful eraserhead esque cold and  grimy industrial shots.

its 9 hours long so you probably want to split it up.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0389448/

One of the beautiful things i found was the optimism of one the guys being followed trough all the tragedy.

Somehow missed this post. I very much 2nd all this. Never seen anything from Wang Bing that was less than brilliant.

The last line of your post is *exactly* the same way I felt about the final shot in another documentary of his, 'Til Madness Do Us Part. I commented on it on another board a while back:

Spoiler

The final moment/shot of 'Til Madness Do Us Part is simultaneously one of the most heartbreaking, as well as hopeful moments I've ever seen put on video or film.

This film is a documentary where you spend over 3.5 hours becoming acquainted with people deemed "insane" by the Chinese government and the rundown asylum they call home. It is unflinching, Wang Bing gives himself or viewer no respite from what he films. This is a perspective which almost no one has been granted before this film was made, certainly no one unrelated to those who live in this environment. Over the course of this film, you see a real, sincere love develop between some of the people who live here. The sincerity of this love is overwhelming, almost devastating.

The final shot of this film is two people, living in this asylum. Sitting on a bench, looking at a courtyard obscured by rusty metal bars. Bars designed to keep them confined. Abandoned by the world to be forgotten by their families, by those who knew them before. People deemed unworthy of what society had created before them. They have found beauty and connection in each other, and can hope for the future because they have each other.
I can only hope others see this moment and find a warmth and hope. That moment gives me warmth and hope.

 

[cruising for burgers]

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3602084/

 

[beerwolf]

Trust me, if you want to watch an astonishing documentary about marine engineering, deep sea diving and scientific research into psychedelic, mythical fish then look no further. I’m half way through this and it has to be one of the best documentaries I’ve ever seen. The soundtrack and sound effects also enrich the experience. Enjoy.

 

Edited April 23, 2023 by beerwolf

[beerwolf]

If you watched it, how chilling is that lone wolf Great White Shark? It only turns up on rare occasions, out of the twilight of the deep sea. I've read in the past about these rogue Great Whites that turn up in The Med, they have a reputation for being big and gnarly and that one definitely is. Quite sure when the diver does his deep sea maintenance he's got that specific fish on his mind 

 

Edited April 24, 2023 by beerwolf

[Rubin Farr]

 

[Rubin Farr]

This was all clips and licensed music with George and Andrew providing narration, and it starts like any normal music doc would. The second half becomes the interesting part; Andrew and co. seem to explore what made George tick, and that George Michael really was a character this man, Yog Panos (for short) created to navigate the still choppy waters of 1980s European music fame. WHAM! was heavily marketed ambiguously to both straight and gay audiences in Europe, which was more liberal than the US in its entertainment atmosphere then, but was also being radically altered by MTV. By the time he released Faith, he was completely committed to the GM character, and CBS Records marketed him in the US as the uber macho wounded swordsman of love, so he was trapped in the gilded cage, which made his stupid downfall scandal that much more sensationalized in the US in the 90s. His sexuality seemed to cause most of the stress and problems in his life, but they do try to skew it to make it seem like he brooded 100% of the time. A-

[J3FF3R00]

20 minutes ago, Rubin Farr said:

This was all clips and licensed music with George and Andrew providing narration, and it starts like any normal music doc would. The second half becomes the interesting part; Andrew and co. seem to explore what made George tick, and that George Michael really was a character this man, Yog Panos (for short) created to navigate the still choppy waters of 1980s European music fame. WHAM! was heavily marketed ambiguously to both straight and gay audiences in Europe, which was more liberal than the US in its entertainment atmosphere then, but was also being radically altered by MTV. By the time he released Faith, he was completely committed to the GM character, and CBS Records marketed him in the US as the uber macho wounded swordsman of love, so he was trapped in the gilded cage, which made his stupid downfall scandal that much more sensationalized in the US in the 90s. His sexuality seemed to cause most of the stress and problems in his life, but they do try to skew it to make it seem like he brooded 100% of the time. A-

As parents of a already-Wham-obsessed toddler, we watched this the other night too. After listening to Andrew Ridgeley’s audiobook-autobiography the doc felt like a hyper-condensed version of that (I wondered at times if they lifted parts of AR’s narration from the audiobook). There were lots more fun details about their time in school, creative origins, escapades on the road, more anecdotes about the Last Xmas video shoot, etc. If you liked the documentary, I highly recommend it for a long drive.

 

[Rubin Farr]

1 hour ago, J3FF3R00 said:

As parents of a already-Wham-obsessed toddler, we watched this the other night too. After listening to Andrew Ridgeley’s audiobook-autobiography the doc felt like a hyper-condensed version of that (I wondered at times if they lifted parts of AR’s narration from the audiobook). There were lots more fun details about their time in school, creative origins, escapades on the road, more anecdotes about the Last Xmas video shoot, etc. If you liked the documentary, I highly recommend it for a long drive.

 

They also held that weird place in history as one of the first UK bands with a hit rap song, these were both originally released the same year

 

[cloud capture]

 

[chim]

59 minutes ago, cloud capture said:

 

His best to date, really informative and revealing. 

These made me a fan of Mary Beard, will be getting her books. The depth of her knowledge, the strict adherence to reliable sources and her enthusiasm are so engaging. 

 

 

 

Edited July 26, 2023 by chim

[J3FF3R00]

Watched this recently. I wouldn’t say it was one of my “favorite documentaries” by any stretch but it was still super fascinating. Lots of great interviews (the vibe of the Todd Bridges one is dripping with sadness) and insights into a pretty distorted existence. Also, Alex Winter (of Bill & Ted fame) directed it. Worth a watch. Henry Thomas seems like a pretty chill dude. 

Edited July 26, 2023 by J3FF3R00

[prdctvsm]

 

[Rubin Farr]

 

[Rubin Farr]

What a weird company; racist closeted CEO with bad plastic surgery, illegal racist elitist hiring practices, chickenhawks, Jeffrey Epstein, etc. Glad to know other people got a headache going in there from the cologne.

[picklish2]

 

hands on a hardbody and big river man are my all timers

[cern]

 

[Rubin Farr]

 

[Banffspring72]

  In no particular order - I enjoy archived and often overlooked or unheard of. The Richard Cardinal: Cry from a Diary of a Métis Child, documentary has a disquieting component to it. Pressing the viewer's undivided attention. Foster Child is noteworthy to watch and appreciate as well. The other documentaries are all to consider and epic in their own rights. 

1. Richard Cardinal: Cry from a Diary of a Métis Child - NFB 1986
2. Killer in the Village - BBC Horizon 1983
3. Foster Child - NFB - Gil Cardinal - 1987
4. A place for Madness - Frontline 1990 - Dewitt Sage (RIP)
5. Ward 2-West - Loki films - 1990
6. Blood in the Face - First run films - 1991
7. Style Wars - Dir. Tony Silver - 1983
8. It's The Same World - UNTV - 1981
9. Dark Days - Marc Singer - 2000
10. Doing Time: Life Inside the Big House - America Undercover - 1991
11. Let There Be Light - U.S Army (Edgewood / Pilgrim state hospitals) 1981
12. Derek Jarman: Life as Art - 2004
13. Streetwise - Angelika Films -1984
14. Why Did They Kill Their Neighbours? NHK - 1998
15. The Professional: Shigoto no ryûgi - NHK series - 2006

[hma]

https://topdocumentaryfilms.com/louis-theroux-ultra-zionists/

[Rubin Farr]

This was fascinating, a real Shakespearean drama. LHW came to my attention before Amy died, they were gaining attention on YouTube as an "anti-vax Q-Anon cult" during the lockdown before vaccines were available. It's such a bizarre story with such a colorful cast of low-life characters, that only Vince Gilligan or Noah Hawley could write something like this. They really were the prototypical 21st Century cult; media savvy, hucksters, live-streaming and recording everything on their phones and laptops, casual use of cannabis, THC products, mushrooms and alcohol. Trying to figure out what made each member tick becomes futile, as the overwhelming ridiculousness, and morbidity of the story becomes apparent. The third episode takes a turn into Weekend at Bernie's shenanigans, really cringe. The filmmakers here do take a few liberties though; first, they make it seem like law enforcement showed up at their house, and let everyone go except Mike, the borderline psychopath. Everyone in the household was arrested, and they had a child in their custody as well,with a 2 week old rotting corpse in the house, but Mike seems to be the only one that received legal punishment. Second, they paint Amy as a victim in the end, which she was, but she was also a seriously abusive alcoholic monster when she drank, and some of the other docs on YouTube have footage of her constantly berating everyone and threatening them, so maybe in the end her death was an overt or covert retribution from her own cult members. They are still online to this day shilling people out of their money. 

https://www.5dfulldisclosure.org/

[exitonly]

this arthur russell documentary was better than i expected- https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1168662/

[ooqpoo]

On 12/5/2023 at 3:53 PM, Rubin Farr said:

This was fascinating, a real Shakespearean drama. LHW came to my attention before Amy died, they were gaining attention on YouTube as an "anti-vax Q-Anon cult" during the lockdown before vaccines were available. It's such a bizarre story with such a colorful cast of low-life characters, that only Vince Gilligan or Noah Hawley could write something like this. They really were the prototypical 21st Century cult; media savvy, hucksters, live-streaming and recording everything on their phones and laptops, casual use of cannabis, THC products, mushrooms and alcohol. Trying to figure out what made each member tick becomes futile, as the overwhelming ridiculousness, and morbidity of the story becomes apparent. The third episode takes a turn into Weekend at Bernie's shenanigans, really cringe. The filmmakers here do take a few liberties though; first, they make it seem like law enforcement showed up at their house, and let everyone go except Mike, the borderline psychopath. Everyone in the household was arrested, and they had a child in their custody as well,with a 2 week old rotting corpse in the house, but Mike seems to be the only one that received legal punishment. Second, they paint Amy as a victim in the end, which she was, but she was also a seriously abusive alcoholic monster when she drank, and some of the other docs on YouTube have footage of her constantly berating everyone and threatening them, so maybe in the end her death was an overt or covert retribution from her own cult members. They are still online to this day shilling people out of their money. 

https://www.5dfulldisclosure.org/

I normally find cult leaders and cults in general pretty fascinating, and maybe it was the way in which it's presented, but there didn't seem to be much in the way of backstory or even half baked philosophy behind any of it, just a karen who likes to drink and be the center of attention and a small flock of heads glorifying her slow mo trainwreck. If anything Mike was the one who saw the writing on the wall and skipped town before shit hit the fan. A dick move to grab the cash, but I can't say I wouldn't have done the same in his place. I felt sorry for the old lady, she just seemed to be in her own world most of the time just chillin, i wonder if she's still with them. 

[Rubin Farr]

1 minute ago, ooqpoo said:

I normally find cult leaders and cults in general pretty fascinating, and maybe it was the way in which it's presented, but there didn't seem to be much in the way of backstory or even half baked philosophy behind any of it, just a karen who likes to drink and be the center of attention and a small flock of heads glorifying her slow mo trainwreck. If anything Mike was the one who saw the writing on the wall and skipped town before shit hit the fan. A dick move to grab the cash, but I can't say I wouldn't have done the same in his place. I felt sorry for the old lady, she just seemed to be in her own world most of the time just chillin, i wonder if she's still with them. 

Who took her eyes out? And did Mike pay restitution? I’m guessing with an ankle monitor, he did.

[decibal cooper]

Re-watched this PBS documentary by Stanley Nelson on the Black Panthers. The section on the Panther's main illustrator for their newspaper, begins at around the 39 min mark, is really good. Enjoyed the whole documentary, though.

 

[Rubin Farr]

curious to see this one, documentary on The Locust and Justin Pearson