Documentary
Click for all titles
On the Downlow
rating:2.8

On the Downlow

2007Runtime:0 minutes
In this fascinating 2007 documentary, experimental filmmaker Abigail Child and cinematographer Arthur Jafa shadow four African-American males who are living dichotomous sexual lifestyles in Cleveland. Tending to their sexual needs "on the downlow" while maintaining a veneer of being straight, these conflicted men are ultimately forced to confront the realities of their sexual choices and the subsequent effects on their lives.

Directed by:

  • Abigail Child
  • rating:2.8 2.8 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    The Third Wave
    rating:2.8

    The Third Wave

    2007Runtime:0 minutes
    This uplifting documentary follows New York filmmaker Alison Thompson and her boyfriend, Oscar Gubernati, as they travel to Sri Lanka after the 2004 tsunami, intending to help in any way they can.

    Directed by:

  • Alison Thompson
  • rating:2.8 2.8 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Venus Boyz
    rating:2.8

    Venus Boyz

    2002Runtime:0 minutes
    Meet a group of women who explore their masculine sides as "drag kings" in this offbeat documentary. Using a legendary Drag King Night in New York as a starting point, we follow some of the women into their lives, whether their drag persona is an identity they assume part-time or full-time. Drag kings in London and Zurich are also interviewed, including some who are experimenting with hormones to accelerate their masculinity.

    Directed by:

  • Gabrielle Baur
  • rating:2.8 2.8 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Family Values: An American Tragedy
    rating:2.8

    Family Values: An American Tragedy

    1996Runtime:0 minutes
    This riveting documentary traces the experiences of filmmaker Pam Walton as she struggles to reunite with her "family values" father after a long-standing rift. Rus Walton -- a radical religious fundamentalist -- disowned his daughter because of her lesbian lifestyle. Although he once suggested that practicing homosexuals should be executed, Pam is willing to pay the emotional price to fulfill her longing for parental acceptance.

    Directed by:

  • Pam Walton
  • rating:2.8 2.8 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Robsessed: Inside the Life of Robert Pattinson
    rating:2.7

    Robsessed: Inside the Life of Robert Pattinson

    2009Runtime:0 minutes
    Fanatically loved by hordes of young people, teen heartthrob and paparazzi magnet Robert Pattinson (Twilight, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) reveals his inner world to devotees in this documentary directed by Irene Antoniades.

    Directed by:

  • Irene Antoniades
  • rating:2.7 2.7 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Daguerréotypes
    rating:2.7

    Daguerréotypes

    1976Runtime:0 minutes
    Experimental filmmaker Agnes Varda presents this vivid documentary portrait of her longtime neighborhood along Paris' Rue Daguerre, compiled from footage that she began shooting in 1974 while caring for her 2-year-old son.

    Directed by:

  • rating:2.7 2.7 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Bill Moyers: Genesis: A Living Conversation
    rating:2.7

    Bill Moyers: Genesis: A Living Conversation

    1996Runtime:0 minutes
    Bill Moyers combines the insights of internationally recognized scholars, scientists and religious leaders in this program about the primeval flood, the creation of Adam and Eve, and other stories from the Book of Genesis.

    Directed by:

  • Catherine Tatge
  • rating:2.7 2.7 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Electile Dysfunction
    rating:2.6

    Electile Dysfunction

    2008Runtime:0 minutes
    Filmmakers Joe Barber and Mary Patel examine the dysfunctional world of American politics through the prism of the 2006 United States Senate race between Democrat Bob Casey Jr. and Republican Rick Santorum. Gullible media, corporate influence and hyper-managed candidate personas are among the myriad subjects covered in this incisive documentary, which includes interviews with Barack Obama, Al Gore, Ed Rendell and many others.

    Directed by:

  • Joe Barber
  • Mary Patel
  • rating:2.6 2.6 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Bill Moyers: Genesis: A Living Conversation
    rating:2.5

    Bill Moyers: Genesis: A Living Conversation

    1996Runtime:0 minutes
    Three of the world's major religions draw deep spiritual and literal meaning from the stories related in the Book of Genesis, including the primeval flood, the creation of Adam and Eve, and God's fateful summons to Abraham. Bill Moyers combines the insights of internationally recognized scholars, scientists and religious leaders in this PBS program about the text that has held people in sway for thousands of years and continues to do so today.

    Directed by:

  • Catherine Tatge
  • rating:2.5 2.5 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Agile, Mobile, Hostile: A Year with Andre Williams
    rating:2.4

    Agile, Mobile, Hostile: A Year with Andre Williams

    2008Runtime:0 minutes
    This candid and engaging documentary chronicles the tumultuous life of 72-year-old blues artist Andre Williams, addressing as its dominant theme the gap between his great musical success and heartbreaking personal desperation. Followed here in 2006 and 2007, Williams once recorded multiple hit tunes and performed with great R&B stars like Stevie Wonder and Ike Turner. But he also suffered through drug addiction, homelessness and legal troubles.

    Directed by:

  • Tricia Todd
  • rating:2.4 2.4 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    History Lessons
    rating:2.2

    History Lessons

    2000Runtime:0 minutes
    In a trilogy of experimental documentaries, director Barbara Hammer rewrites history by inserting lesbians and lesbian imagery throughout educational films, newsreels, medical footage and more from the past century.

    Directed by:

  • Barbara Hammer
  • rating:2.2 2.2 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Refusenik
    rating:2.2

    Refusenik

    2007Runtime:0 minutes
    Offering a glimpse into a little-known battle of the Cold War era, this documentary follows the 30-year fight to free Jews in the U.S.S.R. from Soviet oppression, a movement that resulted in the emigration of more than a million Jews out of Russia.

    Directed by:

  • Laura Bialis
  • rating:2.2 2.2 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Monseñor: The Last Journey of Óscar Romero
    rating:1.9

    Monseñor: The Last Journey of Óscar Romero

    2010Runtime:0 minutes
    Using rare footage from his own collection as well as interviews and photographs, this documentary profiles Óscar Romero, the Salvadoran priest whose championing of the poor and downtrodden against a corrupt government made him a global hero.

    Directed by:

  • Ana Carrigan
  • rating:1.9 1.9 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Frontrunner
    rating:1.9

    Frontrunner

    2008Runtime:0 minutes
    Following the presidential run of Dr. Massouda Jalal in Afghanistan's initial democratic election, this compelling documentary details her experience as the first woman to run for the highest office since the exile of the Taliban. A mother and a physician, Jalal courageously defied the Taliban with her persistent advocacy for children before facing death threats and braving bomb attacks during her presidential campaign.

    Directed by:

  • Virginia Anita Williams
  • rating:1.9 1.9 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    The Best of the Real West: The Battle of the Alamo
    rating:

    The Best of the Real West: The Battle of the Alamo

    1992Runtime:0 minutes
    With Texan independence hanging in the balance, a mixed army of white Americans and Tejanos stave off some 5,000 advancing Mexican soldiers led by Gen. General Antonio López de Santa Anna, defending the Alamo Mission for 13 agonizing days.

    Directed by:

  • Donna E. Lusitana
  • rating: Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire: Episode 1: The Way of the Samurai
    rating:

    Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire: Episode 1: The Way of the Samurai

    2004Runtime:0 minutes
    In late 16th-century Japan, samurai Tokugawa Ieyasu allies himself with the country's most powerful clans, eventually assuming command of their armies. Ieyasu's loyalty, however, only goes so far, and in 1614, he renounces his allies and slaughters more than 100,000 in his quest to become Japan's new ruler.

    Directed by:

  • Lyn Goldfarb
  • Deborah Ann DeSnoo
  • rating: Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Now and Then
    rating:3.8

    Now and Then

    1995Runtime:0 minutes
    Waxing nostalgic about the bittersweet passage from childhood to puberty in this tender coming-of-age tale, four childhood girlfriends -- Teeny, Chrissy, Samantha and Roberta -- recall the magical summer of 1970. During their walk down memory lane, they reconcile experiences with boys, secrets, bullies and more. Lesli Linka Glatter directs; Gaby Hoffmann, Ashleigh Aston Moore, Cloris Leachman, Thora Birch and Christina Ricci co-star.

    Directed by:

  • Lesli Linka Glatter
  • rating:3.8 3.8 Average Rating

    Buy On Amazon
    Now and Then (1995)
    A heartwarming movie about four childhood girlfriends who, in adulthood reunion, relive their experience of the life-changing summer of 1970, including a mystery death, divorce, standing up to the boys, first kiss, and the meaning of true friendship. Each explores her unique identity amidst family and friends. Beautifully directed by Lesli Linka Glatter.
    - Frances   
    We periodically update our movie database by adding new female directors and their movies. If you would like to receive notice of these new additions when they happen, please email us at:
    frances 'at' femaledirectors.com