Documentaries

Have you seen Man On Wire? Honest to god, that made me cry. It's about the tightrope walk between the twin towers in the seventies.

Capturing the Friedmans is really intense and interesting, about a family torn apart by allegations of child molestation.

It's not really a documentary... but My Winnipeg by Guy Maddin is awesome. It's a (mostly fictional) investigation into his titular hometown.

Wow. Jesus Camp is so disgusting, I can't believe some people have the capacity to think in those ways.
You should check out Religulous, it has serious validation and lots of humor. And the one about all the insane crap Wal-Mart does. I don't remember the name of it, High Cost for Low Prices or something... but you would like it, very interesting and disturbing.

I've heard Food Inc is fantastic.

I don't see many documentaries, but there are some great ones. Grizzly Man and Jesus Camp come to mind. Werner Herzog's films should just be seen whether they're fiction or documentary.

The Bridge, too, is quite great.

That's the film you recommended a while back, i think, and I forgot the title, but there it is again, so now I can go chase after it. I think I'm cancelling my cable soon, which means Netflix ahoy!

My favorite documentary of recent time is Deep Water.
http://www.reelviews.net/php_review_template.php?identifier=412

Sec fave, probably Taxi to the Dark Side.
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080207/REVIE...

Both these docs are so excellent. (The guy who did Taxi also did Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room.)

And I can't help but mention Earthlings. Beware, though.
http://www.earthlings.com/earthlings/video-full.php

really, "disgusting"? aren't people allowed to think what they want? what's the alternative? and bill maher is a pompous idiot.

Oh my god, these two, seriously.

Also, Overnight is a superb documentary about the guy who did Boondock Saints and his ego. A must-see.

The way the people in this documentary think is beyond disgusting, you obviuosly have not seen it. Brain washing children to think they are sinners should not be allowed, and there are many alternatives to that.

raising them to be good kids, you mean? i looked up to the kids in that movie. they were braver than any adults i know.

Bravery via fear is wildly unjust.

Also, Waco: the Rules of Engagement (about that crazy David Koresh) and Paradise Lost (about the West Memphis Three) are very much worth checking out.

I feel like I see too many Leftist docs. I need some good old conservative ones. or at least, ones without a bias.

To see:

The Cove
The Bridge
Food Inc.
The September Issue
Man on Wire
Deep Water
Capturing the Friedmans
the one about walmart ( I think I know which one you mean )

oh... and there's this one about child molestation in the catholic church but I can't think of it.

Also also, do you know Louis Theroux? He does some amazing documentaries for the BBC.

This is a clip from one of his more recent ones (maybe last year) when he filmed in San Quentin prison:

man on wire WAS brilliant, jack

Ohh, and Earth. I want to see those all in IMAX. The ones that disney puts out.

These two have been mentioned already, but I'll drop their names again -- Man on Wire is amazing and Food, Inc. is pretty interesting.

Another documentary that I randomly saw on HBO once, was fascinated by, and never came across again is I Am an Animal: The Story of Ingrid Newkirk and PETA.

I second Louis Thereoux. He's great at examining the strange and controversial but is never mocking or judgmental.

The very same. Let me know what you think, and the answer better be "It's awesome Jack, what can I give you in return?"

The answer, Mike, is there's no need. You've already given me enough.

In a Dream by Jeremiah Zagar

It's a documentary on the artist Isaiah Zagar. I liked it for obvious reasons because he's an artist but I also liked how it displayed their family dynamics and relationships. It seemed pretty genuine and real and because the son filmed it was very personal too. The story was handled with care but at the same time it seemed very raw, upfront, like there was very little to hide.

http://www.inadreammovie.com/

Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends was one of my favorite shows a few years back. The one where he hung out with extremists, and the one where he became a porn star were my favorite, and his one on the Phelps family nutjobs was awesome.

art documentaries I need to see:

My Kid Could Paint That
The Art of the Steal

more?

Don't Look Back AND No Direction Home

both Dylan Docos. the first by D.A Pennebaker and the latter by Scorcese. both amazing. the latter has some great interview footage with Ginsberg shot not long before her died.

also; another Scorcese music Doco called: Martin Scorcese presents The Blues.

it's a box set and it's incredible. all five discs!

Here is a list of my favorites, all of which I have watched multiple times. Hope you guys check some of them out.

Crumb - About comic legend R. Crumb. Directed by Terry Zwigoff and produced by David Lynch. Crumb and his two brothers are some of the most bizarre and fascinating people I have seen on screen.

Joy Division - A documentary about the band. Some great stuff here.

You're Gonna Miss Me - Deals with Roky Erickson, considered to be one of the founders of psychedelic rock. Went insane. Recovered thanks to intervention from his brother. Is now making music again. Has a new album coming out in April with backing music by Okkervil River.

If I Should Fall From Grace: The Shane MacGowan Story - Wonderful portrait of the troubled, constantly drunk, yet amazingly talented leader of The Pogues.

Rest In Pieces: A Portrait of Joe Coleman - A very interesting doc on the painter and performance artist, Joe Coleman. His paintings deal with outsider subjects, including serial killers, cult figures, musicians, artists, and writers.

It/ll Be Better Tomorrow - Another fav of mine, this one deals with Hubert Selby, Jr. Some great interview material with Selby and an excellent selection of guests talk about the man and his work.

Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus - Follows musician Jim White through the South as he explains the sinner/saint aspect of the region. Features great music and an appearance by one of my favorite writers, Harry Crews, which is worth the price of the DVD alone.

The Devil and Daniel Johnston - A good doc on the savant-ish musician Daniel Johnston. Excellent footage and interviews in this one, and it features some great art. It's uplifting and sad at the same time, and always entertaining.

Interesting/offbeat ones I've seen lately:

Beyond the Mat: A documentary covering the lives of pro wrestlers

Porn Star - The Legend of Ron Jeremy: The name says it all. Surprisingly little nudity (maybe 2 seconds?) and a fascinating look into the life of a highly educated, highly athletic (although very rotund and hairy) man who just happens to use his gigantic schlong to make a living.

Facing Ali: Some of the surviving boxers who faced Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali discuss what it was like during the build up to their fights, what it was like being in the ring with him, and how their lives changed forever afterwards

Fitzcarraldo is also almost a documentary, although it's not, and yet...it is...hmm.

I remember I saw one about a sixties activists group called the Weathermen. Has anyone heard of this group? Very interesting, I recommend looking them up. I don't remember the name of the doc though..

omg, that ron jeremy one sounds awesome.

Totally grew up that way. That movie didn't even make me blink. I still think that movie is ridiculously one-sided and exploitive. Oh no, they prayed the demons out of the overhead projector hahaha lollll. My church also had a food pantry and an emergency heat fund, so fuck off, movie. Two sides to the fundamentalist coin.

My favorites are "Capturing the Friedmans", which Jack mentioned, "Battle for Whiteclay," which is about the selling of alcohol on the NE/SD border of the Pine Ridge Indian reservation, and "Forgiving Dr. Mengele", which is about a Holocaust survivor that made her peace with Mengele's experimentation in Auschwitz.

I have already mentioned this somewhere else I think, but I recently watched Dear Zachary.

Basically, the guy who made it, his best friend is killed by his psycho girlfriend, and he talks to all the people who knew him across the country and overseas.

But there is other stuff too, I can't say what though, it will spoil it.

It's depressing and sad, but has some wonderful and loving people in it too.

I agree with Capturing the Friedmans and anything with Louis Theroux.

Here's the original thread, should give you ideas as well.

http://chuckpalahniuk.net/forum/1000031/let-us-talk-documentaries

the weather underground. my mom almost ran with them back in the day.

Yeah, yeah, I saw that one too. Great, great doc!! Released by Oscilloscope Laboratories, which just released A PORTRAIT OF MAURICE SENDAK!

http://www.amazon.com/Tell-Them-Anything-You-Want/dp/B0033XKVE6/ref=sr_1...

Netflix doesn't have it in yet, those bastards.

Muderball (wheel chair football/basketball
F*ck: A Documentary (about the F word)
Tyson (Mike Tyson)
Dear Zachary (guy reliving his childhood exploits)
Deliver Us From Evil (Pedopriest cover up)
Super Size Me Eating like a pig)
Very Young Girls (forced underage prostitution in NYC)
Bigger, Stronger, Faster (Steroids)
Brother's Keeper (4 illiterate brother farmers who have lived their lives in a shack)
Forgiving Dr Mengele (Holocaust)
Born Into Brothels (children of Calcutta prostitutes)
King of Kong (King King Game)
Gonzo (HST)
Rock School (guy in Philly teaches kids about "real" rock music)

seconding Born Into Brothels, and i also recommend Confessions of a Superhero.

LA folks should get a kick out of the people there, some may be familiar:

here's a hulu link: http://www.hulu.com/watch/63282/confessions-of-a-superhero

also, you might as well see this one, they'll probably make you see it as part of your college credit.

I mentioned that I wanted to see it...you quoted where I said that I did! But yeah, it looks really good and interesting!! I can't wait for it to come out.

and I knew there was one on Jackson Pollack! thanks.

Anymore, I just read the last line of posts.

F for Fake is kind of a documentary.

Ooooh! Good to know!

the 10 minutes i watched from an inconvenient truth were just silly.

If you liked Jesus Camp you really have to see Hell House.

It's about these Jesus freaks that make a Haunted House every year for Halloween. The point of the Haunted House is to scare you from Sin. It's just ridiculous. I don't want to say too much because I'll ruin it. But I liked this one even better than Jesus Camp.

Also - one of my favorite documentaries (and I'm pretty sure it's almost considered a classic) is Cocaine Cowboys.

This one is awesome. It's about drug smuggling in the 70's (I believe that was the time... or 80's). It's mostly told from the point of view of the actual smugglers. It's very good.

Oh, another great one about the relationship between the U.S. Military and industry is "Why We Fight".

Walt and El Grupo
Waking Sleeping Beauty

Disney Must-Sees

OK, wow. I KNOOWWWWWW it's one sided because...well, it's a documentary, duh. BUT, I was just reading more about Jesus Camp and watching a few clips.

Gah!

Ted Haggard: We've decided the Bible is the word of God. We don't have to have a General Assembly about what we believe. It's written in the Bible. Alright, so we don't have to debate what we think about homosexual activity. It's written in the Bible.
[pointing and looking into the camera]

Ted Haggard: I think I know what you did last night.
[audience laughs]

Ted Haggard: If you send me a thousand dollars, I won't tell your wife.
[audience and Haggard laughs]

Ted Haggard: If you use any of this, I'll sue you.

Y'all know what happened with Ted Haggard, right?

What happened with Ted Haggard.

nope nope. tell us tell us!

The link doesn't click on itself, buddy.

For good hip hop documentaries:

Tupac: Resurrection
Biggie & Tupac
Hip Hop Immortals: We Got Your Kids

That part bothered my mom too because she knew all about ted haggard. She knows all the pastors.

Here are these people that are so over the top that they are freaks. And then their leader turns out to be a total fake. lol

I watched Forgiving Dr. Mengele. It was interesting.