This is one of my favorite documentaries I have seen this year. As most of you know, I collect Mondo posters, actually just posters in general. They are the art that adorns my walls, the things I covet and the stuff I love to show and acquire. For me there is nothing better than scoring a limited edition print of a favorite movie of mine or the latest creation from some of the best movie and concert poster artists out there. Lo and behold my excitement when this movie came across Netflix instant for my viewing pleasure, a movie that premiered at SXSW and finally have an opportunity to see the evolution of my poster obsession.
Park51, a name that does not ring a lot of bells in the American psyche. But what if I were to say “9/11 Mosque”? Does that conjure up images of New Yorkers and Americans rallying together to stop the construction of an Islamic center just blocks from the site of the Twin Towers? Polarizing and a view into the window of religious dialogue and tolerance, Building Babel is an appropriate title to a film that shows the monumental task of courting controversy and believing in what you do.
The collapse of the American dream is happening right now. Detropia was one of the most evocative and haunting documentaries I caught last year at True False Fest and now that it is available for streaming on Netflix, this is a documentary I have to bring up. We see it everyday on television, we see in our city and community, and I might not be effecting us directly, but I can assure you that this is something can and probably will happen to us sooner or later. Detropia is documentary that shows the aftermath of the collapsing American dream. It’s focus, Detroit, a city that was a bustling mecca for automobile makers, the burgeoning middle class and the effects of a collapsing economy when the jobs move overseas, the government becomes broke and a city is on the cusp on folding up. This is about as real as it can get.
One of the things I love about Netflix, other than the obvious, is that they are able to feed my documentary cravings from time to time. I talked about some of my favorite films of the past year back in January and I made sure to split the favorites amongst feature films and documentary films. Ai Weiwei made it on the top ten list of documentary films for last year, a list that included several personal favorites and a few Oscar nominated documentaries. Ai Weiwei stood out to me the most for the topical reason of the current events that were taking place with its subject Ai Weiwei. A political activist that was currently under house arrest by the Communist regime of China. A dissident that dared speak out on a national level about his country and in doing so, makes him of the biggest, most powerful figures in China due to his international fame.
This documentary looked to highlight the man who dared to speak out against the government, an artist that uses his art to make a commentary on the society he lives in. A daring and dangerous prospect since China doesn’t seem too keen on people speaking out against them, so utilizing his fame to cast the light on his country is a ballsy movie. Never Sorry doesn’t shy away from getting at the core of this amazing individual, who’s work is polarizing and provocative. You get to see a side of the country that isn’t seen by most people, as Weiwei exposes the hidden side of life and showcases it to the world through art and his recordings.
Below is an excerpt from my original review, hopefully you will take a look at this movie on Netflix Instant as well.
Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry is, by proxy of Alison Klayman, one of his best works. A visual recording of what his life is like in an increasingly hostile government controlled country. His character defines who he is, a man who doesn’t falter and never stops breaking the old ways and rules of the country. His art, from breaking a priceless Han dynasty vase to painting product brands on the side of century old vases, shows a defiance, but calculated move to get people to pay attention to what he has to say. Weiwei is often quiet and reserved in the privacy of his house with his numerous cats, but his actions are the loudest voice of dissent. It’s the quiet, tranquil moments of Ai Weiwei’s life that highlight the stark reality he goes out and faces with the government when he leaves his house. Tender moments with his loved ones are then dwarfed by police brutality and the threat of prison.
Today’s post is over the medical documentary The Waiting Room. I remember reviewing this movie last year after its showing at the True False Fest, seemingly being the single best movie about the state of health care in America. It was a documentary that didn’t force some facts or tired stories that we hear all the time about health care, but rather we got to see what it was like in a day of the waiting room of a hospital and for those individuals who only have this option available to them. It’s the best commentary on our system, an opportunity to put a face with the struggles of having few options to get better in life and the doctors and nurses on the front line, seeing the effects that their work has on the lives of those with few options.
Here is an excerpt of the original review. Enjoy!
The Waiting Room is a film that focuses on the real lives of those that have to deal with the system of healthcare, those that need it, but have few options and those that provide the healthcare, with long hours and arduous tasks ahead of them. This is a film that centers around the public waiting room of a busy Oakland area Hospital, where the room is packed to the brim at any given moment with people from all walks of the soci-economic scale. Those that have some coverage, those that have no coverage and the few that have no options left. The stories of the people there in the waiting room of the public hospital tell the tales that we hear as talking points from pundits and politicians. The stark reality is that there isn’t much in the way for help and what little resources are available must be rationed in a sense. Time is valuable and sense of fearing the diagnosis is almost as rattling as the emergency itself.
Now I don’t particularly remember the good old days of the local arcades. The quarter pumping classics that lined the side walls of many roller rinks, mall outlets or even the lone system at the pizza parlor. I grew up in the time of Nintendo and Sega, the home consoles being my general outlet for gaming, but there were places where you could go to be transported back to the time when the only noises were the bleeps from the machine and the constant pounding of buttons from players trying to beat the high score. I always liked going to my arcade from time to time and playing Street Fighter or the latest, epileptic seizure inducing game, but something about old school arcade games are really the most trying of the games. They tested your skills and were truly agonizing in terms of satisfaction. Damn those are good games.
Today will be my previous review of one of my favorite documentaries of 2012, The Island President. A documentary that chronicled the crisis of global warming by putting a face to the crisis, an island nation that is slowly being wiped off the map because of rising sea waters. The Island President is a chronicling of a the monumental task at tackling a global problem by what some would consider to be the little guy in the fight. A small island nation that becomes the driving force behind a global initiative, challenging the large, industrial nations to make a change or face the fate that they are currently facing. It was an incredible documentary that was both serene and captivating at the effects that global warming is having. Finally showing the consequences of our development in a bustling industrial age.
The Island President makes you care about what happens to the Maldives and Nasheed’s vision for a country who is on the brink of disappearing. An island paradise of white, sandy beaches and dotted with the reminder of past indiscretions from a leader who did everything to oppose democracy and change. Nasheed’s story and that of the island, is the true reason to see this documentary. You will know more about this country leaving the theater than you did before you entered it. A fast paced film with moments of stoppage from the more weighted political bantering that seems to be a parallel to the slowness of change itself. But you will feel uplifted and involved in the climate debate when you see firsthand, those that are fighting to survive.
So apparently given the vast amount of news reports, weather reports and seeing the chaos that was happening at the market this evening, Kansas is going to get a little snow storm. This isn’t just any snow storm, but a snowmagedon, which is what they said about the last snow storm we got and the exact same panic happened. I will never understand this state and the fact that they forget this happens often and we all are inconvenienced for one fucking day before the roads are OK to drive on again. By the sheer panic and empty shelves, I guess 8-10 inches of snow is something to worry, but then again the city worried when there was 6-8 inches of snow. Sigh.
To alleviate the fears of all those in the Midwest feeling the chill of a winter storm, maybe a movie involving penguins enduring the harsh, bitter terrain of Antarctica will cheer everyone up. Also it doesn’t hurt that Morgan Freeman narrating this documentary with his soothing voice of reassurance and comfort. I could listen to that man read the US Tax Code for hours and it would be exciting.
So no real post this evening as there isn’t terribly much to say about a documentary that covers the migration of the Emperor Penguins and their general cuteness. It is well shot and calmingly beautiful to behold. A pure cinematic experience of a majestic scale that is strangely compelling with their tuxedo clad penguins. Damn they are cute.
Also man up Midwest, we will get through this snow. Those penguins have it harder than us.
I never realized that watching the end of a band, one as amazing as LCD Soundsystem, would be one of my favorite and touching documentaries in 2012. Say what you will of the band, fan or not, but this sort of intimacy and outright passion that the documentary follows is just truly compelling and meaningful. Shut Up and Play the Hits captures everything I love about the band and hits the right emotional chords in a fantastic concert/band documentary. There I said it. But I do have more to say so hit the jump.
The 24th July 2010…. 80,000 Lives…. 4,500 Hours of Footage… 2 Award winning Filmmakers….. Now one incredible motion picture event. What began life as a startling cinematic experiment becomes the must see movie experience of the Summer. Created entirely from footage uploaded by YouTube users, Life in a Day is a film first: exhilarating, moving and very, very funny… it is the story of our world. Told by us. — (C) National Geographic
