Documentaries

[iSTRONG]

There was a very good documentary on life in Tehran by/on the BBC a couple of days ago.

Rageh Inside Iran

It can be seen in full on google video

It's a genuine look at the life of iranians in Tehran. Very far from the image of flag-burning fanatics Fox Network wants you to have.

[wet work]

El D,
I seem to remember you mentioning being a fan of The Flaming Lips. I think there's a documentary called Fearless Freaks, if you haven't seen it/heard of it you may be interested in checking it out.


I've been wanting to see Cocaine Cowboys for a while now seems like it would be really good.

I actually own 20% of a documentary about Ramblin' Jack Elliot and a few other old musicians called Pioneer Troubadours. The project is kind of still unfinished and my involvement is only financial but hopefully the guys doing it will get their act together and finish the movie. At this point I'm kind of doubtful it'll ever be finished (hippies....) but they're good people and I'm holding out hope it'll happen eventually.

[NajdorfDefense]

The Thin Blue Line by Errol Morris - got a man released from Death Row. Doesn't get better than that.

Pumping Iron. Gov. Arnold v Lou Ferrigno and a look at the bodybuilding world circa 1976.

Hoop Dreams. Probably the best documentary of the 1990s. It is an unbelievably good film.
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/...IEWS/410210301

[glen]

I am Trying to Break your Heart - about the making of Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Great Documentary, even if one is not a fan of Wilco. Examines a unique situation of an excellent record that gets dropped by the label due to concerns of its sales potential with regard to money the label had already spent. The second disc is more for fans and includes excellent concert and behind the scenes music footage.

When We Were Kings - Ali/Foreman, Rumble in the Jungle - on espn classics frequently, but nonetheless one of my favorite documentaries of all time.

[Frinkenstein]

Hoop dreams is easily my favorite documentary and one of my favorite films of all time.

From wikipedia:
[ QUOTE ]
Hoop Dreams is a 1994 documentary film directed by Steve James. It follows the story of two Chicago, Illinois high school students and their dream of becoming professional basketball players. Originally intended to be a 30-minute short produced for the Public Broadcasting Service, it eventually led to 5 years of filming and 250 hours of footage. It premiered at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival where it won the Audience Award for Best Documentary. Despite its length (171 minutes) and unlikely commercial genre, it received high critical and popular acclaim. It was on more critics top ten lists than any other film that year, including Pulp Fiction, Forrest Gump, and Quiz Show.

The film follows William Gates and Arthur Agee, two African-American teenagers who are recruited by St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominantly white high school with an outstanding basketball program. Taking 90-minute commutes to school, enduring long and difficult workouts and practices, and acclimating to a foreign social environment, Gates and Agee struggle to improve their athletic skills in a job market with heavy competition. Along the way, their families celebrate their successes and support each other during times of hardship.

The film raises a number of issues concerning race, class, economic division, education and values in contemporary America. It also offers one of the most intimate views of inner-city life to be captured on film. Yet it is also the human story of two young men, their two families and their community, and the joys and struggles they live through over a period of five years.


[/ QUOTE ]

[shaundeeb]

Mail order wife is hilarious how sad the guys are, they could be any 2 guys from 2+2.

[econophile]

El D,

I recommend "Gates of Heaven" as your next Errol Morris documentary. It's pretty amazing.

[econophile]

American Dream (imdb link) is a great documentary about a labor strike at a Minnesota meat packing plant. I was impressed with how well the film shows the different parties affected by the strike: the workers and their families, the townspeople, the management, and the union negotiators; and manages also to paint higly personal individual portraits.

[Georgia Avenue]

Grey Gardens: 60s doc about these two crazy old wasps ladies (mother and daughter) on Cape Cod living in a crumbling old mansion that's overgrown with weeds. One of the first docs to acknowledge and address the impact a filmmaker has on his subjects.

Of course, Grizzlyman does this more explicitly, as do most Wener Herzog docs.

[UMTerp]

I haven't seen it yet, but I've heard great things about No Driection Home: Bob Dylan http://imdb.com/title/tt0367555/. A documentary about Dylan directed by Scorsese - what more could you want?

Hoop Dreams is my personal favorite doc as well. It's probably the only documentary I've watched several times, and every time I get through it, I think the same thing - "I can't believe that movie is 3.5 hours long." It just flows so well, and is really easy to get immersed in and sit through.

The only other recommedation I can think of off the top of my head is Dust to Glory http://imdb.com/title/tt0386423/, an entertaining film about the Baja 1000, an annual off-road race held in Mexico. The scenery and camerawork are particularly top-notch. A well-put-together piece for such a low-budget movie.