Documentaries

[PN]

Recommendations if you have any.

Just finished watching Man on Wire, on my Netflix Roku player. I gave it four stars (I really liked it) but maybe I should've given it five stars. This daredevil act was in a class all by itself.

[ChesBay]

I really liked "Man on Wire" also. I have to go through my netflix history to see if I have any favorites to recommend.

Walking the trade center towers must have been incredible, the whole story was amazing in terms of planning, timing , lucky breaks and his level of passion. finally, the way the characters lives have gone on since that event was very interesting also...

[alpentalic]

I too have Roku, 4 off the top of my head that I enjoyed were:
I Like Killing Flies
Dark Days
My Kid Can Paint That
King of Kong

[SCI-Nurse]

A few we have seen at the Cinema Society (or elsewhere) in the past year or so. Many are not yet available through Netflix:

I Have Never Forgotten You: The Life and Legacy of Simon Wiesenthal

The Cats of Mirikitani

Forgotten on the Bayou

Beyond the Call

Into Great Silence

Hats Off

Step into Liquid

Body of War

Young@Heart

Five Days in September

and of course, Murderball

I will probably remember some more and add later.

(KLD)

[chick]

I too have Roku, 4 off the top of my head that I enjoyed were:
I Like Killing Flies
Dark Days
My Kid Can Paint That
King of KongHave you been stalking my Instant Queue?!?

[Katja]

Cool & Crazy
The Monastery: Mr. Vig and the Nun
Young@Heart
Into Great Silence
Down from the Mountain

[rybread]

Step into Liquid was a great documentary with incredible surround sound. I watched all sorts of documentaries but I never remember their names. Next time I watch one, I'll be sure to note its name.

[PN]

Man on a Wire was a tight rope act that would best be described by Shakespeare. You have to factor in the logistical difficulties involved, then deal with the police and their helicopter threatening to pluck Philippe Pebt off the wire. I would think traversing the towers once would be enough, but he had to go on for 45 minutes and, of course, lie down in the middle on the wire, as if he was taking a nap! I've never seen anything like it.

Another documentary I strongly recommend is Why We Fight (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gf1CDmn8q0M) which draws some interesting comparisons between the United States and the Roman Empire. I feel the need to watch this one more time. Gore Vidal (not in the documentary) on the Bill Maher show said that he was relieved when WWII was over and was glad that we would not have to go through that again. Then along comes Iraq, Vietnam, etc. He went on to say that after WWII the United States had a chance to be great.

My Netflix Instant Queue updated:

1. Nanking (available until May 29, 2009)
2. Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price (available until May 1, 2009)
3. The Conscientious Objector
4. I like Killing Flies
5. Dark Days
6. I Have Never Forgotten You

[SCI-Nurse]

PN, I forgot to include the Conscientious Objector in my list. Saw this several years ago through the Cinema Society with the director as our speaker. I was so impressed I bought a copy for our VA patient library and shared it with our hospital chaplain group. Unfortunately Desmond Doss (the CO of this film) has since passed away, but he was still alive at the time I saw the film. Showed it to my dad (a WWII veteran) before he passed away too. I am glad you have it on your list.

http://www.desmonddoss.com/

(KLD)

[Scorpion]

Below are some good docs I've seen that aren't listed here yet, I don't think. A bunch are available on Netflix Instant, but all are available on DVD (I love my Roku btw)...

Biography
• Tesla: Master of Lightning
• Chuck Close: A Portrait in Progress

Nerds, Geeks, Enthusiasts
• Trekkies
• Word Wars
• Wordplay

Music
• Metal: A Headbangers Journey

Social & Cultural
• Helvetica
• Who the #$&% is Jackson Polluck?
• Bigger, Stronger, Faster
• After Innocence
• F**k: A Documentary
• Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession
• The UP Series
• Gonzo

Surf & Skate
• Surfwise
• Dogtown & Z-Boys
• Stoked: The Rise and Fall of Gator

More later...

[PN]

KLD: After watching the Conscientious Objector I have decided to purchase the DVD. My dad is a WWII veteran, and I think he would be interested in seeing the story of Desmond Doss. This documentary allows Desmond life to be memorialized on DVD and the Internet. I think it should be shown in our schools. Five stars!

Scorpion: Thanks for such an eclectic list of documentaries. Most of the above recommendations were not available in the Netflix Instant Queue. I would very much like to see Tesla: Master of lightning. I did watch Stoked a couple years ago. I recall that Gator (Mark Rogowski) raped and killed his girlfriend. I know he is currently in prison and I hope he does not get out on early parole.

Updated Instant Queue:

Word Wars
Bigger, Stronger, faster
After Innocence
Z. Channel: A Magnificent Obsession
Gonzo

[Scorpion]

No problem, PN. I hope you like them. I actually own the Tesla DVD.

Thanks to KLD for the recommendation of Conscientious Objector. I watched it the other day--very good!

[SCI-Nurse]

Just saw "Herb and Dorothy" last night with the Cinema Society (with the director there as our speaker). It was a very engaging film about Herb and Dorothy Vogel, who live in NYC and over 50 years accumulated one of the most presitgious collections of modern art ever, and donated it to the National Gallery. They are a retired mailman and librarian, who put all their money into their life's passion for modern art. Both are still living, and they are so obviously in love with either other and with life! I left the theater wishing I knew them both.

It is having a limited release in select Landmark theaters starting in June, and will also be on PBS on "Independent Lens" sometime later this year.

I would strongly recommend film.

http://www.herbanddorothy.com/

(KLD)

[Liisa]

I saw two incredible documentaries at the HotDocs festival, which is just now wrapping up here:

Act of God
The Cove

Since they're just released they'll probably show up on DVD or specialty cable over the next year. If you get the chance to see either you won't be sorry.

[alpentalic]

Have you been stalking my Instant Queue?!?

:ninja:



"Rivers and Tides" was surprisingly pretty awesome too, good rainy day bottle of wine kind of flic..

[SCI-Nurse]

:ninja:



"Rivers and Tides" was surprisingly pretty awesome too, good rainy day bottle of wine kind of flic..

How could I have forgotten this on my list!?! One of my favorite artists, Andy Goldsworthy, shown creating some of his most beautiful works, and also being interviewed about his vision and techniques.

(KLD)

[chick]

Just saw a doc by Independent Lens (pbs series) on HULU, about Petey Greene - Adjust Your Color: The Truth of Petey Greene.

I saw the film Talk To Me, starring Don Cheadle, which was really good. You can see the film portrayed the man and events pretty true to the doc. Petey, in life, was bigger than life on film... I wish this guy was still around... still "tellin it..."

UyJP0W9uzq-2TSNUcg200w

[chick]

I LOVED Conscientious Objector.

I wish he was my granpa!

It's amazing, how this man truly lived and honored his faith, to the core. For those who think faith (in a god) is for the weak, the strength and spirit of this man will make them think twice.

[Shannon]

Agreed... River and Tides is very good. Haven't seen Conscientious Objector yet, but it's on my list.

Another good one is Deep Water. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0460766/

[PN]

I watched Bigger, Stronger, Faster. This documentary takes a look at the history and the use of steroids. I never had an interest in taking steroids for the purposes of getting bigger or being stronger. My views have not changed. However, after watching this documentary, I am convinced that steroid use is just as big with amateurs, or maybe bigger, than with professional athletes. I still think that taking steroids is cheating, but I now believe that if non-professional athletes want to take this drug, they should have legal access to it as prescribed by a physician.

Z Channel was interesting. I did not know about this channel or the competition they faced from HBO or Showtime. They filled a niche market but I can understand how professional baseball killed them. I thought this documentary was about thirty minutes too long. However, this story needed to be told.

I Like Killing Flies. I found this documentary fascinating because Kenny Shopsin looked and sounded so much like my brother-in-law, who is an MD. I gave it three stars.

I started watching Body of War last night. I really felt sorry for Tomas Young, who was the young soldier paralyzed in Iraq by an AK47. He never received the proper inpatient or outpatient therapy. They just cut him loose after a short time at Walter Reed Hospital. He has a lot of SCI-related problems, and I was thinking, why doesn't he come to this website for his health concerns, of which there are many. My Roku player buffered twice (which is very unusual) while watching this documentary. With about 30 minutes left to go, we had an earthquake which was a rather strong jolt. All of the power stayed on, and I continued to watch this documentary after I turned on the local news to get an update on the quake. About ten minutes into Body of War I lost the audio feed. I turned the Roku player off and then resumed Body of War, but was still not able to get any audio. I tried a different documentary and everything worked. I don't know if the problem was at my end or somewhere between my router and the Internet, or maybe Netflix.

My brother called me and suggested getting Gonzo, which I already have in my Instant Queue.

[SCI-Nurse]

really felt sorry for Tomas Young, who was the young soldier paralyzed in Iraq by an AK47. He never received the proper inpatient or outpatient therapy. They just cut him loose after a short time at Walter Reed Hospital.
Actually, I believe Tomas Young went to the SCI Center at the Jefferson Barracks/St. Louis VAMC for rehab, but as I remember from the film he checked himself out AMA at some point before completing his rehab. he mentions it only briefly in the film.

Here is the podcast of an interview he did in March of this year:

http://www.opednews.com/populum/linkframe.php?linkid=85701

(KLD)

[PN]

In the documentary Tomas has a meeting with Vietnam veteran Bobby Muller. Tomas states that while at Walter Reed Hospital his rehab consists of just sitting in a chair or two hours (best of my recollection). He goes on to tell Bobby that he was an inpatient for a total of three months. Bobby tells Tomas he was in the VA hospital for one year and an outpatient for nine months. In the documentary I did not hear him say that he checked himself out AMA (Against Medical Advice). I love my Roku player, but I can't get audio for the last 30 minutes of this documentary.

Thanks for the link to the podcast!

[Scorpion]

. . . I love my Roku player, but I can't get audio for the last 30 minutes of this documentary.

I think it's a Netflix issue, not an issue with the player. I've had similar issues a couple times, and the problems were the same when I tried it on my computer and on my Roku player.

[PN]

And I think you're probably right. I haven't tried to watch Netflix on my computer. Last night I did get some buffering at the beginning of Maxed out, but after that everything was okay.

ETA:

I was able to finish Body of War on my Intel iMac. By the way, good movie. Four stars. No regrets with my Roku player. I am streaming video from my bedroom to my living room.

[Scorpion]

Here's a very good doc I forgot about that's available on Netflix Instant...

Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Dear_Zachary_A_Letter_to_a_Son_About_His_Father/70095159?lnkce=seRtLn&trkid=222336&strkid=91948411_0_0&strackid=18c2db27de17041c_0_srl)
Filmmaker Kurt Kuenne's poignant tribute to his murdered childhood friend, Andrew Bagby, tells the story of a child custody battle between the baby's grieving grandparents and Shirley Turner, Bagby's pregnant ex-girlfriend and suspected killer. Initially, Kuenne made this documentary as a memorial for Andrew's loved ones, but it morphs into an emotional legal odyssey when Turner goes free on bail and is allowed to raise her son.

[PN]

Scorpion: I just added Dear Zachary to my Instant Queue.

Last week I watched Tesla: Master of Lightning.

I knew about his rivalry with Thomas Edison, but I didn't know he was being used as a tool by him along with J.P. Morgan and others. This DVD really opened my eyes to Nikola Tesla's accomplishments and difficult setbacks.

Sir Isaac Newton said "If I have seen further than others, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants." After watching this documentary, I think Nikola Tesla was the giant.

[SCI-Nurse]

I just got to see a sneak preview of The Cove last night with the Cinema Society. Winner of the Audience Favorite award at Sundance this year (just like Murderball a few years ago). Very likely to be on the short list for Documentary Features when the Oscar nominations come around, as it has won many other awards as well. Opens commercially in my area in early August (Landmark).

This is about the wholesale capture for sale and slaughter of dolphins in a small town in Japan, and the interactions between the townspeople, fishermen, and government, the inaction of the IWC, and a small group of activists trying to save dolphins. Some pretty grim and shocking footage (rated PG-13) that is likely to haunt you for a while. Very well done. I recommend it.

(KLD)

[Scorpion]

PN - I'm glad you enjoyed the Tesla documentary and that you learned even more than you knew about the man. It's unfortunate that we learn about Edison in grade school but hear nothing of Tesla, yet Tesla's contributions to our modern society are just as great if not great than Edison's. And Edison electrocuting elephants to try and show AC current as more dangerous than DC current, as well as to discredit Tesla and his push for AC over DC, is reprehensible. Yet Edison is always praised as a hero. It goes to show how power and money can write history the way the powerful and rich want it written, regardless of the truth.

[PN]

Scorpion: I gave Tesla five stars. Tesla should be taught in our Unified School System. At least the documentary allows the truth to be told about his contribution to the world.

I watched Dear Zachary and this is a real heart breaker. I'm not going to be a spoiler, but the ending caught me off guard.

Tonight, I will probably watch The King of Kong.

[Scorpion]

I watched Dear Zachary and this is a real heart breaker. I'm not going to be a spoiler, but the ending caught me off guard.

I had a similar reaction to Dear Zachary. I have much respect for the strength of his Grandparents. I think I'll watch that again this weekend.

I think you're in for a treat with The King of Kong, and it'll be light and uplifting compared to the heavy Dear Zachary.

KLD - I'll have vto keep an eye out for that one. Sounds good. Thanks.

[Scorpion]

There's a website now where you can watch over 700 documentaries online: www.snagfilms.com

Available now on SnagFilms is a good documentary on Malcom Bricklin (Subaru, Bricklin, Yugo) called The Entrepreneur.

[PN]

My good friend in Japan sent me this link "The Best Place to Watch Documentary Movies On-line (http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/the-best-places-to-watch-documentary-movies-online/)."

I really liked The King of Kong. I thought this was going to be a documentary about Donkey Kong, but instead it is about the lives of people who play Donkey Kong. Below is an excerpt from a review by Roger Ebert.

" This isn't fun for these men. It's deadly serious. A world championship is at stake, and only gradually do we realize how very few people give a damn. Unlike recent docs about spelling bees, Scrabble and crossword puzzles, there aren't large audiences in this film. Game players may turn up by the thousands at conventions, but apparently only a handful care much about Donkey Kong; it's like a big auto show vs. a parade of Model Ts.

The documentary stares incredulously at the Machiavellian Mitchell, who seems to play the same role in the world of Donkey Kong as masked marauders do in pro wrestling. We hate this guy. Why won't he play Wiebe? What's with that tape he sends in, that seems to show him beating Wiebe's record? Is this little world too heavily invested in Mitchell as its superstar? How long can Wiebe's wife remain supportive of his lonely quest?

All questions to which you will find answers, sort of, in the film. I would never dream of giving away the ending. But I can give away what happened after the ending. Today I went to www.TwinGalaxies.com and discovered that on July 13, the 25th anniversary of his original record, "in front of an audience of hundreds," Billy Mitchell topped his own record by scoring 1,050,200 points. I have a sinking feeling that Steve Wiebe is out in the garage right now."

[Scorpion]

Thanks for that link, PN.

Here's a good but sad and disturbing documentary recommended by chick, available on Netflix Instant: Witch Hunt. (http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Witch_Hunt/70109099?lnkce=seRtLn&trkid=222336&strkid=355079466_0_0&strackid=25320934e003b6c1_0_srl)

Description: Sean Penn narrates this documentary that chronicles the story of John Stoll and other residents of Bakersfield, Calif., who were wrongly convicted in the 1980s of child molestation and other crimes. Recounting how an overzealous district attorney coerced children into testifying against their parents -- including accusations of devil worship -- the film examines how these families have struggled to cope with the emotional fallout.

[PN]

Scorp, thanks!

I just finished watching After Innocence. You really have to take your hat off to Peter Neufeld and Barry Scheck with their Innocence Project. It's hard to fathom being locked up in prison for a crime you didn't commit. How can you put a price on losing 10 or 20 years of your life?

I added Witch Hunt to my Instant Queue. Living near Manhattan Beach, I felt like I had a front row seat to the McMartin preschool trial. Talk about a Witch Hunt.