02014.03: A Yearlong Film Viewing Balancing Act
Films I'm watching in March 02014. Part of A Yearlong Film Viewing Balancing Act. #yfvba http://olearysreellife.tumblr.com/ @olearysreellife
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- DirectorAlexandra HidalgoIn order to meet stringent beauty standards, Venezuelan women often turn to plastic surgery. This documentary features conversations with 14 Venezuelan women and men on the subject.02014.03.01: on YouTube
- DirectorGerald PearyStarsPatricia ClarksonHarry Jay KnowlesElvis MitchellThe history of American film criticism.02014.03.01: Streamed on Netflix
- DirectorRick RowleyStarsJeremy ScahillNasser Al AulaqiSaleha Al AulaqiInvestigative journalist Jeremy Scahill is pulled into an unexpected journey as he chases down the hidden truth behind America's expanding covert wars.02014.03.01: Streamed on Netflix
- DirectorAnna KerriganStarsAnna KerriganAustin LysySam RosenCamden is thrilled to meet Alice, the half sister she never knew. In an effort to bond, the sisters and their significant others take a trip to Lionshead, the family estate in Massachusetts. Tensions build and ultimately explode over a week in the country.02014.03.02: streamed on Seed&Spark
- DirectorJoe Turner LinStarsEdward CrawfordNoah GalvinMatt HopkinsThree generations of reckless and unsustainable development have transformed the future environment into an almost total wasteland. Refugees from the future have found a way to return to the past, but the impact on present-day resources and fear of these 'immigrants' has led to the formation of citizen watch groups, who are determined to stop these time-travelers at any cost. Jackson, the teenage son of one of these bounty hunters, is enlisted into his first patrol -- eventually forcing him into a brutal choice between his father's principles and his own sense of humanity.02014.03.03: streamed on FutureStates.tv
- DirectorSpike JonzeStarsJoaquin PhoenixAmy AdamsScarlett JohanssonIn a near future, a lonely writer develops an unlikely relationship with an operating system designed to meet his every need.02014.03.04: at AMC with my sweetie.
- DirectorPatricia RozemaStarsFrances O'ConnorJonny Lee MillerAlessandro NivolaFanny, born into a poor family, is sent away to live with wealthy uncle Sir Thomas, his wife and their four children, where she'll be brought up for a proper introduction to society.02014.03.03: downloaded from Amazon Prime. I've lost track of how often I've seen this one. Everytime I see it from a slightly different perspective.
- DirectorAnne FontaineStarsNaomi WattsRobin WrightXavier SamuelA pair of childhood friends and neighbors fall for each other's sons.02014.03.04: on blu-ray from Netflix
- DirectorPratibha ParmarStarsRobert L. AllenTony BrownAngela DavisThis film tells the compelling story of an extraordinary woman's journey from her birth in a paper thin shack in the cotton fields of Georgia to her recognition as a key writer of the twentieth Century.Walker made history as the first black woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for her groundbreaking novel, The Color Purple. A universal story of triumph against all odds not that different from Walker's own. Born, the eight child of sharecroppers, her early life unfolded in the midst of violent racism and poverty during some of the most turbulent years of social/political changes in the U.S. The film offers a penetrating look at the life and art of an artist, a self confessed renegade and human rights activist.02014.03.05: PBS American Masters
- DirectorAlyssa BolseyStarsCarole BolseyReevaluating her creative past leads an artist to explore a new future, breaking many of the visual guidelines she had followed throughout her career.02014.03.06: on Vimeo
- DirectorKristy Guevara-FlanaganStarsLynda CarterJane EspensonMichelle FrankThe history of fictional female heroes in Western media from Wonder Woman's creation onward.02014.03.06: on PBS
- DirectorMargaret BrownIn 2007 Mobile, Alabama, Mardi Gras is celebrated... and complicated. Following a cast of characters, parades, and parties across an enduring color line, we see that beneath the surface of pageantry lies something else altogether.02014.03.07: streamed on Netflix
- DirectorLeah MeyerhoffStarsSarah Bradley-KingPeter CorrieEmma Adele GalvinTwitch portrays a young girl's conflicted relationship with her disabled mother and her irrational fear that the disability is contagious. Slamdance Grand Jury Prize winner and Student Academy Awards finalist.02014.03.07: streamed on Vimeo
- DirectorJen McGowanStarsLily KnightRachel KanouseJohn PallottaAn ode to city life, Touch explores themes of isolation and the universal need for community when two strangers make the most important connection of their lives while waiting for a train.02014.03.08: on Indieflix
- DirectorAllison BergIn Ghana, women accused of witchcraft are torn from their families and banished to isolated "witch villages." This film follows accused witches through their daily struggle to survive in the Kukuo Witches Camp in Northern Ghana. As government agencies attempt to abolish this age-old tradition, these women find themselves caught between their society's deeply rooted beliefs and its drive toward modernization. WITCHES IN EXILE captures a country at a dramatic and emotional crossroads.02014.03.08: on Seed&Spark
- DirectorAnna JusticeStarsAlice DwyerMateusz DamieckiDagmar ManzelA Polish man rescues a Jewish woman during the chaos of WWII, but they become separated until a chance encounter over 30 years later in New York reunites them.02014.03.08: on Netflix
- DirectorValeria PuigStarsOscar SpalterMelanie SpangenbergMaximiliano MartinezA young woman who takes a cab to go back home after a one-night-stand has to face a long trip of confessions and anecdotes told by a lonely cab driver, who ends up telling her one of his deepest secrets.02014.03.09: on YouTube
- DirectorLaura ArchibaldStarsSusan SarandonHappy TraumTom BernadinExplores the music scene in Greenwich Village, New York in the 60's and early 70's. The film highlights some of the finest singer/songwriters of the day.02014.03.09: streamed on Netflix
- DirectorLeticia TonosStarsJulietta RodriguezVictor ChecoGastner LegermeMaria, 18 year old daughter of a single mother, decides to look for the father she has never met after her mother dies in a tragic accident. She finally finds him in a nearby town, living in what appears to be a haunted old country house in the middle of a neglected banana plantation. Amidst the peculiarities and superstitions of the Dominican country side, father and daughter will have to face the ghosts of the past that haunt them both.02014.03.10: at IU Cinema
- DirectorAntonio CoelloStarsMoraima CimarraEvaristo MárquezBernardino Pérez02014.03.10: at IU Cinema
- DirectorKadija LeclereStarsSophie DewulfKhadija BendriouchAbdeslam HaddadSarah, thirty-year-old, goes to Morocco to meet her mother. For the first and the last time.02014.03.10: streamed on Culture Unplugged
- DirectorJulie WymanStarsJ.S. GilbertCheryl HaworthA chronicle of top Olympic weightlifter Cheryl Haworth's struggle to defend her champion status in the twilight of her career.02014.03.11: on PBS
- DirectorSally PotterStarsElle FanningAlice EnglertAnnette BeningA look at the lives of two teenage girls - inseparable friends Ginger and Rosa -- growing up in 1960s London as the Cuban Missile Crisis looms, and the pivotal event that comes to redefine their relationship.02014.03.12: Downloaded from Amazon Instant Video Prime.
- DirectorKat CoiroStarsJustin LongKeir O'DonnellEvan Rachel WoodA young writer tries to impress a girl he meets online with an embellished profile, but he finds himself in a real mess when she falls for him and he has to keep up the act.02014.03.12: on disc from MCPL
- DirectorFrancesca CoppolaStarsSofia CotromanoGiulia RupiRobyn SpanglerSet during the Fall of the Berlin Wall, Flamingos tells the story of Alice, a nine year old girl who spends one last day in the park with her father. The story develops around the delicate and uneasy relationship between a lost father and a daughter on the verge of understanding the difficult dynamics of her family. Flamingos is a story about the loss of innocence and the moment when we realize we are fundamentally alone on our journey through life.02014.03.12: streamed on Vimeo
- DirectorMalakaiStarsKimberly BryantCarol FifeKerrie HolleyBlack Girls Code will change the world. By introducing young girls of color into the fields of science and technology, they are bridging the digital divide. These are the innovators of tomorrow.02014.03.13: streamed on Vimeo
- DirectorKore-eda HirokazuStarsMasaharu FukuyamaMachiko OnoYôko MakiRyota is a successful workaholic businessman. When he learns that his biological son was switched with another boy after birth, he faces the difficult decision to choose his true son or the boy he and his wife have raised as their own.02014.03.13: at IU Cinema
- DirectorCamille KolodziejskiSami KuboStarsSarah AzzinaroPhilippe BestNick HubbardAbby is going through something that will transform her life forever. Can she keep her identity and be happy in a harshly judgmental society?02014.03.14: Downloaded from Vimeo
- DirectorLaura DunnStarsCurtis PetersonGary BradleyWillie NelsonA documentary about the development around Barton Springs in Austin, Texas, and the environment's unexpected response to human interference.02014.03.14: on disc from MCPL.
- DirectorEve CohenWomen cancer survivors form a bond of friendship that launches them on a voyage across the ocean.02014.03.15: short streamed on Seed&Spark.
- DirectorPatrick McGradyStarsStephen FryActor and writer Stephen Fry explores his passion for the world's most controversial composer - Richard Wagner. But Stephen is Jewish and lost family members in the Holocaust, so can he salvage the music he loves from its dark association with anti-semitism and the Nazis? Shot on location in Germany, Switzerland and Russia, the film includes unique behind-the-scenes access to the Bayreuth Festival, the annual extravaganza of Wagner's music held in the composer's own purpose built theatre. Animated by Stephen Fry's trademark wit and intelligence, and featuring a soundtrack of Wagner's extraordinary music, this is a fantastic introduction to the life and legacy of one of the most important composers ever, and a must-see film for those who already know and love his music.02014.03.15: Streamed on Netflix.
- DirectorJem CohenStarsMary Margaret O'HaraBobby SommerEla PiplitsWhen a Vienna museum guard befriends an enigmatic visitor, the grand Kunsthistorisches Art Museum becomes a mysterious crossroads that sparks explorations of their lives, the city, and the ways in which works of art reflect and shape the world.02014.03.15: on disc from Netflix
- DirectorMargaret BrownStarsJoe ElyGuy ClarkWillie NelsonBe Here to Love Me - Chronicles the fascinating and often turbulent life of musician Townes van Zandt.02014.03.16: on disc from MCPL
- DirectorShukree TilghmanStarsBobby CoxErica DouglasLaurie FolkesShukree Hassan Tilghman, a 29-year-old African American filmmaker, goes on a cross-country campaign to end Black History Month.02014.03.16: tivoed from PBS on TV
- DirectorAdetoro MakindeStarsJarvis LangsterDonna DuplantierTravis LangsterWhile a city still heals in the wake of a storm, a little boy discovers how to be a Little Man.02014.03.16: downloaded from vimeo
- DirectorGorman BechardStarsGrant HartIn marked contrast to "Color Me Obsessed," director Gorman Bechard's risky yet rewarding 2011 Replacements documentary that featured no songs or appearances by its subject matter, his upcoming "Every Everything: the music, life & times of Grant Hart" doc completely flips the formula: It's 100% unfiltered, unrestrained Grant Hart. The former Husker Du co-songwriter/singer/drummer welcomes you into his world, immediately addresses any HD reunion possibilities in an old interview, and is shown wailing behind his kit during that renowned middle-American punk band's heyday. And that all happens before the film's title even appears. What follows is a revelatory exploration of a singularly unique artistic force, one whose creative career is often overshadowed by that of his former band mate, and who finally, rightfully, gets a moment in the spotlight. It's an oral, and aural, history of Husker Du's so-called "wild one", from his rocky family life through the formation of his most well-known band; from their bitter break-up into the musical projects that followed; from his troubled past to his hopes for the future. Hart is a captivating, candid subject who holds the screen as he holds forth on everything from the mismanagement of seminal label SST, his relationship with William S. Burroughs, and his forthcoming double-album take on Milton's "Paradise Lost." It's a musician's life, and it's all here. Everything. "I don't want to say I'm a normal person, because I'm the only person I've ever been. I want to be the most excited and exciting person that I can be." - Grant Hart, "Every Everything"02014.03.17: on my very own disc... Gorgeous film.
- DirectorSarah SalovaaraStarsGalen DrukeCharlie HackClara PotterStifled by routine confines, a man moves to his roof.02014.03.18: streamed on Vimeo
- DirectorAmy C. ElliottA documentary about small towns with big things.02014.03.18: downloaded from Amazon Prime Instant Video
- DirectorStacy CalvertStarsStacy CalvertStacy's whole life felt like one big merry-go-round. It wasn't until a life-changing surgery in her early 30's, that she finally realized why. A Million Directions is a personal documentary about life transitions and self discovery.02014.03.19: streamed on Vimeo
- DirectorKorinna AvraamidouStarsStavros LourasChristopher GrecoMaria KitsouAlexandra and Orestes, a handsome young couple, arrive from Athens, to spend the summer holidays with Orestes' family at a beautiful picture-perfect seaside town on Cyprus.02014.03.19: on disc from MCPL
- DirectorSarah GavronStarsTannishtha ChatterjeeSatish KaushikChristopher SimpsonIn 1980s London, Nazneem, a young Bangladeshi woman, feels her soul is quietly dying in her arranged marriage, until the day hot-headed Karim comes knocking at her door.02014.03.20: on disc from Netflix
- DirectorJoey SolowayStarsKathryn HahnLink RuizCesar GarciaRachel tries to spice up her marriage with a trip to a strip club. She befriends McKenna, who gave her a lapdance. McKenna moves in with Rachel's family and becomes a nanny for the son.02014.03.20: on disc from Netflix
- DirectorLynn Hershman LeesonStarsLynn Hershman LeesonB. Ruby RichThrough intimate interviews, provocative art, and rare, historical film and video footage, this feature documentary reveals how art addressing political consequences of discrimination and violence, the Feminist Art Revolution radically transformed the art and culture of our times.02014.03.21: streamed on MUBI
- DirectorTony HardmonRachel LibertStarsJerry EnsmingerMichael PartainMarine Corps Master Sgt. Jerry Ensminger was a devoted Marine for nearly twenty-five years. As a drill instructor he lived and breathed the "Corps" and was responsible for indoctrinating thousands of new recruits with its motto Semper Fidelis or "Always Faithful". When Jerry's nine-year old daughter Janey died of a rare type of leukemia, his world collapsed. As a grief-stricken father, he struggled for years to make sense of what happened. His search for answers led to the shocking discovery of a Marine Corps cover-up of one of the largest water contamination incidents in U.S. history. Semper Fi: Always Faithful follows Jerry's mission to expose the Marine Corps and force them to live up to their motto to the thousands of soldiers and their families exposed to toxic chemicals. His fight reveals a grave injustice at North Carolina's Camp Lejeune and a looming environmental crisis at military sites across the country.02014.03.21: streamed on Sundance Now Doc Club
- DirectorNicole MasonStarsCharles BriceMadisyn ClarkKumari D'ShaySummer's End captures the untamed innocence of youth, and its loss of innocence, as Nicholas experiences his first sexual experience, has his first encounter with love, and ultimately confronts true betrayal by someone that he both trusts and loves. The pain of Nicholas' heartache, and the agony of betrayal, explores the competitive and destructive edges of young friendships through the characters of Drew and Nicholas. Nicholas' fear of exploring his romantic feelings as he is forced to confront the betrayal begins his initial steps toward his emotional manhood.02014.03.22: downloaded from Vimeo
- DirectorCristina IbarraMarthas is a PBS documentary about an extraordinary rite of passage in Laredo, Texas where teenage Mexican-American girls debut in a grand Colonial Ball dressed as American revolutionaries - a tradition that goes back 114 years.02014.03.22: on PBS Independent Lens
- DirectorMarianne ElliottTom MorrisTim Van SomerenStarsNigel AllenDerek ArnoldAlex AveryBased on Michael Morpurgo's novel and adapted for the stage by Nick Stafford, War Horse takes audiences on an extraordinary journey from the fields of rural Devon to the trenches of First World War France.02014.03.23: at IU Cinema... Absolutely amazing.
- DirectorMiguel JironSwirling cosmos of paint give way to a storm of color and drips. An abstract mix of paint on glass and stop motion, Paint Showers is the anticipation, fury, and release of a colorful storm.02014.03.23: on Vimeo
- DirectorAna GuevaraLeticia JorgeStarsNéstor GuzziniMalú ChouzaJoaquín CastiglioniAlberto, a divorced father, takes his two children for a vacation at a thermal resort in Salto. Things don't turn out as planned as the non-stop rain forces them to stay indoors, away from the pools and with no TV. Alberto's efforts to entertain his children are met with indifference by Federico, his youngest son, and Lucía, his teenage daughter.02014.03.24: on disc from Film Movement (in my personal collection)
- DirectorJason OsderStarsBirdie AfricaRamona AfricaWilson GoodeA history of the conflict of the City of Philadelphia and the Black Liberation organization, MOVE, that led to the disastrously violent final confrontation in 1985.02014.03.25: on disc from Netflix.
- DirectorChristopher CaldwellZeek EarlStarsThomas CastleTony DoupeCallie HarlowProspect is the unusual coming-of-age story of a teenage girl on a toxic alien planet. She and her father hunt for precious materials aiming to strike it rich. When the father is attacked by a roving bandit, the daughter must take control.02014.03.26: streamed on Vimeo
- DirectorClio BarnardStarsManjinder VirkChristine BottomleyNatalie GavinPortrayal of the late Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar.02014.03.26: on disc from Netflix.
- DirectorFiras MomaniA half of a man has trouble living in society without his organs falling out.02014.03.27: on netflix
- DirectorPatrick WangStarsSebastian BanesPatrick WangTrevor St. JohnWhen his partner Cody dies in a car accident, Joey learns that their son, Chip, has been willed to Cody's sister. In his now solitary home life, Joey searches for a solution. The law is not on his side, but friends are.02014.03.27: IU Cinema (w/ Patrick Wang in attendance)
- DirectorGrace LeeStarsGrace Lee BoggsDanny GloverBill AyersGrace Lee Boggs is an activist and philosopher in Detroit who has dedicated her life to the next American Revolution and the possibility of a better, more just future for all of humanity. At age 97, she has been building movements and developing strategies for social change for most of her life -- reminding us that revolution is not only possible and necessary, but a process that must always be in motion.02014.03.28: IU Cinema
- DirectorDeborah StratmanA meditation on freedom and technological approaches to manifest destiny.02014.03.29: on disc
- DirectorSu FriedrichStarsSu FriedrichIn Seeing Red, three elements run parallel, overlap, diverge, lock horns and in various other ways give voice to the notion that a color, a melody, or a person has multiple characteristics that cannot be grasped by, or understood within, a simple framework. One element is purely visual. One is very verbal and minimally visual. One is purely musical. So is red the color of a fire truck or a ruby, of rust or a rose, of blood or a brick? How fixed is a melody if it can be twisted, stretched and shaken to the point where we no longer recognize its original form? And when we "see red," what color is that exactly? What aspect of passion are we feeling? Are we looking outward and seeing injustice and cupidity, or looking inward at our own limitations and failings?02014.03.29: on disc
- DirectorAlice GuyIt could be said that the essence of comedy is the misfortune of others. Among other things, of course. In THE FISHERMAN AT THE STREAM, our fisherman is set upon by a band of swimmers (for the sake of humor). Where there is water, someone should be thrown in. When attacked, fight back!02014.03.29: on disc
- DirectorClare KilnerStarsDermot MulroneyDebra MessingJack DavenportSingle-girl anxiety causes Kat Ellis to hire a male escort to pose as her boyfriend at her sister's wedding. Her plan, an attempt to dupe her ex-fiancé, who dumped her a couple years prior, proves to be her undoing.02014.03.29: on disc from MCPL
- DirectorCherien DabisStarsNisreen FaourMelkar MuallemHiam AbbassA drama centered on the trials and tribulations of a proud Palestinian Christian immigrant single mother and her teenage son in small town Indiana.02014.03.30: on disc from Netflix
- DirectorJason WiseStarsBo BarrettShayn BjornholmDave CaubleFour sommeliers attempt to pass the prestigious Master Sommelier exam, a test with one of the lowest pass rates in the world.02014.03.31: streaming on Netflix.