Documentary
Erasing David
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Erasing David

2009
British citizen David Bond decides to find out, for better or for worse, just how private his identity is - by hiring detectives to locate him after he's "disappeared" for a month. His goal: to see if one can drop out of sight in this day and age.

Directed by:

  • Melinda McDougall
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Stolen
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    Stolen

    2006
    In 1990, thieves absconded with 13 masterpieces -- including works by Rembrandt and Vermeer -- from Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, pulling off the greatest art heist in U.S. history. Rebecca Dreyfus's investigative documentary delves into this modern mystery, piecing together clues gleaned from archival documents, art critics, historians, collectors and informants (both credible and dubious) to shed light on the as-yet unsolved case.

    Directed by:

  • Rebecca Dreyfus
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    War Don Don
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    War Don Don

    2010
    Filmmaker Rebecca Richman Cohen offers this gripping documentary that follows the sensational trial of Issa Sesay, a controversial leader in Sierra Leone's bloody civil war who stands accused of heinous crimes against humanity.

    Directed by:

  • Rebecca Richman Cohen
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    American Waitress, New Mexico
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    American Waitress, New Mexico

    2002
    Director Vanessa Vassar's humorous and humbling documentary puts a name to the face of four New Mexico food servers, who dispense their thoughts about social structures, sexual politics and spirituality with hard-won grace and wit. Their views about the vocation range from realistic to romantic to existential, but the mystery of how these waitresses spend their time off -- motorcycling, welding, mountain climbing -- may be the greater revelation.

    Directed by:

  • Vanessa Vassar
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Archeology of Memory: Villa Grimaldi
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    Archeology of Memory: Villa Grimaldi

    2008
    Years after he was incarcerated in the vicious detention center Villa Grimaldi under the rule of Gen. Augusto Pinochet, Chilean exile musician Quique Cruz returns to his homeland to mount an ambitious and moving multimedia art piece. Along the way, he enlists the help of other artist friends who were imprisoned with him. This film was an official selection at the Vancouver Film Festival and at California's Mill Valley Film Festival.

    Directed by:

  • Quique Cruz
  • Marilyn Mulford
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Howard Hughes: His Women and His Movies
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    Howard Hughes: His Women and His Movies

    2000
    A reclusive millionaire who owed his fortune to his father, Howard Hughes staked his fame on many things, including his credits as a producer, director and aviator. But he is perhaps best known for his skills as a Casanova, reportedly romancing Jean Harlow, Ginger Rogers, Lana Turner, Rita Hayworth and Bette Davis. Actor Billy Zane narrates this documentary, which offers a glimpse of the man behind the glamour.

    Directed by:

  • Jeremy Geltzer
  • Mary Jane Morrison
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Shining Soul: Helen Keller's Spiritual Life and Legacy
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    Shining Soul: Helen Keller's Spiritual Life and Legacy

    2005
    While many people know the particulars of Helen Keller's battle to find her voice, few are aware of the depth and importance of her religious and spiritual beliefs, which are explored in this thought-provoking program. Keller was perhaps most influenced by the work of Swedish philosopher and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772), a man who claimed to have talked to angels and to have been directed by God himself.

    Directed by:

  • Penny Price
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Vlast (Power)
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    Vlast (Power)

    2010
    Documentarian Cathryn Collins makes her directorial debut with a poignant portrait filmed over the course of several years, dissecting the evolution of political power in Russia through the rise and fall of oil exec Mikhail Borisovich Khodorkovsky. Once the richest Russian alive, Khodorkovsky found himself arrested and his company seized after publicly opposing Vladimir Putin's leadership. But until his name is cleared, "freedom" is relative.

    Directed by:

  • Cathryn Collins
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    To Catch a Dollar: Muhammad Yunus Banks on America
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    To Catch a Dollar: Muhammad Yunus Banks on America

    2010
    Gayle Ferraro's documentary tells the story of Muhammad Yunus, a figure whose special banking system financed the dreams of more than 7 million impoverished Bangladeshi women, here attempting to do the same for the women of Queens, New York. Over the course of 30 years, Yanus has built a model of practical philanthropy, and this film serves to demonstrate that the so-called Third World and the so-called First aren't as far apart as they seem.

    Directed by:

  • Gayle Ferraro
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Sweetgrass
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    Sweetgrass

    2010
    As much a work of cultural anthropology as it is a documentary, this unique film traces the path of a family of Montana sheepherders as they drive their flock down from the treacherous and beautiful Absaroka Beartooth mountain range.

    Directed by:

  • Ilisa Barbash
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Making Grace
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    Making Grace

    2005
    In this intimate documentary, filmmaker Catherine Gund examines lesbian motherhood through the eyes of longtime partners Ann Krsul and Leslie Sullivan, who desperately want to have a child. Charting their unconventional path toward parenthood, from the first tough decisions -- such as choosing a sperm donor and deciding who will carry the child -- to their joy at the birth of baby Grace, this moving film reveals a uniquely emotional journey.

    Directed by:

  • Catherine Gund
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    The Two Cubas
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    The Two Cubas

    2005
    Living within the confines of Fidel Castro's intolerant regime, Jose Rodriguez and Jose Luis open up to the creators of this Logo network documentary series and share their experiences on what it's like to be a gay man in Cuba. While Rodriguez never sees himself living any other place than Cuba, it's always been Luis's dream to travel to Germany, and it's the circumstances surrounding this desire that occupies much of this unique series.

    Directed by:

  • Carolina Valencia
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    Life on the Road with Mr. and Mrs. Brown
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    Life on the Road with Mr. and Mrs. Brown

    2009
    James Brown -- the hardest-working man in show business -- reveals his most intimate domestic secrets in this biographical documentary about his marriage to fourth wife, Tomi Rae Brown, their careers, creative collaboration and inspiration. In addition to featuring concert footage, interviews and rare archival material, the film reveals Tomi Rae's own musical accomplishments and the controversy over her husband's arrest in 2004 for domestic violence.

    Directed by:

  • Sheila Lussier
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    Manufacturing Dissent
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    Manufacturing Dissent

    2007
    This documentary dissects Michael Moore's unconventional approach to filmmaking. From his debut feature, Roger and Me, to Oscar winner Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11, Moore's films are scrutinized with an emphasis on errors and omissions.

    Directed by:

  • Rick Caine
  • Debbie Melnyk
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    Women & Spirituality
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    Women & Spirituality

    1992
    This renowned trilogy from activist filmmaker Donna Read examines the role that feminine-based spirituality has played throughout history, from goddess-based, pre-Christian faiths all the way up to present-day practices. The presentation also delves into the medieval witch hunts, the persecution of powerful women in Renaissance Europe and how modern women have come full circle in their current reclamation of ancient, female-centered spirituality.

    Directed by:

  • Donna Read
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    A Walk into the Sea: Danny Williams and the Warhol Factory
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    A Walk into the Sea: Danny Williams and the Warhol Factory

    2006
    In this Tribeca Film Festival selection, director Esther Robinson paints an affecting portrait of her uncle, Danny Williams -- a talented young artist and former lover of pop-culture icon Andy Warhol -- who inexplicably vanished at age 27. Highlights include footage from Williams' 16mm films and interviews with colorful Factory personalities such as Brigid Berlin, John Cale, Gerard Malanga, Paul Morrissey and Billy Name.

    Directed by:

  • Esther Robinson
    • rating:3.1.png 3.1 Average Rating


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    Now and Then
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    Now and Then

    1995
    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.png 3.8 Average Rating


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    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   
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