Won't You Be My Neighbor?

Won't You Be My Neighbor? (Morgan Neville, 2018)

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Rating: DOCQ=6, DOCP=7 / First Rate

Scale K=3, Scale L=3, Scale M=4, Scale N=3

Biopic, Television, Children, Psychology, Faith

I grew up watching "Mister Roger's Neighborhood" and I know without a doubt that the show shaped me as a person. Probably more so than any other show on TV. I still remember all the songs and lyrics, over twenty years later. I watched this documentary and cried multiple times. Because no one cares in the same way Fred Rogers did. What an amazing human being--so brave and determined to help children and our world. It is deeply moving to hear the words he said and sang.

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Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words

Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words (Thorsten Schütte, 2016)

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Rating: DOCQ=5, DOCP=4 / Quite Legible

Scale K=2, Scale L=3, Scale M=2, Scale N=2

Biopic, Music, Controversy, Social Commentary

I've always admired Frank Zappa as a musician and as a citizen. He was often misinterpreted, stereotyped, and attacked for being opinionated and speaking truth. His music is utter genius and incredibly entertaining. This documentary was a fun way to hear his thoughts and views, his contributions to music and our society, and is philosophy of life. A nice film.

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I Am

I Am (Tom Shadyac, 2010)

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Rating: DOCQ=8, DOCP=8 / Quite Legible

Scale K=2, Scale L=3, Scale M=3, Scale N=2

Documentary, Philosophical, Political, Spiritual

How I feel about this film can be summed up by one quote that stayed with me long after viewing:

"There's one fundamental law that all of nature obeys that mankind breaks every day. Now, this is a law that's evolved over billions of years, and the law is this: Nothing in nature takes more than it needs."

"An ocean, a rain forest, the human body, are all co-operatives. The redwood tree doesn't take all the soil and nutrients, just what it needs to grow. A lion doesn't kill every gazelle, just one. We have a term for something in the body when it takes more than its share, we call it: cancer."

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Amy

Amy (Asif Kapadia, 2015)

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Rating: DOCQ=5, DOCP=6 / Quite Legible

Scale K=2, Scale L=3, Scale M=3, Scale N=3

Biography, Music, Consequences of fame

I felt absolutely drained and depressed after watching this film about Amy Winehouse. As soon as I heard her voice back in college I knew she was a phenomenal artist and could become legendary. But I only ever saw her life through the thick filter of the media. She always appeared drugged-out and crazy. But that wasn't the real Amy, that was the product of celebrity-ism. Fame really doesn't work for most people, especially artists who just want to do their craft. It is no wonder that so many celebrities turn to drugs or become depressed. What else do you do when you can't leave your house or go anywhere without cameras shuttering and people yelling at you? Our capitalistic/consumerist society is literally killing people who have so much to give our culture.

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Grey Gardens

Grey Gardens (Ellen Hovde, Albert Maysles, David Maysles, Muffie Meyer, 1975)

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Rating: DOCQ=5, DOCP=1 / It's All Scribbly To Me

Scale K=2, Scale L=3, Scale M=1, Scale N=0

Documentary, Comedy, Biopic, Nostalgia

I had a hard time focusing during this classic documentary. Edith and Eddie, Jackie Kennedy's eccentric relatives, are strange, funny, and their relationship is touching and bittersweet. But this type of film is just not my style. The meandering conversations and free-form of it all can be tedious at times.

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In A Dream

In A Dream (Jeremiah Zagar, 2008)

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Rating: DOCQ=8, DOCP=8 / It's All Scribbly To Me

Scale K=3, Scale L=2, Scale M=1, Scale N=1

Documentary, Biopic, Art, Complex Relationships

This is the story of Isaiah Zagar, the renowned mosaic artist. The film is focused on identity and love and the complexity that relationships entail when an artist has a family. Strangely enough, the story didn't engage me as I had hoped. Perhaps the non-linear and artistic editing that makes the film interesting and beautiful didn't work as a narrative. I found myself being drawn away.

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Fed Up

Fed Up (Stephanie Soechtig, 2014)

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Rating: DOCQ=8, DOCP=8 / Genius

Scale K=3, Scale L=4, Scale M=4, Scale N=3

Documentary, Food, Obesity, Politics, Health

It's frustrating and deeply disheartening to live in a society where industry is better looked after than people, where money for a few always seems to be valued more highly than health and happiness. My views about this serious food and health crisis in our culture haven't changed after watching Fed Up but they certainly have been enhanced. I, of course, have gotten more upset and angrier.

You owe it to yourself to watch this film if you have kids. You should watch this if you intend to buy groceries from a store. Seriously, folks, education is the only way to any meaningful change.

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I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story

I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story (Dave LaMattina & Chad N. Walker, 2014)

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Rating: DOCQ=6, DOCP=7 / First Rate

Scale K=3, Scale L=3, Scale M=4, Scale N=3

Documentary, Biopic, Puppeteer, Children's Education, Tearjerker

Puppets hold a very important place in my heart. I remember running home from elementary school every day and watching Mister Rogers followed by one glorious hour of Sesame Street. While Big Bird wasn't my favorite character (I liked Telly and Ernie) he is undeniably the icon of the show. It's wonderful to watch the behind-the-scenes of the truly great entertainers/storytellers that puppeteers are. They are magicians with big hearts. And the love they have for children is sincere and ceaseless. Caroll Spinney is an amazing person and you if you ever watched Sesame Street you definitely need to know who he is. Watch this.

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20 Feet From Stardom

20 Feet From Stardom (Morgan Neville, 2014)

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Rating: DOCQ=6, DOCP=7 / First Rate

Scale K=3, Scale L=3, Scale M=4, Scale N=3

Documentary, Music, History

As a singer who has never really wanted the baggage that comes from being a "star," I thoroughly enjoyed this film about the singers that have made (and will make) a tremendous impact on music history and our culture. Back-up singers bring the feeling, the soul, the overall style to so many popular songs. Without them, music would be very different. It's sad that so many of them did not get credit for their acheivements, for whatever political or personal reasons. And it is also sad that sometimes they can't overcome the back-up singer status and make it as a solo artist. But sometimes, as many of the musicians in this film state, that's the way it should be. Great, powerful singers are not all hungry for fame. Music is the important thing, and harmonizing in the background--blending and forming the song into something bigger--is a really solid place to live.

I love rock 'n roll history films. They always remind me of my strong opinion that the best way to learn history is by studying popular culture. And also that music history does not so much revolve around solo artists but around studios/labels and regions. Excellent movie.

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Stripped

Stripped (Dave Kellett and Frederick Schroeder, 2014)

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Rating: DOCQ=7, DOCP=6 / Honors

Scale K=4, Scale L=3, Scale M=3, Scale N=3

Documentary, Comics, Cartoons, Social Commentary, Technology

I've have fond memories of reading the Sunday comics with my parents, laughing at the drawings and silly jokes. My favorites were For Better For Worse, Calvin and Hobbes, Foxtrot, and later Cul de Sac. This is a great documentary that shows the behind the scenes life of cartoonists, the pros and cons of the digital age, and offers thoughts about the future of comics.

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Resistance

Resistance (Michael Graziano, 2015)

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Rating: DOCQ=7, DOCP=7 / Genius

Scale K=3, Scale L=4, Scale M=4, Scale N=3

Documentary, Health, Disease, Antibiotics

Do you eat food? Do you breathe air? Do you buy things from the store? Do you live somewhere? Watch this film.

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For No Good Reason

For No Good Reason (Charlie Paul, 2012)

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Rating: Q=6, P=5 / Quite Legible

Scale K=3, Scale L=3, Scale M=3, Scale N=2

Documentary, Art, Politics, Activism

This is a fun documentary about part of the life of Ralph Steadman. He is the big, main part of why I enjoy the world of Hunter S. Thompson. I would never call myself a Gonzo fanatic, but I love the strange, ugly, bizarre, frightening, grotesque images that Steadman draws. It's fun to see how it all started and how it evolved. To me, and I think most artists, it's all about process as a way of dealing and reacting to the world. I think I could be friends with Ralph Steadman. We share beliefs and philosophies. 

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They Call It Myanmar: Lifting The Curtain

They Call It Myanmar: Lifting The Curtain (Robert Lieberman, 2012)

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Rating: DOCQ=5, DOCP=4 / Quite Legible

Scale K=2, Scale L=3, Scale M=2, Scale N=2

Documentary, Social Commentary, Human Condition, Southeast Asia (Burma/Myanmar)

This was a stark film about the resilient and beautiful people living in the truly isolated country of Myanmar. It is about astonishing poverty and shows what happens when a government does not care about people. A land rich with resources and willing/capable citizens but no structure, no welfare, almost no hope. Yet somehow the people still work and are quietly patient for the day things will improve. If only we all could be this strong. This film made my heart break.

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Tim's Vermeer

Tim's Vermeer (Pen Jillette and Teller, 2013)

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Rating: DOCQ=8, DOCP=8 / First Rate

Scale K=3, Scale L=3, Scale M=4, Scale N=3

Documentary, Art, Technology, History

Growing up around paintings and drawings, knowing many artists, and being a different kind of artist myself, I've always had an enormous respect for the amount of patience and dedication one must have to create. I fully understand writer's block and have spent many hours playing chord progressions with no results. So, Tim's Vermeer was a treat of a film--Tim says he isn't an artist, yet he creates a near exact replica of Vermeer's studio and then paints a version of a Vermeer in just over four months. He learns to hold a paintbrush, mixes his own paint, grinds his own lens, and then sits for countless hours to observe and paint what he sees. He has ample curiosity to discover how Vermeer worked, he does research and experiments. How is this not an artist? If Vermeer used a lens to paint (which is pretty likely), does this make him less an artist?

One must certainly have talent and imagination to be a good artist, and one must learn skills. But sometimes we underestimate the value and importance of having the right tools. There are plenty of budding geniuses out there who will never know they have talent, never be discovered because they don't have access to paints or canvas or books...This is a wonderful film that really makes you think about definitions and meanings.

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Jiro Dreams of Sushi

Jiro Dreams of Sushi (David Gelb, 2011)

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Rating: DOCQ=6, DOCP=5 / Quite Legible

Scale K=3, Scale L=3, Scale M=3, Scale N=2

Documentary, Biopic, Food, Sushi, Family, Legacy

You don't have to like sushi to love this documentary. But it helps! This is a wonderful and inspirational story about family tradition, legacy, patience, and perfectionism. There are lots of cliche sayings out there about finding your passion and do what you love but this film says it better. Jiro is an inspiration to us all.

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Happy People: A Year In The Taiga

Happy People: A Year In The Taiga (Werner Herzog and Dmitry Vasyukov, 2010)

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Rating: DOCQ=6, DOCP=5 / Quite Legible

Scale K=2, Scale L=4, Scale M=3, Scale N=2

Documentary, Siberia, Fading Traditions, Hunting/Trapping, Philosophical

Another beautiful and thought-provoking documentary from Werner Herzog. In Happy People he tells us the story of a community of trappers in the wilds of Siberia, isolated for most of the year and dependent on the animals trapped over long, brutal winters by the males of the village. The men use traditional methods of fishing and trapping. They make everything from cabins to skis to mosquito repellent. It is a hard life but one that is thoroughly rewarding. A reminder of what is important in life and how self-sufficient human beings can be.

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Inequality For All

Inequality For All (Jacob Kornbluth, 2013)

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Rating: DOCQ=7, DOCP=8 / Genius

Scale K=3, Scale L=4, Scale M=4, Scale N=4

Economics, Sociology, Politics, Current Affairs

I love Robert Reich. I've loved him since I read his book Supercapitalism during my first year as a graduate student. I often have trouble summarizing exactly what I see going on in our society today but Robert Reich knows how to say it. He knows how to show it, too, with this brilliantly simple and poignant documentary. This is the type of teaching we need more of in high schools. This is what college students everywhere need to hear. Because Reich is correct--they are the future. And if we want to make positive social change in this country, it starts with education. We must understand what is happening before we can do anything about it. I loved this documentary.

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Busting Out & This Film is Not Yet Rated

Busting Out (Laurel Spellman and Francine Strickwerda, 2004)

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Rating: DOCQ=4, DOCP=3 / It's All Scribbly To Me

Scale K=2, Scale L=2, Scale M=2, Scale N=1
 

Breasts, Cancer, Culture, Psychology, Sexuality
 

I wasn't amazed by this short documentary but it was a nice re-visiting to the decades old discussion of why our culture is so breast-obsessed. Some moving conversations from cancer survivors but overall the film is a little lacking in anything new.

This Film is Not Yet Rated (Kirby Dick, 2006)

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Rating: DOCQ=5, DOCP=5 / Quite Legible

Scale K=2, Scale L=3, Scale M=3, Scale N=2
 

Censorship, Film Rating, MPAA, Investigation
 

What a fun investigative film! Right away I was hooked--I've never understood our terrible, clunky film rating system. And -yes, you guessed it- now I want to create my own rating system. Look for that in the near future.

Kirby Dick does a wonderful job finding out about the secretive and strangely uncooperative MPAA. He also includes great commentary from filmmakers and writers about their experiences with having films rated and those ratings not explained. Eye-opening.
 

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Ken Burns: Prohibition

Prohibition (Ken Burns and Lynn Novak, 2011)

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Rating: DOCQ=7, DOCP=4 / Honors

Scale K=3, Scale L=4, Scale M=2, Scale N=2

 

Documentary, Prohibition Era, History, Alcohol, Politics, Gangsters, Crime, Jazz Age
 

I learned a lot more about the USA from this recent Ken Burns production. Three episodes chronicle everything about the 18th Amendment, from the reasons for its creation to its imminent repeal. I'm surprised at how little I knew about Prohibition--more should be taught in high school History classes, in my opinion. Interesting discussions of what can and cannot be controlled by a government, what can happen when you restrict, how good intentions can create terrible problems, etc.

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Mansome & Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child

Mansome (Morgan Spurlock, 2012)

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Rating: DOCQ=5, DOCP=6 / Quite Legible

Scale K=2, Scale L=3, Scale M=3, Scale N=3

Documentary, Masculinity, Grooming, Gender, Body

This film was right up my alley, since I studied masculinity in graduate school. A fun, witty, and informative look into why men care about their appearances (or not). Beards, barbers, moustaches, cologne, and manscaping. Great celebrity commentary AND insight from a favorite author, Michael Kimmel.


Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child (Eric Martin & Lois Vossen, 2010)

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Rating: DOCQ=6, DOCP=7 / First Rate

Scale K=3, Scale L=3, Scale M=4, Scale N=3

Documentary, Art, New York, Young Genius, Counterculture

It is a true shame that so many artists must struggle through a whirlwind life and die lonely, dejected, and nearly forgotten. Jean-Michel was able to capture his environment and culture and our history in ways that excited and invigorated people. He was a powerful force and one that could not cope with it all, in the end. I am so glad that he did, though, for those few years- thousands of amazing expressions will live on.

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