#won: documentary

[theoscarsproject]

The Panama Deceptoion (1992). A film about the true reasons for the 1989 US invasion of Panama and big media complicity in these activities.

While the look and feel of it is unfortunately dated, this really is such a crucial and eye-opening documentary about the extent of US government interference, manipulation and terrorism in not just Panama, but the world. Brutal viewing, but now more than ever, it feels essential. 8/10,

[theoscarsproject]

Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989). A collection of profiles of people dead from AIDS who are remembered in the AIDS Memorial Quilt.

Riveting documentary on the AIDS crisis. Nuanced, political, and intimate in ways I forget documentaries can be sometimes. You really feel like you know these people, so you feel the devastation of their individual and collective loss. I think I started crying ten minutes in and didn't stop until the end. 9/10.

[theoscarsproject]

The Times of Harvey Milk (1984). A documentary of the successful career and assassination of San Francisco's first elected gay city supervisor.

A powerful testament to empathy, representation and community, while also being a powerful indictment of individualism and the US justice system. Just a really excellent, affecting documentary. 8/10.

[theoscarsproject]

Genocide (1982). Orson Welles and Elizabeth Taylor compassionately narrate this harrowing documentary about Jewish persecution in Nazi Germany, which soon turned into a notoriously industrious plan to wipe them from existence.

A profoundly affecting documentary that gives the survivors of the Holocaust a voice and real empathy in the process. It's harrowing, and not an easy watch, but it does feel like an important one too. 8/10.

[theoscarsproject]

Harlan County USA (1976). A heartbreaking record of the thirteen-month struggle between a community fighting to survive and a corporation dedicated to the bottom line.

God, to say this documentary is devastating is an understatement. It plays as a huge indictment on corporate mining and the lives lost to the literal coal face. It’s beautifully shot, lets the people speak for themselves, but also never loses sight of its goal. It’s extremely affecting and a must watch. 9/10.

[theoscarsproject]

Marjoe (1972).Part documentary, part expose, this film follows one-time child evangelist Marjoe Gortner on the "church tent" Revivalist circuit, commenting on the showmanship of Evangelism and "the religion business", prior to the start of "televangelism".

Gosh, this feels in a lot of ways like the precursor to a lot of our modern day documentaries. As the synopsis says, it’s as much an expose as it is a documentary – a beckon behind the curtain – and it really is a fascinating look at a child born into a con who both benefits from it, plays his role, and reviles it. It’s rough viewing (and too long there at the end), but it’s good viewing too, and worth checking out. 7.5/10.

[theoscarsproject]

Hearts and Minds (1974). An examination of the conflicting attitudes of the opponents of the Vietnam War.

Gosh, this is a really good documentary, and a really insightful, empathetic, critical look at the Vietnam War. The interviews are compelling, the pacing well-structured, the focus evolves in a way that feels organic too. It’s heartbreaking, harrowing and a really keen-eyed look at not just the tragedy of war, but the cold machinations of international politics. It’s really, really good. 8/10.

[theoscarsproject]

Journey into Self (1969). The film portrays a 16-hour group-therapy session for eight well-adjusted people who had never met before.

This is a pretty interesting documentary on identity in the late 1960s in America. It’s insightful, and quite well shot, and a real snapshot of a time, a group of people and a society, both widely and specifically. It’s a compelling, intimate movie and one worth the watch. 7/10.