[MicroBob]

Some documentaries that have been mentioned that I have liked a lot:

Hoop Dreams - Really terrific as many have mentioned.

Thin Blue Line - Same. This film really got to me. It's been so long since I've seen it and I still remember how I was so blown away by it.

Crumb - Funny and weird.


Diablo mentioned Word-Wars about the Scrabble Circuit which I haven't seen yet. I really want to check this out.
The book Word Freaks about the same subjet was really good I thought and got me interested.


A few months ago I saw a documentary on ESPN called, "The Time of Their Lives" about the growth of the NY Cosmos and North American Soccer League in the 1970's including Pele and other star players.
This documentary was masterfully done in my opinion.
The music and editing gave it a kind of funky 70's feel but without being so over-the-top as to be silly.

Even if you're not a soccer fan I think it would be interesting to see the story of how this practically semi-pro team drawing 1k fans a game was able to somehow land the best player in the world and eventually become a huge craze and sell-out Giants Stadium (over 70k fans) and then, almost just as quickly, fade-away entirely.


Koshien - This was a documentary I saw on PBS a few mths ago about the Japanese High-School baseball tournament. Not really that well-done but still somewhat interesting to watch. Thousands of teams battling in a giant nationwide single-elim tourney. Top 49 teams go to the Koshien finals that every player dreams of participating in.
It's a glimpse into the difference in attitudes in general between the U.S. and Japanese cultures as well imo.


Trekkies - Funny film from about 10 yrs ago about obsessed Star Trek fans attending various conventions, etc. Some of the interviews with the nerdier of the group are really funny of course, but I also developed an appreciation for how devoted they are to the history of the show.


The Big Bang (1989) - Probably my favorite documentary. Interviews with various people from different walks of life about love, life, death, etc. Some have very interesting stories to tell. Funny, sweet, thoughtful, simple.
Read a review on IMDB that it didn't go in-depth enough on each of the topics. I thought that keeping it moving and a little lighter and not bogging it down in really deep philosophy was the preferred approach.