Cameraperson
Film can be an interpretive medium with beautiful images and ideas that can reflect cultures and the current state of the world. It’s an incredible way for people to tell stories and ignite discussion.
Documentary
Bodyguards: Secret Lives from the Watchtower
Bodyguards often have the most interesting stories and they take pride in telling them, so it’s no surprise that a documentary like Jaren Hayman’s Bodyguards: Secret Lives from the Watchtower exists. It’s more than possible for a filmmaker to scrounge up enough material to provide a riveting peek into this line of work.
An Eye for an Eye
In the wake of the terrorism committed on the United States of America on 9/11, patriotism crossed into dark vigilanteism for some scared Americans – Mark Stroman was one of those people.
Gimme Danger
Gimme Danger is by no means a groundbreaking documentary. It’s by-the-book filmmaking, full of talking heads and archival footage, and very much reminiscent of the punk rock films of Don Letts. The Letts comment, of course, is not a negative at all. Don Letts is a great person to emulate when searching for cinematic punk rock aesthetics.
Michael Moore in TrumpLand
As divisive as he is, Michael Moore has struck a chord with audiences. His recent ideas about how satire will lead to Donald J. Trump’s demise in this year’s controversial presidential race are used as an outline to preach in his latest film Michael Moore in TrumpLand, a doc made in secrecy that features the Michigan native addressing a crowd of voters in Wilmington, Ohio.
Art Bastard
Victor Kanefsky’s Art Bastard asks broad questions about the relationship between art and politics. Its subject, American artist Robert Cenedella, serves a micro-answer to some of these broad questions. Although Kanefsky is successful in arguing for Cenedella’s work as critical satirical representations of U.S. political culture, the film lacks energy.
The Lovers and the Despot
In 1978, South Korean actor Choi Eun-hee went missing. Her ex-husband, director Shin Sang-ok, made it his mission to find her when he too went missing. Their whereabouts remained elusive for some time, but the answer that eventually came out was stranger than any potential explanation: the two South Korean celebrities had been kidnapped by none other than North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il with the purpose of having them direct films for the people of…
Command and Control
Based on the book of the same name by acclaimed non-fiction author Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation), Command and Control delves deep into the how and why of the 1980 Damascus Titan missile explosion.
TIFF 2016: ‘Abacus: Small Enough to Jail’
I was utterly enamoured by Steve James’ ode to film journalist Roger Ebert in 2014’s Life Itself. My wife, on the other hand, found it difficult to tap in to and suggested it was because she didn’t have any preinvested interest. With James’ latest doc Abacus: Small Enough to Jail, I relate to my wife’s prior disconnect. Not because of the content, but because of the documentarian’s chosen genre. Audiences who are riveted by courtroom…
TIFF 2016: ‘India In a Day’
First, the good news: India In a Day moves quickly. As a fan of 2011’s Life In a Day (also co-produced by Ridley Scott), I can admit that Kevin MacDonald’s doc had sagging stretches of unhelpful video. The filmmaker and his editor were too comfortable, which meant they often forgo their timeline.