Facing The Wind (2024) DOC NYC 2024

Portrait of a group of women who come together to support each other as their partners slip away to dementia and Alzheimer’s.

This is a solid at what it’s like at ground zero for a those living with a terrible disease. I love that the film gives us a view of a community of women is hopeful. We really get a sense of there being people out there who can help them cope and get by. Too often we see similar stories but it’s always focused on one brave family fighting on.

My only complaint is that this could have been longer than an hour because I would have loved to have spent more time with these wonderful people.

Recommended.

LEFT BEHIND (20202424) DOC NYC

When a group of mothers realize that the NYC school system is not supporting their children with dyslexia they take steps to help their kids even it means suing the school system or starting their own school.

This is an excellent look at being a parent with a child who learns differently.  Having had dyslexia and having been forced through a normal system I completely understood what these kids and parents were going through. While I was lucky and stumbled into teachers who could help me learn, that isn’t always the case and some parents have to take matters into their own hands. Watching the film I could see myself in these kids.

What I like about this film is it makes clear why these kids need to be helped how the extra help makes a difference. We get to see the result of the teaching kids with special needs- and make them so much better and thus make us better.

What a great film

Highly recommended.

SABBATH QUEEN (2024)opens Friday at the IFC Center and December in LA

This is Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie's arc of a life as he finds a path to God as a gay man, occasional drag queen, rabbi, father and founder of Lab/Shul a god optional congregation where everyone is welcome.

This was one of the most moving films at this years Tribeca. It frequently reduced me to tears as we watch one man tries to find his own way to salvation. It's a journey with unexpected turns, some grumpy parts and where everything is full of love. Amichai is nothing if not full of god's love in a way that I have only seen in a handful of people. 

What makes the film so powerful is that there is no clear through line. We don't know where this is going or how it will end up. We are traveling with Amichai as he finds his place. It's a deeply moving journey because unlike in most other biographical docs we get a sense of the life off the screen. We know there is more than we are being told and that somehow makes us love him more. We also don't like him at times which makes him more fully human.

When the film ended I told several friends that they not only had to see the film but go to Lab/Shul because it appears to be the spiritual place they were looking for.

One of the great films of 2024.

OPENING IN LOS ANGELES ON 12/6 - LAEMMLE ROYAL THEATRE

76 Days Adrift (2024) DOC NYC

The story of Steven Callahan whose boat, The Napoleon Solo, sank and was forced to live in a rescue raft for almost 3 months as told by the man himself

Very straight forward retelling of what happened via Callahan sitting in his chair and some POV recreations.  It’s an exciting tale that is interesting but not as interesting as it could have been. Blame Callahan who tells his story a bit too straight forwardly.  Clearly he’s told the story a few too many times over the last few decades. It’s not bad, but its not great.

Quibble aside it is a hell of a tale and as such recommended.

DOC NYC Capsule Reviews : MOTHERS OF CHIBOK and THE BATTLE FOR LAIKIPIA

MOTHERS OF CHIBOK
The mother of the Nigerian village of Chibok  mourn the loss of the daughters taken by Boko Haram and try to go on. 

Solid portrait of shattered lives that gives us a view of the story beyond what the news crews show. Sure, we hear of the kidnapping but what does that mean we never know, until now.  This is an eye opening film and one that should be seen.

THE BATTLE FOR LAIKIPIA
The battle in Kenya over water and land rights in the wake of on going drought. The farmers and herders need the land and water and the ranchers don't want to give up what little they have. Can a solution be worked out.

A complex and an increasing important issue is put into sharp focus. Wonderfully fair to both sides of the issue we get a sense of what is possible and what will have to be done in the future.

Worth a look

DOC NYC Capsule Reviews: MOSES - 13 STEPS, WE ALL BLEED RED, and TWICE IN OBLIVION

MOSES 13-STEPS
Nominally this is the life and times of Edwin Moses who went unbeaten in the 400 meter hurdles after he worked out mathematically how to do it. In actuality it is a look at the arc of Moses' life  in every corner of his life.

Set p to be just a sports doc, the film covers so much more such as the changes in society that were welling up all l around him. The film transcends being just a portrait of a man to become something greater

WE ALL BLEED RED
Photographer Martin Schoeller best known for taking photographs of famous people also takes photographs of less famous people and the disenfranchised. Most importantly he listens to their stories.

Magnificent film is not so much a film about Schoeller, but instead it's about all of humanity. Listening to the tales that go with the pictures makes them even more Beautiful.  This is one of the great finds of the festival.

Highly recommended.

TWICE INTO OBLIVION
Actors from both Haiti and The Dominican Republic come together to do a theater piece on the 1937 massacre of 20,000 Haitians in the Dominican Republic.

I'm honestly mixed on this film. I was very interested in the history and the discussion of the events surrounding the massacre, but is didn't much care for the theatrical piece being put together. To me that was the least interesting thing here.

DOC NYC Capsule Reviews FLAVORS OF IRAQ, LIGHT DARKNESS LIGHT and EVERYTHING YOU HAVE IS YOURS

FLAVORS OF IRAQ
Journalist Feurat Alani tells the story of his life and his connection to the homeland of his parents, Iraq.

One of the great discover at this year's DOC NYC, FLVORS OF IRAQ makes the case as to why some docs should be animated. While what Alani is telling us is the truth as far as we know, the images we see add so much more to the visceral impact of the tale because that help bring a better understanding to what we are seeing. Yes the images are often manipulated, but at the same time the art allows for faster moment through time and space that you wouldn't have with any other medium.

More importantly the film tells the story of Ira over the last half century, not shying away from things that we would not see on the nightly news. The result is a film that stuns us and makes us really think about what we are seeing

One of my favorite films at DOC NYC.

LIGHT DARKNESS LIGHT
This is the story of a blind Anglican priest Ian Nichols, who  is given an electronic eye to help him see.

This is a magical film that for a short while seems like it's going to be a pretentious feel good film. But not long into the film Nichols begins to charm the pants off you and the films pretensions change into something else. Suddenly this isn't a distant tale, but an intimate portrait with a genuine sense of wonder at seeing the world in a new way.  Trust me, when you get  to the end  and he can see and the sense of wonder that he radiates will make you feel good all over.

One of the great discoveries of this years DOC NYC.

EVERYTHING YOU HAVE IS YOURS
This is a look at choreographer and dancer Hadar Ahuvia who prepares a piece that looks at the Zionist myths.

How you react to this film is going to be determined by how you connect to the dancing. If you enjoy watching the behind the scenes footage of Ahuvia putting the piece together  cup of teathen you are going to enjoy the film. If you are like me and want a bit more meat this may end up a tough haul.

Not my

Death By Numbers (2024) DOC NYC 2024

Sam Fuentes prepares to face the school shooter who shot her in the leg and who killed 17 of her classmates with bullets and 3 by suicide after the fact.

Mediation on the rash of school shootings and the carnage they leave behind via the word of one of the survivors who has kept an accounting of the damage caused. It's a bracing look at something that has become all too common over the last few years.

Worth a look.

DOC NYC capsule reviews: JANIS IAN BREAKING THE SILENCE and DISCO'S REVENGE

JANIS IAN: BREAKING SILENCE
This is a look at singer song writer Janis Ian who began to get noticed when she was 13 and ended up changing how millions of people saw the world.

Produced for American Masters, this look at the life and career of Ian is awesome. This film is everything you could want to know about her and then some. Full of great music and great stories it's sure to please fans and non-fans alike.

DISCO'S REVENGE
This is a look at the rise and fall and eventual rise of Disco told by the men and women who were there.

Good look at the music many people love to hate (except for the songs that they love) has a lot of stories you probably have never heard before. At the same time this film suffers from much of this having been told before in other forms. If you are a music doc junkie like me this film is not going to be as fresh as you would like. At the same time that's quibbling because some of the tales are choice.

Worth a look.

A MAN with SOLE: The Impact of Kenneth Cole (2024) DOC NYC 2024

This is a look at how Kenneth Cole has made a difference with various social causes such as the fight against AIDS and for increased mental health awareness.

I alternately think this is a great documentary and a terrible one.  As a slick portrait of a man and his causes this film is great. It shows us how Cole has helped shape the world for the better. It's an an amazing piece  about a man who is trying to make the world a better place.

At the same time the film is incredibly slick and assumes you know who Cole is, who everyone  and what everything he mentions is, that you are willing to forgive the fact that all the while Cole is talking about his causes he is talking about how he is using it to build his brand. He does want to change the world but he also wants to make a buck.

I honestly don't know if this is a good film or a bad one. I love what Cole is doing but the construction of the film is so self serving and so in the know that the film is hard to get close to. I felt completely out of the loop.

The problem is the film starts with Cole talking about starting his business, failing restarting and doing a show in a tractor trailer and getting his company off the ground. It then breezes through things to the AIDS crisis  at which time the film is purely about his causes and how it ties into his brand. There s no sense of who he is, with the film essentially starting at the point most other docs would have taken 10 or 15 minutes to get to. Worse is the fact that the film moves  along talking about people, and things with a minimal effort to explain who they are or why they are included. Yes some are people who ended up in ads, but other things are not so clear. There was no ah ha moment in any of it just a race to the next thing.

There is no context, only an assumption that if you are watching the film you know who Kenneth Cole is so you don't need to know anything other than what is on the screen. Back story? Who needs that? That isn't a snide remark, its something I'm saying because this is a hell of a tale about a hell of a guy and if they gave context or explanation they would  win a lot more fans.  This should have been an award winning film that plays to everyone instead of a film that is going to play best to people who know Cole already. 

Worth a look but it should have been better.

Diane Warren: Relentless (2024) DOC NYC 2024

She’s won pretty much every award and has written songs for everyone and according to Cher,  she’s insane.

This is an absolutely delightful film about a rally cool woman. Its full of great music an even greater stories, told by the friends who love her and aren’t afraid to tell the stories.

I don’t know what else to say. This film is such a delight that I really don’t have much to say. I mean I’ve spent the last few says trying to figure out how to put a smile into the review. I mean that’s the best thing the film does, it makes us feel the great musical moments of our past and hit so hard that you can’t do anything other than smile.

This film is a delight and one of the best films at DOC NYC.

It will be in theaters on January 10, 2025 and streaming on MasterClass January 16

ART SPIEGELMAN: DISASTER IS MY MUSE (2024) DOC NYC

This is a look at artist Art Spiegelman and how the great works of his life were tied to tragedy, in particular the Holocaust that destroyed his extended family which he turned into Maus, and the events of 9/11 which was turned into In The Shadow Of No Towers.

Directors Molly Bernstein and Philip Dolin primarily focus on Maus and the trauma that spawned it. While not everything you might want to know about the books, it's close.  I'm mixed on that. While what here is choice, the problem for me is that as a fan of Spiegelman I had heard much of this  before (thanks to the copious use of footage). It's understandable because the film was paid for in part by American Masters but as a long time fan of Art Spiegelman I was bit disappointed because he did so much more. 

Understand I was a fan of his work before I knew who he was thanks to his work for Topps cards. He did work for their baseball cards and most importantly Wacky Packages and later Garbage Pail Kids. I loved his sense of bent humor and completely understand how he, like myself was warped by Mad Magazine.  As I got older I was aware of his work in underground comics.  And then Maus hit and the world found out about him. But their was a boatload of other things than Maus and it's breezed over.

If you are fine with that this film is top form. If you really want to know about a man whose art has changed the world (it really had even before Maus) you may find yourself wanting to know more.

Ernest Cole: Lost and Found (2024) plays DOC NYC 2024 tonight and opens Friday in theaters

This is a portrait of South African photographer Ernest Cole, who left his homeland and apartheid and moved to America where he chronicled the similarities between America and South Africa.

Largely made up of photographs left behind and undiscovered until after his passing this film is an eye opened. Seeing the images larger than life is a true awe inspiring experience. You may think you've seen life in the bad old days before but Cole's images will open your eyes to so many new things.

Coupled with Cole's words this film is not just a portrait of a time but of a man a drift in it. Through Cole's words we get to know what it felt like to live through the events that he was chronicling. 

It's a staggering achievement that you really should see, especially with on a big screen where the images can over power you.

Highly recommended.

Plunderer(2024) Doc NYC 2024

This is a portrait of Bruno Lohse who was Herman Goering’s art expert and responsible for some of the plundering of art during the second world war. We are told Lohse‘s story by Jonathan Petropoulos​, who became his friend in order to find out the secrets of where the art went.

This is an excellent look at  a part of the war that we all are aware of but which hasn’t been explored. What happened to the great art treasures of the conquered nations. This film will tell you. It will also explain how these art plunderers managed to survive after the war (the plundering was seen as the least of the crimes committed).

As a history junkie I was in heaven. There was so much here that I hadn’t known or considered. My eyes were opened up to a great deal.

Additionally and most importantly, this is a hell of a story that is going to grab you and pull you  along.  I loved this film a great deal.

Go get some popcorn and see this.

THE PORCELAIN WAR (2024) DOCNYC 2024

Ukraine is like porcelain, you can break it but you can’t destroy it.

A look at Slava, Anya and Andrey, three artists who are still in Ukraine fighting the Russians and still making their art- small porcelain figures that they create and leave in various places.

The pair works in porcelain because the material is nigh indestructible. Yes it breaks but you can repair it and clean it up even after millennia. Their medium is a message.

A beautiful and loving film about the human spirit in trying times this is a wonderful portrait of life in Ukraine that is counter to al the other death and destruction films. Here we see how much life there is. It’s something that is going to come as a revelation to many people who see the country as bombed out.

I was moved.

I have to mention a brief animated sequence near the end of the film that usesAnya's art. It’s a glorious little tid bit that is pure cinematic magic. I would love to see her designs as the basis for a whole film.

See this film

Witches (2024)

 

Elizabeth Sankey’s WITCHES is magnificent.

Framed as a personal journey the film is an exploration  of witches that begins as an look at them from a cinematic standpoint and then changes into a and exploration of motherhood  and then into history lesson. It’s an ever evolving film that will grab you and drag you along….and then make you want to go right back in and see it again because you have to see everything you didn’t quite catch.

This is one of those films that I finished and started emailing everyone I know to see it. I don’t mean film writers, but filmmakers and film fans. This film has so much in it that almost everyone I know is going to find something to love in it.

What makes the film work is that Sankey frames the film as a personal tale. She sits us down and then begins talking about the way she saw witches as a kid, nominally through cinema, and then she opens up the tale into more personal places talking about the birth of her son and how that made her feel…and from there she links it all sorts of things.  It’s a brilliant piece of movie making and it makes the film something truly special.

I absolutely love this film.

I’m  not going to do a deeper dive right now because I really need to see it a second and third time.

WITCHES is easily one of the best films at Tribeca and one of the best films of 2024

The Falling Sky (2024) DOC NYC 2024

THE FALLING SKY is a must see. The film is the story of the Amazonian Yanomami people preparing to perform a ceremony to celebrate the father in law of activist Davi Kopenawa which will hold up the sky and to give them time to come together battle a mining company with designs on their land.

This is great filmmaking. It's a film that starts with a nine minute single take of the Yanomami people returning from a hunt (it was the first shot filmed for the film). Its a film that pulls us into the film and moves us into the forest in a way that I've rarely seen a film do. It's a brilliant move.

This film is so good that you feel that it more a narrative rather than a documentary simply because the vast majority of documentaries don’t give you the depth of “character” that FALLING SKY does. This is a film that doesn’t attach us to one or two people who are way through a subject, but instead this film gives us a sense of everyone who passes before our eyes. We come to love  and feel for all the Yanomami because we have been introduced to all of them. Comparing it to a narrative is not a knock but high praise. As a result of this people are going to connect with out any of the walls that many people have concerning docs. With docs some people feel it's "those" people. With narrative its "us". I have no idea why but many people view fake characters as real.

WOW.

This is a film you are going to watch several times simply because it’s a good film telling a great story about great people. Beyond the great story the film is an important one since it gives us insight into the battle for the Yanomami land. It makes clear what will be lost if the land the land slips from their hands and ends up  in the hands of industry and the people scattered.

This is one of the great film on so many levels.

Go see it.

I will have an interview with activist Davi Kopenawa and co-director Eryk Rocha when the film gets its regular theatrical run in the spring

BILLY PRESTON: THAT’S THE WAY GOD PLANNED IT(2024) DOC NYC 2024

Portrait of legendary musician Billy Preston. The only person credited with the Beatles he fought to get out of  shadow of being a session musician and chart his own career. It was a move that resulted in several classic albums and even more classic songs.

I am a Billy Preston fan When Ringo Starr took his All Starr Band out for the first time Preston was included. I delighted in seeing him sing in many of his biggest hits. Sadly I never got to see him after that. After seeing this film I know why.

This a warts and all look at Preston’s life. The highs are there, as are the lows, the abuse as a child, his closeted sexuality, substance  abuse and health issues. It’s a film that is open and honest about the man at its center.

The most important thing about the film is that it is a glorious celebration of the man and his music. There is all sorts of great music here and odds are when it’s done you’ll be tracking down anything you don’t already have.

This is just a great film

Highly recommended

Beyond the Gaze: Jule Campbell's Swimsuit Issue (2024) DOC NYC 2024

The life and times of the Sport’s Illustrated Swimsuit issue  as told by the woman behind it, the photographers who shot them and the women who filled the pages. It’s the story of how one person changed the lives of many people for the better and how ultimately the cheesecake photos resulted in things that were so much more than just eye candy.

This is a good look at Campbell and the people who crossed her path. It’s a film that is going to tell you everything you wanted to know about the Campbell and then some. Perhaps a little bit too much. While the film is never bad I began to run out of steam  probably about 30 minutes before the end. I think it was more that I had heard everything I felt I needed to at that point.  That’s not a knock, but more a statement that I had to step away.

Quibble aside, the film is quite good and worth a look.

Turtle Walker (2024) DOC NYC 2024

This is a portrait of  Satish Bhaskar who walked nearly the entire coastline of India and chronicled the state of the sea turtle population.

An interview with Bhaskar is mixed with some spectacular images of sea turtles and recreation of his life. It's a look at a man whose work has helped preserve the lives of countless turtles.

I'm very mixed on this film.  I love the subject, I love the images, oh how I love the images, but I don't love the presentation. The problem is that there is too much use of recreations. We are constantly looking at sequences of Bhaskar at various ages. That might have worked but the film loves to use rapid cuts, especially of him at various ages, for no really good reason.  Watching the film I was constantly distracted by the technical virtuosity rather than the subject. It kills me because the talk by Bhaskar and the images of the turtles are so good it doesn't need anything else.

I'm bitching because if the filmmakers had just trusted the subject and the images this film would have been truly great instead of just good.

My kvetching aside, this is still worth a look, especially if you can see it big.