The Documentary Film Thread

[.jay.]

there's a documentary i saw years ago about a guy on death row and they film him as his date of execution draws near and as the get closer and closer to the date the documentary team start to think he may be innocent and it starts to unfold that he probably is, the execution goes ahead despite pleas to postpone it and after the documentary came out the governor of the prison that executed the guy quit and went on to become a staunch campaigner against the death penalty in the USA.

i cannot for the life of me remember the name of the documentary, it was made in the 80's maybe the late 70's and i think it won or got nominated for some big awards maybe even an Oscar i think the name is something like one day in may that isn't the name but it's something similar i think but i cannot for the life of me find any info about it anywhere i don't suppose any of you guys know what film i am talking about do you?

[philipsteak]

Man on Wire is a fantastic film. Its about the guy who tightrope walked between the twin towers back in 1973 (i think). The main guy is a little full of himself, but I suppose when you've done something that damn cool, your entitled to be. He's also really, really, really French.

[.jay.]

just remembered the name of that Documentary about the guy on death row.

14 days In May

well worth checking out if you can find it

[Johnthebar]

Werner Herzog's latest one "Encounters at the End of the World" is well worth a watch.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1093824/

It's a documentary about Antarctica, but as Werner says "It's not another penguin film", it focuses more on the many eccentric personalities that find themselves at the South Pole. There's also some stunning cinematography in it

[.jay.]

Robert Blecker Wants Me Dead looks really good!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug5crloEWck

[Johnthebar]

Taxidermy: Stuff the World.

Amazing. I would love a copy of it but can't get hold of it anywhere despite repeated, if sporadic, efforts.

http://www.centuryfilmsltd.com/taxidermy.htm

I managed to get a copy of Taxidermy... from a torrent site at the weekend. I'm looking forward to watching it, it looks interesting. I don't know if you use torrents or if we can discuss torrent sites on threads here, but if you want any info on where I found it please feel free to PM.

I embarked on a bit of a Documentary marathon most of the day yesterday, as I couldn't move due to being hungover and it was freezing outside. I got through:

Dig! - Already mentioned in this thread. But a great documentary about the friendship/rivalry/death threats between The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0388888/

Grizzly Man - Again already mentioned, but a great documentary about Timothy Treadwell's life and death with the grizzly bears in the Alaskan wilderness http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0427312/

Jesus Camp http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0486358/ - A look at American evangelical Christian fundamental nutters and how they are trying to create their little foot soldiers for Jesus. Highly recommended although does contain scenes of extremely deluded people, brainwashed children and singing in tongues . It contains some cracking quotes too:

"If Harry Potter was alive in the old testament days he would have been put to death."

The Power of Nightmares: The Rise of the Politics of Fear http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0430484/ - A 3 part BBC documentary about how and why governments try to instil terror into society. The focus is on the rise of the Neo Conservatives in America and Islamic Fundamentalism in the East. It shows that Cheney, Rumsfeld and co were putting together dodgy dossiers and evidence as early as the 70s and that there isn’t a big bad co-ordinated Al-Qaida organisation operating out of cells that we need to be scared of; the real terror comes from an ‘idea’ that radicalises young Muslims anywhere in the world.

It’s a bit out of date as it was originally aired in 2004 before 7/7 tube bombings, but the arguments in the film still seem very plausible and the people interviewed are high calibre. I was very surprised to see a BBC film approaching global politics from this kind of direction. Highly recommended

[suchacharmer]

Best documentary I've ever watched was "American Movie" about a small time horror film maker with really interesting burnout friends. It was shot around my hometown so there are a lot of parallels with my childhood and wanting to escape the vast nothingness of Northern America. It's really funny and I highly recommend it if you want to see a part of the country that doesn't get represented in media very often.

Another great one is "The Target Shoots First" which is about a recent college grad who takes a job at Columbia House Record Club and has to fight with his desire to fight the corporate side of the music industry and survive within it at the same side. It takes place during the rise of grunge and alternative music in the 90s and is a really interestig take on the modern music industry.

[t8yman]

Best documentary I've ever watched was "American Movie" about a small time horror film maker with really interesting burnout friends. It was shot around my hometown so there are a lot of parallels with my childhood and wanting to escape the vast nothingness of Northern America. It's really funny and I highly recommend it if you want to see a part of the country that doesn't get represented in media very often.

Another great one is "The Target Shoots First" which is about a recent college grad who takes a job at Columbia House Record Club and has to fight with his desire to fight the corporate side of the music industry and survive within it at the same side. It takes place during the rise of grunge and alternative music in the 90s and is a really interestig take on the modern music industry.

that sounds great, gonna check that one out for sure.

[.jay.]

Grizzly Man - Again already mentioned, but a great documentary about Timothy Treadwell's life and death with the grizzly bears in the Alaskan wilderness http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0427312/

ooh yes this is a great documentary! it disturbed me a little how much i wanted to hear that recording of his final moments!

[t8yman]

I simply cannot find "The Target Shoots First" anywhere, any pointers would be greatly appreciated. I can do torrent, usenet, rapidshare, anything!

[nightcrawler13]

The Bridge - it averages out that someone kills themselves once a fortnight by throwing themselves off the Golden Gate Bridge. So some docu makers set up some cameras for a month and filmed a series of people taking their own lives. Interviews with the relatives, friends, witness' and a survivor. Strange look into the world of suicide.

Taking Liberties - this will make you very angry, especially the first three minutes where a coach of Green Party members are not allowed to take part in an antiwar protest because they had some scissors on the coach really good docu about how our liberties are being destroyed to "protect" us from "terrorists"

[Johnthebar]

I simply cannot find "The Target Shoots First" anywhere, any pointers would be greatly appreciated. I can do torrent, usenet, rapidshare, anything!

It's not on usenet, not sure about rapidshare, but if you are a member of karagara there's a torrent of it on there (I haven't got any invites I'm afraid). It looks like an interesting doc and I'll grab a copy and hopefully up a torrent of it somewhere more accessible (probably this weekend)

This is the reason it's so hard to find

Because Wilcha included a few minutes of Nirvana footage, The Target Shoots First remains unavailable on commercial DVD due to licensing issues

Basically it never got distributed or released, it just made a few festivals and a handful of tv screenings

Edited February 10, 2009 by Johnthebar

[t8yman]

thanks for that John, would really appreciate a seeding if you could when you've got it!

[jonbob]

Documentary on last night on the Thrilla in Manilla, great doc about one of the greatest rivalries in the history of sport.

Yeah, saw that, great documentary. Its hard to find a non-biased Ali documentary, and that one wasn't particularly flattering for a change.

I'm a huge fan of "When We Were Kings" (The Rumble in the Jungle), which shows Ali in the opposite light. Best sports documentary ever and one of the best in ANY subject. Norman Mailer has a great way of getting you right in the moment.

[The Nal]

Did anyone see the Brian Clough doc last night on ITV? Absolutely superb, especially for ITV. As good a football doc as I’ve seen.

[Langdale Wolf]

Did anyone see the Brian Clough doc last night on ITV? Absolutely superb, especially for ITV. As good a football doc as I’ve seen.

Was about to post about that. Superb programme - really enjoyed it. Some great moments - the bit with Don Revie on the talk show was just hilarious!!

BC: "I wanted to make Leeds better than when you were there."

DR: "I won the league and only lost 4 games."

BC: "Well I would only have lost 3."

:lol:

He really is sadly missed - a great man.

[When Jokers Attack]

You're Gonna Miss Me

Documentary about rock n roll pioneer Roger Kynard "Roky" Erickson, whose band the 13th Floor Elevators coined the term "psychedelic rock" in the 60's. Struggling with drug abuse and schizophrenia, he spent 3 years in Rusk State Hospital after pleading insanity on marijuana charges. His new band, Roky Erickson and the Aliens managed to stay vital during the 70's with a darker and more aggressive rock sound. After losing interest in music, he became a recluse, living in poverty and filth. The movie details the rise and fall of Roky Erickson and his brothers struggle to get Rokys life back on track

[The Nal]

You're Gonna Miss Me

Documentary about rock n roll pioneer Roger Kynard "Roky" Erickson, whose band the 13th Floor Elevators coined the term "psychedelic rock" in the 60's. Struggling with drug abuse and schizophrenia, he spent 3 years in Rusk State Hospital after pleading insanity on marijuana charges. His new band, Roky Erickson and the Aliens managed to stay vital during the 70's with a darker and more aggressive rock sound. After losing interest in music, he became a recluse, living in poverty and filth. The movie details the rise and fall of Roky Erickson and his brothers struggle to get Rokys life back on track

Sweet! Never heard of this. Defo gonna check that out.

Easter Everywhere, what an album!

[When Jokers Attack]

I love this thread, any more recomendations?

[Kowalski]

Werner Herzog's Grizzly Man documentary last week on More 4 was excellent. What a loony the boy who lived with Grizzly Bears in Alaska for 13 summers was.

[pinback]

I love this thread, any more recomendations?

The Joy Division documentary film that was on the cinema around the same time as Control is good. Probably better than Control in fact.

[rossmac1987]

Can't believe that the devil and daniel johnson hasn't been mentioned.

Also the edwin collins doc about the recovery from his stroke is incredible.

i think its called going home.

[Wooderson]

I love this thread, any more recomendations?

If you havent seen it you should check out Penelope Speeris' "The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years". One of the best films about the 80's i've seen.

It captures the last days of the heavy metal scene perfectly, summed up by a heart breaking but still funny scene of the lead singer of WASP guzzling down vodka in a pool with his mother watching on.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Decline_o...The_Metal_Years

Other than that if you havent seen "Gimme Shelter" you really should asap. Don't think it's been mentioned on this thread yet.

Its mindblowingly good.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gimme_Shelter_(documentary)

- - -

Two films that Ive yet to see are "Timothy Leary's Last Trip" about how Leary broadcast his death on the Internet (??!?!?!?!) and "Berkeley in the Sixties" about the birth of counter culture in early 1960's California.

[The Nal]

Other than that if you havent seen "Gimme Shelter" you really should asap. Don't think it's been mentioned on this thread yet.

Its mindblowingly good.

+1.

"Brothers and sisters"

[When Jokers Attack]

Watched Thrilla In Manilla today one of the best Docs i have ever seen, loved it!